Google Fiber launches Internet and TV bundle in Kansas City

[radiojomo]

It has finally arrived!
The much anticipated Google Fiber Internet and TV service has been officially announced for residents of Kansas City.
Their internet and TV bundles will cost you $120 a month with a two year contract. Internet speeds are up to 1Gbps upload and download, much faster than the internet from any other company and access to a multitude of local channels and cable channels. I will post the list below.

http://fiber.google.com/about/




Google Fiber Channel Lineup
3Net
A&E
Action Weather
Animal Planet
Antenna TV
Bandamax
BET
BET Gospel
Biography Channel
BlueHighways TV
Bounce TV
Bravo
C-SPAN
C-SPAN 2
C-SPAN 3
CBS Sports Network
Centric
Chiller
cloo
CMT
CMT Pure Country
CNBC
CNBC World
Comedy Central
Cooking Channel
Create
Crime & Investigation Network
Current TV
De Pelicula
De Pelicula Clasico
Destination America
Discovery
Discovery en Espanol
Discovery Familia
Discovery Fit & Health
DIY
E! Entertainment
Encore
Encore Action
Encore Drama
Encore Espanol
Encore Family
Encore Love
Encore Suspense
Encore Westerns
Flix
Food Network
FOROTv
G4
GAC
Galavision
Game Show Network
Golf Channel
H2
Hallmark Channel
Hallmark Movie Channel
Halogen
HGTV
History
IndiePlex
INSP
Investigation Discovery
ION Life
KCPT (PBS)
KCTV 5 (CBS)
KCWE 29 (CW)
KMBC 9 (ABC)
KMCI 38
KPXE 50 (ION)
KSHB 41 (NBC)
KSMO 62
KUKC 48 (Univision)
La Familia Cosmovision
Lifetime
Lifetime Move Network
Lifetime Real Women
Live Well
LOGO
MeTV
MGM
Military Channel
Military History
MLB Network
MoviePlex
MSNBC
MTV
MTV Hits
MTV Jams
MTV tr3s
MTV2
MTVU
mun2
NASA
NBC Sports Network
NFL
NFL Redzone
NHL
Nick 2
Nick Jr.
Nickelodeon
Nicktoons
Olympics Channel 1
Olympics Channel 2
Outdoor Channel
OWN
Oxygen
Palladia
PBS Encore
PBS Kids Sprout
qubo
QVC
REELZChannel
RetroPlex
Ritmoson Latino
Science channel
Sho2
Showtime
Showtime Beyond
Showtime Extreme
Showtime Family Zone
Showtime Next
Showtime Showcase
Showtime Women
Smithsonian
Spike TV
Sportsman Channel
Starz
Starz Cinema
Starz Comedy
Starz Edge
Starz in Black
Starz Kids and Family
Style!
SyFy
TBN Enlace
Teen Nick
Telefutura
Telehit
Telemundo
Tennis Channel
The History en Espanol
The Hub
This TV
TLC
TMC Extra
TMC: The Movie Channel
Travel Channel
TV Land
TVG
Universal
Univision Deportes
Univision tlnovelas
USA Network
VH1
VH1 Classic
VH1 Soul
WDAF 4 (FOX)
WealthTV
Weather channel
WGN
Youtoo TV

 

[ajc_trw]

Some channels will require an additional fee. This channel lineup is only a representative lineup and is subject to change. Actual lineup will be published when customers register for service.

I hope they'll offer more channels, without doing the research I'm sure DirecTV & Dish have more channels not to mention FiOS. After all, Verizon has so many channels our MTV channels play music videos.

PS: No Cartoon Network, no [adult swim] NO SALE!

 

[radiojomo]

I hope they'll offer more channels, without doing the research I'm sure DirecTV & Dish have more channels not to mention FiOS. After all, Verizon has so many channels our MTV channels play music videos.

PS: No Cartoon Network, no [adult swim] NO SALE!

Very true! Right off the bat, I can notice that Google has not come to a carriage agreement with any ESPN, Fox (be it the local FSN affiliate, FX or Fox News) or Turner Broadcasting channels, making it a tough sell when it comes to the TV portion of the bundle.

 

[FreddyE1977]

Google Fiber sounds like the worst breakfast cereal one could ever eat.

 

[mgsports]

No regional Sports Networks or even locals from other parts of MO/KS,METV,Live Well Network,Action Weather Plus,Antenna TV because it gets Bounce TV before any KC system gets it.

 

[justpassingthough]

All the free storage and fancy new equipment in the world, not to mention the cheap pricing, is going to make up for the fact that I can't watch FX or ESPN.

 

[Markxxx]

The cool thing is no data caps (not yet). I hope this takes off, as we need competition.

Imagine downloading a full HD movie in SEVEN SECONDS

 

[quadraphonic]

Google Fiber sounds like the worst breakfast cereal one could ever eat.

