Google Fiber's director of network engineering, Jeffrey Burgan, yesterday wrote a blog post explaining why the Google-operated Internet service provider doesn't charge Netflix and other content companies for direct connections to its network.

Comcast and other ISPs have demanded that Netflix enter "paid peering" agreements to get direct connections to their networks and alleviate congestion that can harm the performance of streaming video. Google Fiber, on the other hand, gives "companies like Netflix and Akamai [a content delivery network] free access to space and power in our facilities and they provide their own content servers," Burgan wrote. "We don’t make money from peering or colocation; since people usually only stream one video at a time, video traffic doesn’t bog down or change the way we manage our network in any meaningful way—so why not help enable it?"

Google's argument is, naturally, a bit self-serving as it is more of a content provider than an ISP. Google owns YouTube, the second biggest online video service in North America in terms of traffic, and has direct interconnection deals with AT&T, Comcast, Verizon, and other ISPs. Google hasn't said whether it's paying those companies for the direct interconnections, but it's a good bet that it is making payments.

Still, Google hasn't complained publicly about its interconnection agreements. Netflix has, asking the Federal Communications Commission to protect it from having to pay ISPs.

Burgan's post said that unpaid connections between ISPs and content providers create "a win-win-win situation. It’s good for content providers because they can deliver really high-quality streaming video to their customers. For example, because Netflix colocated their servers along our network, their customers can access full 1080p HD and, for those who own a 4K TV, Netflix in Ultra HD 4K. It’s good for us because it saves us money (it’s easier to transport video traffic from a local server than it is to transport it thousands of miles). But most importantly, we do this because it gives Fiber users the fastest, most direct route to their content."

Google Fiber has offered better Netflix performance than all the major ISPs, according to Netflix's speed rankings.

Video companies like Netflix already spend lots of money building up networks, Burgan pointed out. "Content providers spend a lot of money (many billions of dollars) building their own networks to transport their content all the way to those ‘last-mile’ connections [such as Google Fiber]," he wrote. "In that process, the content may run into bottlenecks—if the connections between the content provider and our network are slow or congested, that will slow down your access to content, no matter how fast your connection is."

To prevent congestion, Google Fiber "invite[s] content providers to hook up their networks directly to ours. This is called ‘peering,’ and it gives you a more direct connection to the content that you want."

Netflix built a content delivery network called Open Connect, which can peer with ISPs at Internet exchange points or place storage appliances in ISP networks. Open Connect partners include Frontier, British Telecom, TDC, Clearwire, GVT, Telus, Bell Canada, Virgin, Cablevision, Google Fiber, RCN, and Telmex.

Google Fiber opted to bring Netflix storage equipment inside its network.

"Usually, when you go to Netflix and click on the video that you want to watch, your request needs to travel to and from the closest Netflix data center, which might be a roundtrip of hundreds or thousands of miles," Burgan wrote. "Instead, Netflix has placed their own servers within our facilities (in the same place where we keep our own video-on-demand content). Because the servers are closer to where you live, your content will get to you faster and should be a higher quality."

Google Fiber is available now in Kansas City and Provo, Utah, with plans to come to Austin, Texas. Google is evaluating 34 more cities for possible deployment. San Antonio, Texas looks like it might be the next city to get Google Fiber.