Google Preps Plan to Offer Business WiFi Networks

As part of its broad push to get more people using its revenue-generating Web services, Google has developed plans to offer heavily subsidized Wi-Fi network hardware and software to small and medium-sized retail businesses, according to a confidential document reviewed by The Information and a person briefed on the project.

The planned offering, which could be unveiled as soon as this summer, is aimed at millions of businesses such as restaurants, doctors’ offices and gyms—and possibly even public institutions like libraries—in the U.S. and abroad. Google would provide commercial-grade WiFi access equipment at a steep discount, enabling small businesses to dramatically improve the WiFi service they offer to customers.