Bloomington's new gig-speed internet is here. Here's where and for how much.

Boris Ladwig, The Herald-Times
Updated ·5 min read
A new local broadband internet provider, GigabitNow, has begun offering its service in Bloomington. The first 100 customers, in the South Griffy Lake neighborhood, now have access, the company announced Tuesday.
A new local broadband internet provider, GigabitNow, has begun offering its service in Bloomington. The first 100 customers, in the South Griffy Lake neighborhood, now have access, the company announced Tuesday.

Editor's note: The Herald-Times fact checked the statements in this story 10 weeks later and found no homes in Bloomington were connected to the new fiber internet. Read that story.

More: Still no new fiber network in Bloomington — 10 weeks after city said connections are live

Bloomington's new high-speed internet provider is providing hookups to the first 100 households and thousands more are expected to follow in the next few months. Here’s who can hook up, how much it costs and why Mayor John Hamilton says the service will ring in a “new era” for Bloomington.

Previous coverage: Super fast internet service — from a mystery provider — coming as early as end of year

Who can get GigabitNow service? What’s the rollout plan?

GigabitNow, an internet service provider, is now offering hookups in the South Griffy Lake neighborhood.
GigabitNow, an internet service provider, is now offering hookups in the South Griffy Lake neighborhood.

The first 100 potential customers are in the South Griffy Lake neighborhood, northwest of the Indiana University golf course. Stephen Milton, CEO of GigabitNow, said the company will have its infrastructure in the ground to about 3,700 more homes in a matter of weeks.

Stephen Milton, chief executive and chief technical officer of GigabitNow, talks about the company's fiber rollout in Bloomington on April 4, 2023.
Stephen Milton, chief executive and chief technical officer of GigabitNow, talks about the company's fiber rollout in Bloomington on April 4, 2023.

A map on the company’s website shows GigabitNow is obtaining permits and putting fiber into the ground primarily on the city’s northeast and east sides for now. It eventually expects to provide service to at least 85% of Bloomington. The company initially hoped to provide the service about three months earlier, but ran into some delays.

How much does GigabitNow fiber internet cost?

GigabitNow is offering tiers of service, with higher speeds coming with higher prices. Hookups, setups and install are free, but you may need some equipment, such as a modem, which you can buy at local retailers or rent from GigabitNow for an additional $10 per month.

Monthly prices:

  • 250 megabits per second upload/download: Free with federal subsidy for income-eligible households.

  • 350 MBPS: $49.99

  • 2 gigabits per second: $69.99

  • 5 GBPS: $149.99

  • 10 GBPS: $199.99

How can you sign up for GigabitNow internet?

Go to the company’s website: tinyurl.com/yvhvenrm. If the service isn’t available where you live, you can sign up to receive notifications.

Why is the city making a big deal out of this? Isn’t this just another ISP?

The Hamilton administration held a news conference Tuesday at city hall to announce the first connections, with Hamilton saying the city was taking a step toward becoming a more equitable community by creating opportunities for people who previously did not have access to high-speed internet.

Hamilton said the city has worked for years to get another ISP into the community that would provide the service to “virtually all” of Bloomington, as traditional internet providers left certain neighborhoods behind — mainly where they don’t believe the infrastructure investments would generate a good return.

The city council in 2021 agreed to provide a $10 million tax break to France-based infrastructure company Meridiam, which agreed to invest $50 million to install fiber optic cables in Bloomington. Existing providers, such as Comcast, criticized the deal, saying nearly all Bloomington residents already had access to high-speed internet service.

Hamilton said Tuesday that much like electricity in the 20th century, broadband access today is necessary for people to fully participate in life, including access to entertainment, telehealth and educational opportunities and working from home. The pandemic, he said, reinforced that notion.

Leon Gordon, administrator of the Bloomington Housing Authority, talks about the importance of high-speed connectivity to BHA clients on April 4, 2023.
Leon Gordon, administrator of the Bloomington Housing Authority, talks about the importance of high-speed connectivity to BHA clients on April 4, 2023.

Leon Gordon, administrator of the Bloomington Housing Authority said many of the agency’s roughly 1,700 local clients need high-speed internet service to access health care, employment platforms, to apply for social services and to gain additional skills to thrive — not just survive — in the digital economy. Broadband access provides not just a connection to the outside world, Gordon said, but would better connect clients with the rest of Bloomington.

Hamilton said all residents in the Crestmont community would have access to the fiber service within six months. Most of the BHA clients likely will get the service for free thanks to a federal subsidy of $30 a month for income eligible households.

Comcast: We’re already offering high-speed broadband free to income eligible residents in Crestmont

High-speed broadband is already available in the Crestmont area, for as little as $25 per month with 250 megabits per second download speeds. Comcast has laid fiber optic cables into the neighborhood, but the connection from the main cable to the home is still a traditional coaxial line.

Mike Wilson, public relations director for Comcast, said Comcast’s service is available for free for income-eligible households. He urged customers to go to the Bloomington Xfinity store to get help with the subsidy. He said the company has held signup events in Bloomington and is planning more across the state.

He said he did not know how long the company had been offering the $25 per month special in Bloomington, as the company is running a lot of promotions depending on “all kinds of factors.”

Neither GigabitNow nor the Hamilton administration nor the housing authority could immediately say what share of the 100 eligible South Griffy Lake customers or BHA clients currently had no access to high-speed internet.

Wilson said Comcast serves “virtually all of Bloomington,” with the exception of large apartment complexes that sign exclusive deals with competitors.

Why have Bloomington residents complained about the fiber network installation?

Some Bloomington consumers have complained about noise, dirt and damage in neighborhoods where fiber installations are taking place. Some also have complained about work being done without notification. A Bloomington resident suffered sewage backing up into his sinks, putrid smells and thousands of dollars in repair bills after sewer lines were damaged by contractors installing high-speed fiber optic cable.

Unsure who to blame: Bloomington resident says $10,000 in sewer line damage caused by fiber installation

Rick Dietz, the city's IT director, said if the providers are following state law, the city can do little to stop the companies from using public rights-of-way to install or improve their broadband infrastructure.

Boris Ladwig can be reached at bladwig@heraldt.com.

This article originally appeared on The Herald-Times: Bloomington's GigabitNow fiber internet ready for first 100 households