If you have been watching the tech world or even just paying attention every now and then, you'll have heard of Google Fiber, Google's high speed internet service. It's the dream for many consumers as it promises 1000Mbps speeds and a threat to ISPs, leading them to try to improve their services to retain customers. A true win-win for the consumer.
However, it's important to consider the drawbacks as well before simply accepting this. Not that I'm trying to be disparaging but if only to play devil's advocate for a moment.
Google's only problem in getting people to adopt their service is their own inability to get it out fast enough. But even that is changing as there are reports of them looking to wireless tech as a quick solution. So Google could very well conquer the industry in less than a decade. What's so bad about that? Well when a single company dominates an industry, especially telecom technology, they have major control over possibly millions of people's ability to connect and use that tech. We all trust Google, but would Google trust us? What I mean is, would Google put itself in the hot-seat to protect our rights as consumers? As far as I know, based on how they kowtow to big music and movie companies, I doubt it. Regardless of how you feel about piracy, one must consider how easy it would be for a lobbyist to pressure politicians to expand the definition to further their own desires. To exemplify, the simple act of inviting over friends to watch a movie on a service like netflix may become piracy because all the people watching the movie didn't pay to do so.
Not to mention, government spying may be easier with a company like Google as the major provider. Google has an vested interest in keeping themselves on the government's goodside. Google provides a transparency report of information they remove at the behest of government agencies, however they explain in a legal process page how they deal with information requests by government and emphasize their commitment to protecting privacy. You can decide for yourself whether you trust them.
To conclude, Google Fiber has a few drawbacks but probably not much worse than any other service and the rewards seem well worth it.