Officials in Shawnee have approved an agreement authorizing the launch of Google Fiber in the Kansas City suburb.
The Shawnee City Council said in a release that council members approved the agreement Thursday, making Shawnee the fifth Johnson County municipality to strike a deal bringing in the high-speed service to compete with cable and telephone companies for TV and Internet access subscriptions.
Google Fiber offers a network that strings fiber optic lines to homes and supplies commercial strength Internet hookups at home consumer rates.
So far, only a few neighborhoods in Kansas City, Kan., have been connected to the network. A few more homes in Kansas City, Mo., are scheduled to get the service this month.
Google Fiber also recently struck a deal to provide its services in Provo, Utah.