Google Fiber has set its gaze upon Omaha, Nebraska, amid a plan to expand the buildout of fiber-to-the-premises (FTTP) networks in several states in the Midwest.

Google Fiber announced this week that it's working to build an FTTP network in Omaha, an expansion that, if successful, will provide more broadband competition for area incumbents Cox Communications and Lumen/CenturyLink.

But there are a few "T"s to cross and "I"s left to dot. Rachel Merlo, Google Fiber's head of government and community affairs, central region, noted in this blog post that Google Fiber must first secure a license agreement to gain access to the city's rights of way with the Omaha city council.

Figure 1: (Source: Zoonar GmbH/Alamy Stock Photo)

Google Fiber, she added, expects that process to get underway at a council meeting set for next Tuesday (October 4). "Once the license agreement is approved, we'll get right to work, with construction starting in early 2023," Merlo explained.

Meanwhile, Google Fiber has already set up a web page where Omaha residents can stay apprised of the status of the build.

Google Fiber will already have access to certain facilities in that market, as Google currently operates a data center in the Omaha metro area and has another under construction.

Google Fiber's plans for Omaha emerge a few weeks after unit CEO Dinni Jain announced that Google Fiber is in talks with city leaders in five states – Arizona, Colorado, Nebraska, Nevada and Idaho – about bringing FTTP services to various communities.

Google Fiber, which already has plans to expand in Mesa, Arizona, is expected to announce additional expansion targets in the weeks and months to come.

In what's been a busy week for Google Fiber, the company also said that it will soon launch a mix of multi-gigabit speed options. Google Fiber didn't reveal those coming speed packages or the pricing that will come with them, but they will eclipse its current, high-end offering of 2 Gbit/s downstream and 1 Gbit/s upstream, which sells for $100 per month.

With the addition of Omaha to Google Fiber's deployment targets, here's an updated view of its current and planned market buildouts:

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— Jeff Baumgartner, Senior Editor, Light Reading