Critical Hub Networks, a competitive provider, is now offering Puerto Rico's first Gigabit fiber to the home (FTTH) service under the "Optico Fiber" banner.
Targeting residential customers, the service provider will offer symmetrical 1 Gbps speeds and unlimited (fair usage policy) data caps.
Taking a page from Google Fiber (NASDAQ: GOOG) and C Spire, Critical Hub will make Optico Fiber available in communities known as "fiberhoods," which meet minimum sign-up goals where potential customers request services via the Optico Fiber website.
Company officials confirmed with Newsismybusiness.com that the first seven "fiberhoods" that will get the FTTH service are in the capital of San Juan, adding that Critical Hub will continuously open new "fiberhoods" as engineering works are completed.
The Optico service is competitively priced. Eligible customers can purchase a standalone up to 1 Gbps broadband service for $70 a month, while a broadband and wireline phone bundle will be $90 a month. It is also offering a free broadband option, including one that includes a phone service add-on for $20 a month. Customers that opt for the free option will have to pay a $300 construction fee over a six-month period.
Karen Larson, senior vice president of Critical Hub Networks, told Newsismybusiness.com that the company is "using Google Fiber's model."
"The investment is a joint effort between Critical Hub and the community, which we'll be serving," she said. "We'll be expanding as quickly as we can, based on interest levels within each community. We know that San Juan has the potential to transform itself quickly, like Chattanooga and Kansas City, so we are starting here, in our backyard."
Larson added that the first fiberhoods make up about 10,000 households and that the company's engineers are finalizing plans for another 100 additional fiberhoods.
For more:
- Newsismybusiness.com has this article
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