JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — North Florida's only local fiber optic internet service provider, IQ Fiber is providing faster internet connection and choice to neighborhoods underserved by other internet providers.
The company has expanded in communities all across Duval, Nassau and St. Johns Counties.
IQ Fiber crews were installing high-speed fiber optic internet in St. Augustine Beaches San Jose Forest neighborhood Monday. That's where Kevin Mitchell lives.
"I'm interested in looking into it. I have fast cable and internet right now, so I don't know if they are going to be faster than that, but competition is good," Mitchell said.
IQ Fiber CEO Ted Schremp says its internet connectivity is capable of speeds faster than phone or cable-based internet.
"The average house has something like 25 different devices that are connected to the home. You can think of it almost as the I-95 or I-10 of telecommunications. We have the ability to deliver all the way into a consumer home so rather than leverage the phone network or the cable tv network," IQ Fiber CEO Ted Schremp said.
The network is also 100% underground.
"The construction process really consists first of putting underground conduit, typically two to three feet underground. It's those big reels of orange cable that people might see. Once that's in place, we will actually pull fiber optic cable through it and that fiber optic cable then gets spliced where various fiber optic connections come together. That network all happens in the public right of way and the utility easement that's typically 10 feet or so from the street, then when a customer chooses our service, we'll extend that fiber optic connection to the edge of their house," Schremp said.
Schremp says underground construction is complex, if crews aren't careful with installation, issues can happen.
"There's lots of existing infrastructure inside that public utility right away. Water lines, sewer lines, other telecommunications lines, electricity in many cases. We think it's really important that we locate those utilities at a time and we work with the other companies to make that happen. Like any construction process from time to time, there are issues, we want to we want to understand those issues and resolve them as quickly as possible," Schremp said.
If you have issues if you're home after installation like plumbing or electricity, you're urged to contact IQ Fiber.
First Coast News reached out to other internet providers: AT&T, Spectrum, and Verizon. In a statement, a spokesperson for AT&T said:
"We are committed to providing reliable high-speed connections in Jacksonville and across Florida. In Jacksonville alone, we've invested nearly $300 million in our wireless and wireline networks during 2020-2022. AT&T Fiber is now available to more than 325,000 customer locations across the Jacksonville area. We're also expanding the nation's public safety network, FirstNet, with high-quality Band 14 spectrum and a one-of-a-kind 5G experience to provide public safety with truly dedicated coverage and capacity when needed.
Furthermore, we are bridging the digital divide by providing affordable service for low-income households in Jacksonville through our Access from AT&T plan, which, combined with the federal Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP), can provide no-cost home internet service for eligible households."
If you think your neighborhood would be a good fit for IQ's Fiber Optic Internet service, visit IQFiber.com to request coverage.