Google Just Bought a Company That Will Help Bring Ultrafast 1 Gbps Broadband Everywhere

Google has a dream of bringing ultra fast broadband internet to the world, and it seems like they’re now one step closer to making that dream a reality.

On Wednesday, Google announced that it will be acquiring Webpass, a San Francisco-based wireless internet service provider, according to Wired Magazine.

“By joining forces, we can accelerate the deployment of superfast internet connections for customers across the U.S.,” Webpass President Charles Barr wrote in a press release.

Webpass primarily offers what it calls “simple urban internet” to its clients, which includes businesses and multi-unit residences in San Francisco, San Diego, Miami, Chicago and Boston. Webpass’s internet service — with estimated speeds from 10 to 1000 megabytes per second — works by “beaming” an internet signal to a fixed antenna, and then uses that signal to power a building-specific network. No modems required, according to the company.

And while Webpass also offers fiber optic networks in locations around San Francisco, Oakland and San Diego, its primary offering remains its “simple urban” wireless internet.

Google first announced its plans to build fiber optic networks in 2010. But Google Fiber, which aims to offer speeds up to 1-gigabit per second, has been slow to roll out, according to CNET.

It seems that Google’s acquisition of Webpass is part of their plan to use broadband wireless service in places where building a fiber optic network wouldn’t be economical, which Google mentioned earlier this year.

In a press announcement, Google said that it hopes this deal will speed up deployment of broadband internet in various cities around the United States.

Interestingly, Webpass offers 1 Gbps speeds at a price of $65 a month. That’s exactly the same speed that Google Fiber charges $80 a month for. But a Google Fiber spokesperson told Wired Magazine that Webpass’ pricing wouldn’t change.

The deal is expected to close later on this summer, although neither company is disclosing much about the acquisition, CNET wrote.