University Coalition Aims For Alternate, High-Speed Internet

A group of 29 American universities has announced a plan to create Gig.U, an online network many times faster than the public Internet. Gig.U would service communities adjacent to universities — most of them outside major cities — and is designed to encourage high-tech startups in those areas by offering 1 gigabit connections.

According to The New York Times:

"By offering one-gigabit network connections — fast enough to download high-definition movies in less than a minute — not just to scientific researchers and engineers but to the homes and businesses that surround universities, the group aims to create a digital ecosystem that will attract new companies, ideas and educational models."

Such a plan is not only attractive, but is increasingly necessary. Said The Times, "Although the United States pioneered computer networks from the 1960s through the '90s, in recent years it has fallen behind other nations in deploying and improving network technology."

Colleges Join Plan for Faster Computer Networks (New York Times)