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“All they said is by the end of the year,” said Steve Riley, Hilton Head’s town manager, who is working on the project with a variety of local organizations, including the Hilton Head Island-Bluffton Chamber of Commerce and the Heritage Foundation.
Riley said the decision to submit an application to Google was a “pretty easy one” for all parties interested in pursuing the venture because it represents an opportunity to improve the technology available to current and future businesses, entrepreneurs and vacationers.
Specifications released by Google in reference to the size of the test site or sites are quite broad; the company wants to deliver its trial network setup to an area with 50,000 (minimum) residents.
The experimental broadband fiber-optic network would run at speeds 20 to 100 times faster than residents experience now when downloading data or browsing the contents of their favorite web sites. The service is expected to transmit data at 1 gigabit per second.
But it won’t be free.
According to the Tech Crunch, a well-versed technology blog, “The service will be competitive in price to today’s broadband services from cable and telephone companies, but it will be much faster. Verizon and Comcast must be thrilled.
“Google says it is doing this on a trial basis to promote new killer apps that will take advantage of the faster speeds, experiment with better ways to deploy fiber to the home, and create pressure for more open access to broadband in general.”
For Hilton Head, this futuristic endeavor represents a continuing paradoxical shift from sleepy island town where tourists and weary metropolitan movers and shakers go to escape the rigors of city life, to a well-connected business community that just so happens to have 12 miles of beachfront property.
“Can we hold onto the days where you can completely get away?” Riley asked. “Unfortunately I think those days are gone. You might decide to come down here and go for a day at the spa and turn off the phone for the whole dang day, but you know that sometime before you go to bed you’re going to turn the dang thing back on. And I think that’s where most people are.”
As a part of the application and selection process, Google is encouraging local residents and members of the community to get involved and support the process through online voting and testimonials.
“They’re looking for exposure, and Hilton Head is a place with a worldwide reputation and recognition,” Riley said. “I think we could feed off each other.”
Vote for HHI!
To vote for Hilton Head Island or to read more about the town’s efforts to bring high-speed broadband to the island, visit www.facebook.com/GoogleIsland. The deadline is May 6.
Glossary of terms
Google: A search engine that allows users to conduct searches for information on the Internet.
Fiber optic network: A technology that uses glass (or plastic) threads (fibers) to transmit data. Optical fiber carries much more information than conventional copper wire. Most telephone company long-distance lines are now made of optical fiber.
Broadband: Refers to telecommunications in which a wide band of frequencies is available to transmit information.
Apps: An abbreviation for application. An app is a piece of software that can run on the Internet, on your computer, or on your mobile phone or other electronic device. They can include things like personal planners, games, joke programs, and thousands of other types of applications.