10 gigabits of Super Colon Blow in every box! ;D

 

[landtuna]

The cool thing is no data caps (not yet). I hope this takes off, as we need competition.

Imagine downloading a full HD movie in SEVEN SECONDS

That would be great news.....if there were actually movies worth watching.

 

[Darth_vader]

Yeah, right. A continuous data connection from/tied to G??gl? is the last thing on Earth anybody needs, regardless of its (nominal) throughput rate. The couple cable networks in that list I could care anything about I can already get via free-to-air QAM through the local Comcrap monopoly. Like the search site itself, there's nothing good that can come of this for the end consumer. Let's hope the privacy advocates kill it.

"10 gigabits of Super Colon Blow in every box!"

And a free surveillance camera over your toilet, so we can log and rank all *ahem* comings and goings!

 

[intx]

I get a better deal from Time Warner for RoadRunner, cable and a DVR.

 

[Markxxx]

While I share your privacy concerns, I like this because it will force competition. If cable and DSL providers no longer have a duopoply they will have to lower their prices or lose the data caps or whatever.

 

[landtuna]

Yeah, right. A continuous data connection from/tied to G??gl? is the last thing on Earth anybody needs, regardless of its (nominal) throughput rate. The couple cable networks in that list I could care anything about I can already get via free-to-air QAM through the local Comcrap monopoly. Like the search site itself, there's nothing good that can come of this for the end consumer. Let's hope the privacy advocates kill it.

I don't see your concern. I already have a continuous connection to my ISP and they can intercept input/output from my PC over DSL should they want to listen in. What makes Google any different? Emails are in essence public documents as are tweets and other forms of communication over the 'Net and phone. If people are really concerned about their personal information becoming public the first thing I would toss would be the cell phone.

I was on the Internet long before Google's search engine came out (Google then was only one of a dozen or so of major search engines). From my personal vantage point in the world of IT Google's search engine made use of the Internet possible for virtually all its users. Imagine trying to find information without this index. IMHO Google made the Internet useable and without such a facility we would still be in the Usenet-type world.

I won't speak for all the other Google products but I have enjoyed Earth immensely. I do not share your concern about accessing already public information.

 

[Darth_vader]

Actually, Alta-Vista did most, if not all, of what you give G??gl? undue credit for in the "early days" (actually the "golden era" to some people) of the mess that is the World Wide Web. I remember those times very well. G??gl? is only a recent phenomenon, having only gained popularity within the past decade or so. I take it you must have forgotten about Alta-Vista (then again, who hasn't by now? ;o) A-V is still around to some extent, but it's nothing at all what it used to be. You can thank the yahoos at Yahoo for completely raping and slaughtering it the way they did.

What's the concern? Pure and simple. G??gl? is a long-known and acknowledged component of the government-run domestic surveillance programme. That and its bed-partner F?c?b??k and similar established "social networks". That's why I have very little use for the former (save for their "Earth" sub-site, which I actually access via Wikimaps) and absolutely no use whatsoever for the latter.

The only way I ever use G??gl? search myself, and strongly urge everyone else do as well, is to go through an anonymising HTTPS front-end like Startpage, and add a bunch of entries to one's /hosts file, effectively disabling much of the "nasty" stuff G??gl? will try to throw at you.

I'll give you a head start:

127.0.0.1   localhost
127.0.0.1   google-analytics.com
127.0.0.1   .google-analytics.com
127.0.0.1   ssl.google-analytics.com
127.0.0.1   ww w.google-analytics.com  #remove the space from "www" when copying to your /hosts file

There are many more than this. I'll post an excerpt to my site when I get around to it, so everyone else can start protecting themselves as well.

"If people are really concerned about their personal information becoming public the first thing I would toss would be the cell phone."

And I wish more people would do just that. I'd get into why here, but I think that'd belong more in the "Things That Annoy You" thread than here.

 

[landtuna]

Actually, Alta-Vista did most, if not all, of what you give G??gl? undue credit for in the "early days" (actually the "golden era" to some people) of the mess that is the World Wide Web. I remember those times very well. G??gl? is only a recent phenomenon, having only gained popularity within the past decade or so. I take it you must have forgotten about Alta-Vista (then again, who hasn't by now? ;o) A-V is still around to some extent, but it's nothing at all what it used to be. You can thank the yahoos at Yahoo for completely raping and slaughtering it the way they did.

What's the concern? Pure and simple. G??gl? is a long-known and acknowledged component of the government-run domestic surveillance programme. That and its bed-partner F?c?b??k and similar established "social networks". That's why I have very little use for the former (save for their "Earth" sub-site, which I actually access via Wikimaps) and absolutely no use whatsoever for the latter.

