Google Fiber To Buy Webpass ISP In Expansion Bid
In the aftermath of Alphabet-induced restructuring, some of Google's former groups and businesses have seemingly been de-emphasized or have gone silent. Of course, that isn't completely the case. Take Google Fiber, for example, which has proceeded surely though slowly, despite seemingly taking a step back in Kansas. And as is if to further prove that it still means business, almost literally, it is swooping up another business. Google Fiber has just agreed to buy San Francisco ISP Webpass, to not only further enhance its ability to provide high-speed fiber Internet, but to also give it an edge in the five cities Webpass operates in, including San Francisco.
Webpass was founded back in 2003, when fiber internet was fresh, new, and expensive. That is why the company primarily served business and large apartment complexes that need and could afford installations. It turns out, that's exactly the kind of installations Google needs to break into for it to really become a formidable Internet provider itself.
Google Fiber started from the other end of the customer spectrum, residential areas and houses. Of late, however, it has also tried making inroads into commercial markets, businesses and complexes. Those, however, usually have exclusive deals with other ISPs, like Comcast and Time Warner, locking the whole building into that service. So Google's way in is to acquire one of them existing ISPs. And Webpass happened to be ripe for the picking.
Google Fiber's acquisition of Webpass also has a nice side effect. It expands its coverage to more cities. Webpass serves six cities across the US. Three of those, San Francisco, San Diego, and Chicago, are already pinned on Google Fiber's map as "potential" Fiber Cities. The other three, Oakland, Miami, and Boston are not yet in the roster. With the Webpass acquisition, Google would potentially have easier access to those territories, making it easier for Google to expand its reach in a shorter span of time.
SOURCE: Webpass