Looking to move someplace where you can stream 20 HD movies on 20 computers at the exact same time without buffering? Pack your bags and get on a bus to Chattanooga, Tennessee, where they just installed the United States’ first and only 1Gbps internet service.
But what will you do with 1Gbps download speed? I have no idea either. I’m sure some enterprising individuals will come up with ways to make even that much broadband feel slow. For average folks, though, you’ll probably need to be a decent-sized office with every employee torrenting gobs of porn just to come close to eating that up.
EPB Fiber Optics, Chattanooga’s government-owned fiber-to-the-premises network, is behind the new infrastructure, which uses Alcatel-Lucent’s gigabit passive optical network (GPON) technology. The lightning-fast internet speed is piggybacked on top of the company’s smart-grid network, which was the actual reason the fiber optic infrastructure was set up in the first place.
As of now, only people in a handful of places, such as Hong Kong and other major cities, have access to such levels of internet speeds. By year’s end, every home, business and mad scientist within EPB’s 600 square-mile, 9 county service area (comprising of 170,000 homes and organizations) will be able to join them.
Already packing your bags and reserving a U-Haul? Do note that they’re still mulling over pricing and are currently leaning towards $350 a month. Coupled with your porn memberships and the high cost of relocation, that could be some serious dent on your piggy bank. Then again, you have no life, so go find your bliss in Chattanooga and make your dreams of lightning-fast internet come true.
[Chattanoogagig via NY Times]