Google is seeking federal permission to put a satellite antenna farm near its Council Bluffs data center, a move that experts speculate would enable the California search giant to receive movies and TV shows that could be bundled with the super-fast Internet service it’s developing in Kansas City.
The reason cities competed for the project is clear: The high-speed access will likely mean more businesses will be attracted to Kansas City, and existing businesses will be able to operate more efficiently.
Lightedge Solutions, a Des Moines-based technology consulting firm, plans to open a permanent office in Overland Park, Kan., on April 1 to take advantage of the newly laid fiber in the metro area.
“We consider (Google Fiber) a disruptive technology,” said Lightedge spokesman Scott Riedel. “It’s bringing in so much access that people will start doing things differently.”
Riedel said the core services his company provides, such as cloud computing, information technology and data center consulting, will benefit as more companies move to the area. He said the hope is those businesses will then seek consultations with his firm.
“The idea of Google coming in and giving people access to that enables them to rethink how they are doing things,” he said. “Having Google there and disrupting the market and changing the paradigm will benefit us.”
Google chose to come to Iowa in 2007, when it announced it would build a data center that state officials estimate cost $800 million, so far the largest capital investment in the state’s history.
Google said it chose Council Bluffs for the data center because it sits on a rich backbone of the fiber-optic cables; it has reliable and inexpensive power, which is a tremendous need for data centers; and a strong pool of qualified workers.
Read the entire story at DesMoinesRegister.com