One million connections

Broadband subscriptions hit more than a million in June 2009, says Statistics New Zealand.

Broadband usage had increased by 27% since the last survey was run in March 2008.

Another key point in the report highlighted that broadband users now make up three-quarters of all internet subscribers.

Statistics NZ manager Gary Dunnet says the survey also shows internet consumers are also consuming more.

“While half of all broadband subscribers have a data cap or allowance of less than 5 gigabytes (GB), we are seeing an increase in the number of subscribers with larger data caps,” he says.

The number of broadband subscribers with a data cap of 20GB or more has tripled to 126,000.

The number of subscribers using mobile data cards, cable, or satellite technology to connect to the internet has increased by 53% to 220,000 – about one fifth of the total number of broadband users.

Telecommunications Users Association of New Zealand (TUANZ) chief executive Ernie Newman says while he wasn’t surprised connections would hit the 1 million mark; it is great for both the industry and the country.

“It is good to have reached that level of coverage,” he says. “But what is imperative now is getting the speed, pricing, and international bandwidth up to global standards.

“The other key thing is to get rid of data caps. But this should give both the Government and those looking at investing in the fibre network some heart.”

The one million connections also shows New Zealanders are keen to be connected to the internet, especially broadband, he says.

According to Statistics New Zealand, the survey will now be conducted each June to produce internationally comparable statistics.