Kansas City will no longer have free internet service from Google Fiber. Atlanta will have the same situation where Google Fiber is expected to arrive next; however, the option would still be available in Austin and Provo, Texas. Pricing has not been disclosed yet for other Fiber locations in the future.
Google Fiber will remove its free internet option in Kansas City, where in 2011 Fiber became available substituting it with a $50 per month with 100 Mbps option. The company will still regard current agreements with customers using the free option, and were promised seven years of the service when they signed up. Google will remain offering the free access to Internet for some low-income households, as reported by Mashable.
Google Fiber is one of the company's efforts to supply free internet for low-income customers. The service has the ability to provide internet connection speeds of up to one gigabit per second for both upload and download. There are also reports that Google Fiber has the possibility to be introduced very soon in India. It is already in talks with the IT Ministry to introduce the broadband service which uses optical fiber as part of the Digital India program, according to Hindustan Times.
"We are keen to partner a company like Google in furthering the Digital India plan. Modalities have to be worked out," said an official from IT Ministry.
Google Fiber started in Kansas City with a $70 per month gigabit internet package and a free 5Mbps tier that Fiber offered at no charge. Existing subscribers who opted for the free tier will have continued service and anyone who really is despondent can get hold of Google until the 19th of May to sign up, based on a Gizmodo report.
Google didn't provide any information on the reasons behind the transitions. The old free plan needs a $300 installation fee for the access where well-off or average households can afford. The new $50 per month tier requires no installation cost with a one-year plan and should be affordable to those short on budget.
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