Google Opens Project Fi Mobile Network

Google’s “Project Fi,” a cell service that combines WiFi with wireless access from T-Mobile and Sprint is no longer invite-only, and is now open to the public, according to a blog post on Android’s site.

Users still need to own a Nexus in order to access the program, but they no longer need to ask Google for permission to join.

Project Fi essentially makes Google into a mobile virtual network operator (MVNO), in addition to the manufacturer of the phone and the developer of the phone’s OS.

An MVNO buys unused network capacity from larger carriers to serve a smaller segment of the market. Having two carriers, Project Fi’s service switches between T-Mobile and Sprint when signal strength varies.

It costs $20 a month for unlimited domestic calling and unlimited domestic and international texting, and $10 for every additional gigabyte of data used.

On average, Project Fi users consume 1.6 gigabytes of data a month, and get a refund for any data they haven’t used. The service also offers data-only SIM cards to install in other devices.

Google is also knocking $150 off the price of the Nexus 5x for new Project Fi subscribers, the blog post noted. Google hasn’t announced if it has plans to open up the service to other devices.

Project Fi is still highly experimental, and is not offered at scale, but it has a lot of potential to shift business, the same way that Fiber has, in a direction that is good for Google.

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