Google Fiber to pay $3.84 million to Louisville for infrastructure removal and cleanup costs

Google Fiber will pay Louisville $3.84 million to cover infrastructure removal and clean up costs for its fiber network. Earlier this year, Google Fiber announced its departure from Louisville, KY, demonstrating the significant challenges to building fiber networks, even for well-capitalized companies. Google Fiber’s problems in Louisville are the latest in a series of setbacks for the company, which previously halted its build-out and cancelled customer accounts in Kansas City, one of the company’s flagship locations.

Louisville is the city where Google first pushed the One Touch, Make Ready (OTMR) policy. OTMR allows companies like Google Fiber that want to add equipment to a utility pole to move existing equipment, even if it doesn’t belong to that company, and violates collective bargaining agreements. The OTMR ordinance in Louisville resulted in shoddy work by contractors.

Links:

Google Fiber will fork out $3.84M to make amends in Louisville (FierceTelecom, Apr. 16, 2019)

Google Fiber made 'tough decision' to pull service from Louisville (Louisville Courier Journal, Feb. 7, 2019)

Google Fiber halts build-out (Speed Matters, Oct. 27, 2016)

Google Fiber cancels customer accounts in flagship Kansas City (Speed Matters, Mar. 23, 2017)