What Is Gigabit?
United States Government officials have compared a city running a gigabit internet network to the discovery of fire by humankind. Gigabit is the fire of the 21st Century.
What does that mean? What is gigabit internet?
A Gigabit network is a fiber-optic internet connection offering speeds of 1,000 Megabits per second (Mbps). By comparison, the average internet speed available in the United States in 2016 was 50 Mbps.*
* Speedtest Market Report
Business Advantages of Gigabit
The major advantage of Gigabit networks is that uploading files is as fast as downloading. This is critically important for businesses that create content. Business advantages include::
- Create, send, or store large computer files
- Create HD video content for clients
- Operate an e-commerce website
- Perform regular High Definition video conferencing
- Download and upload large data files over the internet
From home-based business to large companies, Gigabit networking allows small to large data intensive businesses to leverage cloud based data storage to run a more nimble and cost-effective operation. Many design, engineering, and architectural firms create and store very large digital files on servers on their premises. With Gigabit speeds, those firms can move all their files to secure cloud storage and cut their operating costs for IT support and hardware. Internal servers need to be backed up and they need to be replaced over time, requiring planning and investment. IT staff are needed to support the servers as well. Many of these costs can be eliminated or drastically reduced if a firm moves to cloud computing and file storage.
““The creation of 1GB fiber broadband access surely sets Hagerstown apart from other municipalities. In this age of technology, what a better way to promote our city and encourage economic development and job growth. I am positive being a gigabit city will be vital to our growth and long term success.””
Example: Comparison of 6 Mbps versus 1 Gigabit download speed
Comparison Chart courtesy of Consolidated Communications @ www.consolidated.com/landing/1gig
Photograghy images courtesy of Wertman Photography - Hagerstown, Maryland
