Googlephile Davisites Want Faster Internet

The good folks at Google like to do things differently from the traditional corporate mold. Hence their informal corporate motto: “Don’t Be Evil”.  A quick read of their corporate philosophy (“Ten things we know to be true”)  reveals several other surprising beliefs from one of the largest corporate entities in the world:

• Democracy on the web works
• You can make money without doing evil
• You can be serious without a suit
• Great just isn’t good enough

Despite the search engine’s “Johnny come lately” move on filtering search results in China, this corporation seems like a partner that our Right & Relevant City could welcome with open arms, right?

On Wednesday, March 3^rd, from 6-8pm in Community Chambers, the community is invited to an organizing meeting to ensure that we are chosen for the Google Fiber for Communities pilot project.

Thirteen days ago, Google announced plans to launch an experiment to test ultra-high speed broadband networks in one or more trial locations across the country. Networks will deliver 1 gigabit per second connection speeds; that’s 100 times faster than the fastest internet connection currently available in Davis.   They plan to offer service at a competitive price in a community of at least 50,000 and potentially up to 500,000 people.

In those thirteen days, Davis has already proven that our community and city government can be nimble and responsive when opportunity knocks on the door.  Editors at DavisWiki.org have created an online space for folks to share their ideas, citizens created a Facebook page that already has 1,500 members, the Davis Chamber of Commerce has expressed interest in pursuing the pilot project, elected officials have given the green light and community leaders are coming out of the woodwork to band together.  The City Manager’s office assembled a team last week to complete the 21 page Request for Information.

Why should Davis pursue this pilot project?

As we continue to weather these tough economic times, it is imperative that we look up and position our community for the day when the Great Recession ends.  We must dispel the lingering myth that Davis is not a business-friendly community.  It is time to stop talking about attracting green/technology companies and actively pursue them.

Why should Google want an embassy in The People’s Republic of Davis?

Our community is the perfect living laboratory for any innovation.  Our 63,000+ well-educated and highly active residents will take advantage of high-speed connections to strengthen the ties that bind our community and our entrepreneurs will create the next generation of bandwidth-intensive applications (engineering, telemedicine, GIS, social networking, media-sharing, data storage, etc) that beckon to us from our gigabyte future.

For decades, Davis has been serious about being a land-use sensitive community that uses smart urban planning to create a dense, walkable community; that commitment will pay off again when Google begins to test new deployment techniques to build fiber networks.  The lessons and efficiencies learned here can then be employed in our eight sister cities in Japan, China, Ukraine, The Phillipines, South Korea and El Salvador.

How can you ensure that Davis is the Gig Winner?

• Visit DavisWiki.org to learn/participate more in local efforts to bring the pilot project home to Davis.
• Visit the Google Fiber for Communities site and nominate Davis.
• Attend the organizing meeting on March 3^rd, 2008 at 6pm in Community Chambers.
• Leave your comments/thoughts/suggestions below on how we could attract Google’s attention i.e. primary colored flash mobs or critical mass.

Or, just comment, but don’t be evil in my comments section.