The wrong Portland is in line to get Google Fiber

Google announced today in a blog post that it has selected nine metro areas to be in the running to receive the company’s next-generation, “ultra-fast”, fiber-optic technology — aptly named Google Fiber.

While Portland, Ore., is on the list, Portland, Maine, alas, is not. That’s a mistake.

Here’s my thinking: If Google really wanted to make a difference, really wanted to see what “ultra-fast” Internet connections could do to a community, its businesses, its people, its children, its schools, don’t you think it would make the most sense to pick a mid-size metro area like Portland, Maine, that lacks the latest broadband technology rather than the large metro areas the big Internet service providers are already focused on and investing in?

Google has selected nine metro areas, which include 34 cities altogether, to vie for the gigabit speeds Google Fiber will offer: Portland, Ore.; San Diego, Calif.; Salt Lake City, Utah; Phoenix, Ariz.; San Antonio, Texas; Nashville, Tenn.; Atlanta, Ga.; Charlotte, N.C., and Raleigh-Durham, N.C. Google has already deployed Google Fiber to Austin, Texas; Provo, Utah; and Kansas City.

I’m hoping someone from Google reads this and surreptitiously adds Portland, Maine, to the list.

 

Whit Richardson

About Whit Richardson

Whit Richardson is Business Editor at the Bangor Daily News. He blogs about Maine business, entrepreneurs and the economy.