The only way I ever use G??gl? search myself, and strongly urge everyone else do as well, is to go through an anonymising HTTPS front-end like Startpage, and add a bunch of entries to one's /hosts file, effectively disabling much of the "nasty" stuff G??gl? will try to throw at you.

I'll give you a head start:

127.0.0.1   localhost
127.0.0.1   google-analytics.com
127.0.0.1   .google-analytics.com
127.0.0.1   ssl.google-analytics.com
127.0.0.1   ww w.google-analytics.com  #remove the space from "www" when copying to your /hosts file

There are many more than this. I'll post an excerpt to my site when I get around to it, so everyone else can start protecting themselves as well.

"If people are really concerned about their personal information becoming public the first thing I would toss would be the cell phone."

And I wish more people would do just that. I'd get into why here, but I think that'd belong more in the "Things That Annoy You" thread than here.

I remember Alta Vista well along with about half a dozen others and, in fact, still have active links to some. Other than White Pages, which is useful for finding people, I don't use anything but Google though - because it gives me the results I'm looking for. I don't understand your statement about Google "throwing things at you". I use Google Earth and Google Voice quite often and have been pleased with both services. I have not noticed anything negative from either one. I tried gmail but don't like its presentation so I don't use it but that is just personal preference. As all these services are free to me (I don't even have to watch their ads) its a deal that can't be beat. If they want to remember what sites I visit for their marketing programs be my guest.

I am not currently a member of any social networking site except a couple of high school reunion sites. Not because I think the gubmint is spying on me but because there is just too much BS that doesn't interest me. I frequent select sites that interest me, like this one, and have established many Internet friends through them. I have no desire to be "friended" by people I don't know or have no similar interests.

But to address your apparent paranoia.....it seems reasonable to me, given the age we live in, that certain gubmint agencies might want to mine certain sites for potential leads on people who might be planning dastardly deeds. If I didn't want the gubmint to know me I would stay off the "Net" entirely. Other than the occasional rant at things political I'm a pretty even-natured guy who the gubmint doesn't have to fear.

 

[Darth_vader]

"I don't understand your statement about Google 'throwing things at you'."

Ads, mostly, and the distinct possibility of spyware should they ever choose to do so. I haven't heard of any such thing yet (apart from their arbitrary decision to expire their cookies in 2038, which can just as easily be defeated by simply not accepting cookies from them or anyone who ties to it.)

F.Y.I., I finished the /hosts file I mentioned above (only about 10 minutes of actual work); view/copy-N-paste from http://mistman.pdp10.org/pub/filebox/hosts.google

"If they want to remember what sites I visit for their marketing programs be my guest."

That's one of the biggest privacy concerns right there. A lot of people (quite rightfully) don't want their retrieval habits to be sold off to arbitrary feds/korporate third parties. That's the whole point of what I'm getting at. Personally, I didn't like G-Mail all that much either, both because of its presentation/layout (which I always felt was pretty kludgy and inefficient) and because of their ad scanners reading through my personal, private correspondence with undisclosed parties; discussion of matters that are for all intents and purposes of no concern to them at all. Then they decided to make their policies even more draconian in recent history and that pretty much killed it. I dumped it and went back to SDF, where I reside currently (which, depending on how you do it, is also free and runs no ads or tracking whatsoever.)

"Not because I think the gubmint is spying on me but because there is just too much BS that doesn't interest me."

Yup. That's another biggie.

 

[tripinva]

(apart from their arbitrary decision to expire their cookies in 2038,

Nothing arbitrary about it. That's when Unix time ends. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unix_time#Representing_the_number

- Trip

 

[landtuna]

Ads, mostly, and the distinct possibility of spyware should they ever choose to do so.

My browser and virus scanner would treat Google just like any other spammer/virus and provide warning before it can be downloaded. No problem there. Besides, it would be corporate suicide for Google or any other bonafide service company to introduce intentional viruses. They would be shunned by the knowledge Internet community instantly.

While I am not a supporter of Google's info capture and data mining that same non-support is extended to my credit card supplier. If it was really a problem for me I wouldn't carry the card. But I don't make it easy for them.

 

[Darth_vader]

@tripinva--
Yes, I am familiar with Unix Time (time_t), being a 32-bit Linux user. I actually meant "arbitrary" in the sense that such a date so far out in the future seems rather ridiculous a choice of an expiry point for a tracking cookie. Even one year out is a bit much, but I've seen sites that do that as well.

Point is, don't accept cookies from G??gl?, or any other sites for that matter, except those you have to "log in" to your established account on, like this one! And even then, accepting them only as "session cookies" is the only way to do it.

@landtuna--
I don't even have a credit card, or even a debit card for that matter. Just a "bank card" issued and administered directly by my credit union, which gives me access to my chequing account there. The paper trail generated by using it is effectively the same one that'd be generated if I went in and dealt with a teller directly.