Google Fiber Chief Craig Barratt Exits Amid Strategy Shift

Google's high-speed internet plans are slowing down.

Google Fiber chief Craig Barratt stepped down on Tuesday amid a shift in strategy for Alphabet Inc.'s internet service that includes laying off 9% of its workforce and trimming service plans for 11 U.S. metro areas, according to a person familiar with the matter.

Google Fiber has spent hundreds of millions dollars digging up streets and laying fiber-optic cables to offer web connections roughly 30 times faster than the U.S. average. The service has reached eight metro areas since its launch in 2012.

Alphabet is making changes after initial rollouts proved pricier and slower than expected. The company is now exploring using wireless technology to connect homes and businesses, hoping it can save money and accelerate expansion. In July, Alphabet bought internet provider Webpass Inc., which uses wireless technology to connect more than 800 apartment buildings in five metro areas.

In previously planned Google Fiber cities, "we're going to pause our operations and offices while we refine our approaches," Mr. Barratt said in a blog post. "We're confident we'll have an opportunity to resume our partnership discussions once we've advanced our technologies and solutions."

Mr. Barratt said there won't be changes to cities where Google Fiber is already active—including Atlanta, Charlotte, N.C., and Austin, Texas—or where construction is under way.

Google Fiber is suspending plans to serve eight metro areas, including Dallas, Los Angeles and Phoenix. In three other metro areas—Chicago, San Diego and San Francisco—Google Fiber is halting previous fiber-based plans, but will continue to serve some residents there wirelessly via Webpass.

Mr. Barratt, who joined Google in 2013, said he would stay on as an adviser to the company.

Write to Jack Nicas at [e-mail]

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

October 25, 2016 22:05 ET (02:05 GMT)

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