The University is considering applying jointly with the City of Charlottesville and Albemarle County to become a pilot community for the installation of Google Fiber, a fiber-optic network that could produce Internet speeds greater than 1 gigabit per second, more than 100 times faster than the broadband connections most Americans can currently access, all at a price that Google says is competitive.
"Google has announced publicly that it's looking for communities to install ultra high-speed Internet," Charlottesville City Council member David Brown said about the nomination process, which Google will conduct by accepting applications and online votes until March 26. "We're very interested, but Charlottesville is at the low end of the population range that they're looking for."
Nevertheless, the Charlottesville area is capable of being chosen, Brown said.
If it does gain access to the new technology, the city's workforce will be able to work "more effectively and efficiently," he said. "Things we normally wouldn't be able to do [would] now become possible."
The University would benefit from the many opportunities this technology would bring, as well. For example, faculty members and students living off Grounds would have access to the same Internet speed provided by the University, and the University Health System would be able to communicate and share images more easily between its offices on Grounds and its clinics farther out in Albemarle County and in Northridge, said Jeffrey Plank, associate vice president for research.
Overall, the new network "would create a shift in Mr. Jefferson's community, creating a virtual Academical Village," Radiology Prof. Jim Brookeman said.
Some students also hope the Charlottesville area will receive the new technology. Second-year College student Eric Xu, for example, created a Facebook group to encourage students to nominate Charlottesville on Google's Web site. He created this group after he saw that the University of California at Berkeley as a similar one, he said.
"Right now of this entire area the only server is Comcast; it doesn't give people a lot of options as to who their [Internet service provider] is," Xu said.
Bringing Google Fiber service to Charlottesville would provide market competition for Comcast, which would in turn reduce the cable provider's prices, he said. In addition, the service would create job opportunities for residents, he said.
Brookeman added that all students should be encouraged not only to vote for Charlottesville on Google's Web site but also to brainstorm constructive uses for the new technology.
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