Broadband Internet customers love to rail against Comcast, one of the dominant providers of Internet service in the Pacific Northwest. But customers who are dissatisfied with Comcast service or prices eventually could have an alternative.

And it is coming from none other than Google. The search titan today said it plans to build and test a small number of broadband networks in select communities throughout the U.S., providing Internet speeds of 1 gigabit per second. That's far faster than the top speeds at Comcast, which boasts download speeds of up to 50 megabits per second.

"We plan to offer service at a competitive price to at least 50,000 and potentially up to 500,000 people," the company said in a blog post today. "Our goal is to experiment with new ways to help make Internet access better and faster for everyone."

Google didn't disclose a price point for the service or offer where it plans to test the new networks, though it is encouraging state, city and county officials to apply. The company said it will accept nominations until March 26, with communities announced some time later this year.

It will be fascinating to see if Google tries to plant a broadband flag in Washington state, not only because of potential competition with Comcast. But also because this is Microsoft territory.

The two tech titans had a small skirmish late last year after both started rolling out promotions to bring free Wi-Fi to select airports during the holiday season. Google set up shop at Sea-Tac, which we noted at the time was an interesting choice given all of the Microsoft workers who'd be traveling through that airport during December.

It will be interesting to see if any politicians in Washington state approach Google about the new project.

There's also an interesting local connection between Google and Comcast. Both, you may recall, are large investors in Kirkland mobile broadband provider Clearwire.

Comcast is the largest broadband provider in Washington state, though it declined to disclose number of subscribers here. The company has 15.7 million high-speed Internet customers nationwide. A Comcast spokesman declined initial comment when contacted about Google's plans.

Anyway, the news that Google is looking to become an Internet service provider speaks to its new reach as a technology powerhouse. The company continues to roll out new services and products, and broadband just happens to be the latest. More explanation from Google in this video: