If you’ve shopped for internet in the Omaha area lately, you may have felt like you needed a scorecard to keep up.
Not long ago, the choice was simple: Cox… or Cox. Today, fiber providers are popping up in pockets all across the metro, and the names keep changing. Cox is becoming Spectrum. CenturyLink became Lumen, and its fiber customers now belong to AT&T. Google Fiber is now GFiber. Metronet is now T-Mobile Fiber. Great Plains Communications is now Rightfiber.
We install and service home technology across the Omaha metro, and even we have trouble keeping track. So here is a simple roadmap: where we’ve been, where we are now, and the questions worth asking before you switch.
Where We’ve Been
The Cable Era: Cox
For many years, Cox was the one real option across most of the city. Cox delivered internet over coaxial cable, the same kind of cable that brought TV into our homes. It worked, and download speeds got fast, but the network was shared with your neighbors, and upload speeds lagged far behind downloads.
The DSL Era: CenturyLink
The other choice was CenturyLink, which delivered internet over copper phone lines using DSL. It reached a lot of homes, but speeds depended on how far you lived from the provider’s equipment. It was never built to handle streaming, video calls, and a houseful of devices all at the same time.
Where We Are: The Fiber Land Rush
Then came fiber. Instead of electricity moving through metal, fiber sends pulses of light through hair-thin strands of glass. The result is a faster, more dependable connection and, the big one, symmetrical speeds, meaning uploads that are just as fast as downloads.
That’s why fiber companies have been racing to build in Omaha-area neighborhoods, and why suddenly everyone has a fiber offer. The catch is that fiber is arriving in pockets. One street may have three choices, while the next street over has one. Here is your decoder ring.
The Omaha Metro Decoder Ring
• Cox → Spectrum. Charter completed its merger with Cox in August 2026, and the Spectrum name is expected to take over within about a year. The Cox network most of us know is still primarily cable (coax), so ask what technology is actually reaching your home.
• CenturyLink → Lumen → AT&T Fiber. AT&T completed its purchase of Lumen’s consumer fiber business in early 2026, so Lumen’s fiber customers are now AT&T customers. AT&T Fiber is available in parts of Omaha, address by address. If you are still on older DSL, ask what your options are.
• Google Fiber → GFiber. Google Fiber began rolling out in Omaha in 2024, starting in the Aksarben Village area, and announced a build in Bellevue. It was renamed GFiber in 2026 and is merging with Astound Broadband, a deal expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2026. The company says the rebrand does not change pricing or speeds.
• Metronet → T-Mobile Fiber. Metronet began building in the city of Omaha and Douglas County in 2024. It is now part of T-Mobile and branded T-Mobile Fiber, or sometimes you may see it branded T-Fiber, and billing and support are expected to change over time.
• Great Plains Communications → Rightfiber. The Blair, Nebraska-based company joined with Ritter Communications of Arkansas in June 2026 to form Rightfiber. If you see Great Plains in your neighborhood, expect to start seeing the Rightfiber name.
• ALLO. The one name that has not changed. ALLO has been building 10-Gig symmetrical fiber in Sarpy County suburbs such as Papillion, La Vista, and Gretna.
• Wireless home internet. Cellular carriers also offer home internet over their 5G networks. It can be a good option where fiber isn’t available, though speed and consistency vary. Remember if you go this route, the cellular carrier is always going to prioritize their mobile device customers. So, if the network is busy your home experience is likely to suffer.
Fiber footprints change street by street, so the only list that matters is the one for your address. Always check availability by address before you decide via the providers website.
Questions to Ask Before You Switch
Newer isn’t automatically better, and faster isn’t always necessary. Before you sign anything, run through these six questions.
1. Is it really available at my address, and what kind of connection is it?
Providers can advertise an area while your street is still waiting. Ask whether the connection is fiber all the way into your home, or fiber to the neighborhood with another technology for the last stretch. Also remember that “up to” speeds are a maximum, not a promise.
2. What speed do I actually need?
A few hundred megabits is plenty for many households. If you work from home, upload large files, run security cameras, or have lots of people online at once, symmetrical speeds matter more than the biggest download number in the ad.
3. What will I really pay?
Promotional prices usually end. Ask what the price is after the first year, whether there is a contract, whether equipment or installation costs extra, and whether the price is locked in.
4. What else depends on my internet?
Think about everything connected: streaming TV, security cameras, smart lighting and shades, thermostats, door locks, home phone, and alarm monitoring. Before you cancel your old service, make sure everything that relies on it will keep working. If you use an email address from your old provider, find out whether you can keep it.
5. Will my home network keep up?
A fast connection can’t fix a weak Wi-Fi setup. The router a provider supplies is often basic, and it often ends up wherever the installer found an outlet. More on that below.
6. Who do I call when something goes wrong?
With all of these mergers, billing and support are changing hands. Ask how installation works and what support looks like, and keep a copy of your plan, your price, and the speeds you were promised.
The Part Nobody Mentions: Your Home Network
Here is something we see all the time. A homeowner switches to a brand-new fiber connection, and the Wi-Fi in the back bedroom is still terrible. The internet isn’t the problem. The network inside the house is.
Think of your internet service as the water main to your house. Fiber gives you a bigger main. But if the pipes inside the house are small or run in the wrong places, the faucet upstairs still dribbles. A few things make the difference:
• Router placement. Located with all the other distributed wiring, not tucked in a behind a TV cabinet or on a random outside wall because there is an outlet close.
• Wired connections. Ethernet to the TV, streaming boxes, home office, and wireless access points is always more reliable than Wi-Fi.
• Mesh or multiple access points. Larger homes and homes with several levels usually need more than a single router to cover everything.
• Equipment that keeps pace. An older router can’t deliver the speeds your new fiber connection is capable of.
This matters most in larger homes with thick walls, multiple floors, and lots of connected devices, which are exactly the homes we work in every day.
Our Final Advice
Don’t chase the newest name. Choose the connection that fits your home, your budget, and the way your family really uses the internet.
We’re Here to Help
Sorting through providers, promotions, and rebrands is a lot to ask of anyone. That is where we come in.
Sellhorst Security & Sound can make sure your home’s technology, from audio and video to lighting, shades, security, and automation, works smoothly with your new connection. Home Connect Solutions, our network specialty company, focuses on the network itself: the wiring, equipment, and Wi-Fi that make your internet perform in every room of the house.
Thinking about switching providers? Give us a call before you do.