This past September, Orange GigaStudio hosted an engaging spotlight event centered around the future of gigabit Internet. Held at the offices of Orange Silicon Valley, the topic was centered around “Gigabit communities: what services will drive demand for ultra-fast broadband.”
To help answer this question, our Gigastudio team assembled a group of startups to showcase what they can do with ultra-fast broadband speeds. We’re thankful to have had the participation of BigBlueButton, bubl, MusicianLink, NVIDIA, Videopixie (an Orange Fab startup), and Net Power & Light.
Capping off the evening was a rousing discussion with four outstanding industry experts who provided insights into dealing with municipalities, the future of Net Neutrality and the FCC, and how can we fully realize the potential of gigabit Internet speeds in today’s society. We extend our warmest appreciation to Harvard Law School professor Susan Crawford, Sonic.net CEO Dane Jasper, Chattanooga Public Library assistant director Nate Hill, Doctor on Demand Chief Medical Officer Dr. Pat Basu, and our moderator: TechCrunch reporter Alex Wilhelm.
Some interesting thoughts from the panel:
- Will Google Fiber has helped with innovation, it hasn’t helped solve our national issue around fiber Internet, says Susan Crawford: “America hasn’t had a visceral demonstration of fiber in their households yet, but eventually they will.”
- Dane Jasper: “The more badly incumbents [like Comcast] treat their customers, the more the customers will turn to alternative Internet services [like Sonic.net].”
- Cable remains dominate in the marketplace and there is no incentive to install fiber. It will depend on the FCC removing state laws and other initiatives to help move the conversation forward.
- Dr. Basu believes that the positive impact from ultra-fast broadband is infinite.
- It would cost approximately $380 million to bring fiber to every household in San Francisco.
Of course, we must also thank our Deputy CEO Pierre Louette for speaking at the event and for sharing insights into the future of fiber. Please come and visit us again sometime soon!
