Google Fiber faces delays in Kansas City

The Google Fiber project in Kansas City has hit a snag, the Kansas City Star reported. The problem involves how and where the required wires are to be hung on the utility poles and is said to have set the project back by months. Installation costs and fees are also in dispute.

While Google nor the city officials are admitting that the project is delayed, Google did say previously that customers will be signed up in the fourth quarter of 2011 and the service would launch this winter. Google picked Kansas City because its officials promised they would move quickly.

Google hasn't begun installing the fiber optic network it needs yet and now said it will move the launch back, promising only that it will be out during the first half of the year.

Google was promised that it wouldn't have to pay install fees in exchange for supplying gigabit-per-second Internet connections for 130 locations that include schools, libraries and city buildings. Placing its wires near the power lines is more expensive, as it requires technicians who charge about 50 percent more to attach these cables in the restricted space.

By Electronista Staff