Last week Google paused its plans to roll out its fiber optic internet service to a handful of new markets, Chicago included. Now a new provider is stepping in to bring more superfast internet to the city
This week, RCN officially launched its gigabit internet service in Chicago, the second market to receive the high-speed service. (In technical terms, gigabit internet uses fiber optics and "special cable network technology" to support a theoretical maximum data rate of 1 gigabit per second. In non-technical terms, it's real fast internet).
According to the Tribune, RCN will be "utilizing existing wiring and new modems" to deliver the service, which will be $69.99 per month for the first year and $10 per month for the modem rental.
Though Google bailed on bringing Fiber to Chicago, the city still has recently received several new options for high-speed internet. Last year, AT&T launched its gigabit service (for $90 per month) and, in August, Comcast announced a new internet service that delivers gigabit speeds over its existing network (for $139.99 a month).
Chicago tends to be an early home for this new high-speed tech. Chicago was one of the first cities to receive AT&T's gigabit service, the third market to get Comcast's service, and the second market to get RCN's.
Also, last week's Fiber news also doesn't mean that Google is conceding fast internet in Chicago to the aforementioned providers. The company said that, instead of building an entire fiber network, it would allocate resources to creating a wireless internet service, an effort that's been accelerated by its June acquisition of wireless startup Webpass.
(Image via flickr)
