Retail News CRM

Tag: New Zealand

  • Spark launches flexible pricing broadband plan

    Spark launches flexible pricing broadband plan

    New Zealand operator Spark has moved to differentiate its broadband offerings by launching a new unlimited fiber broadband plan that offers consumers discounts on months they use less data.

    The company’s “Unplan” branded fiber broadband plan offers unlimited bandwidth for NZ$85 ($55.50) per month.

    But on months where consumers use less than 60GB of data this price reduces to NZ$65, and for months where 60GB to 120GB of data is consumed it reduced to NZ$75.

    An entertainment plan is also available for an additional NZ$10 per month that comes with 6 months of free Netflix and a subscription to the Spark-owned Lightbox SVOD service for the life of the plan.

    The offer is also available via Spark’s fixed wireless broadband service, but restrictions will apply on usage of over 300GB of data in a single month of regular usage of 180GB in an average month.

    “We think it’s a fairer way of offering broadband, as it reflects our customers’ needs. This is the first broadband plan in New Zealand that flexes to reflect customers’ data usage – and it has the potential to save our customers a lot of money,” Spark consumer lead Joe Goddard said.

    “It’s also the first plan that’s only available on new generation broadband options of wireless broadband and fiber.”

    Lees ook:

  • Spark switches on second IoT network

    Spark switches on second IoT network

    New Zealand incumbent carrier Spark switched on a low power wide area (LPWA) IoT network using LTE Cat-M1 technology on Monday.

    The network, running in the 700-MHz and 1800-MHz bands, is now available in major centers and will be rolled out across the rest of the country over the next six months.

    The LTE Cat-M1 network is Spark’s second IoT network. Spark already has a LoRaWAN network for IoT applications, which now provides coverage to over 120 cities across the country and all major urban centers.

    Spark said the rollout of the LTE Cat-M1 network will connect a wide variety of new and existing IoT solutions and services including wearables, smart appliances, electricity, gas and water meters, asset monitoring, and industrial automation.

    Specifically, LTE Cat-M1 is best suited for LPWAN applications like smart metering, in which only small amount of data transfer is required. The network rollout will also enable IoT technologies like smart cities and connected cars from overseas to be adopted in New Zealand, said Michael Stribling, Spark’s digital services lead.

    “LTE Cat-M1 is a secure, high-quality network, where sensors and devices are transferring data regularly and near real-time access to that data is critical,” he said.

    Spark said Landis+Gyr is using the new IoT network for a progressive rollout of smart metering services in New Zealand.

    Landis+Gyr was the first in Australia to develop and demonstrate smart metering over the NB-IoT network, which is being used in their smart meter and communication modules.

    The company already had smart metering solutions in New Zealand and opted to switch to Spark’s IoT network to take advantage of its broader coverage.

    Rodney Chaplin, Landis+Gyr’s general manager of Australia and New Zealand, said rolling out smart metering over the new network will provide a robust solution for customers.

    “Landis+Gyr meters fitted with our flexible and modular communication modules are perfectly suited to take advantage of 4G networks with LTE-Cat M1 technology,” Chaplin said. “This allows us to get to market quickly and provide utilities with a robust coverage to ensure the success of the smart metering rollout.”

    Stribling said Spark is also working with customers on a broad range of use cases for IoT applications, including vehicle telematics, smart health devices and smart cities applications such as lighting and environmental monitoring.

  • Air New Zealand and Singapore Airlines’ continuing their alliance for another five years

    Air New Zealand and Singapore Airlines’ continuing their alliance for another five years

    The New Zealand government has given the green light to Air New Zealand and Singapore Airlines’ (SIA) continuing their alliance for a further five years. Under the partnership, which began in 2015, the pair codeshares on routes between New Zealand and Europe, India and Southeast Asia via Singapore. The partnership also includes revenue sharing and coordination of capacity and pricing.

    New Zealand transport minister Phil Twyford said reauthorisation of the alliance would result in more benefits to passengers.

    “Reauthorisation of the alliance will result in more benefits to travellers. These benefits include a wider range of flight times, more seats and reciprocal frequent flyer schemes,” Twyford said in a statement on October 5.

    “The services the airlines provide through the alliance strengthens New Zealand’s ties with our close neighbours in South East Asia and with other emerging markets throughout Asia.

    When the alliance was first approved in late 2014, it paved the way for Air New Zealand to resume nonstop flights between Auckland and Singapore.

    There has been further capacity increases since then, with SIA starting Singapore-Canberra-Wellington flights in 2017 and adding extra flights on the Singapore-Christchurch route. In May 2018, SIA tweaked its Wellington services, switching the mid-point stopover from Canberra to Melbourne.

    Meanwhile, the pair has added more frequencies on the Auckland-Singapore route and will have three nonstop flights a day from October 28 2018.

    The two carriers said in a joint statement the alliance had increased seat capacity by more than 25 per cent between New Zealand and Singapore.

    Further, it noted there would be 35 return flights a week between the two countries in the peak months.

    “The decision to re-authorise the alliance reinforces the benefits it has delivered to the New Zealand market in its first four years,” SIA senior vice president for marketing and planning Tan Kai Ping said.

    “We look forward to continue working closely with our alliance partner Air New Zealand, to provide even more travel options for our customers.”

    Air New Zealand chief strategy, networks and alliances officer Nick Judd said the partnership with SIA had been “key to successfully growing Air New Zealand’s international network and delivering important benefits to our customers”.

    “Singapore Airlines has been a strong alliance partner and we are excited at the opportunities the re-authorisation provides our two airlines,” Judd said.

    Lees ook:

  • Apple gets warning for misleading consumers

    Apple gets warning for misleading consumers

    Tech giant Apple has been warned by the Commerce Commission of New Zealand after it likely misled customers, while online retailer NZSALE has pleaded guilty to four charges of failing to comply with product safety standards.

    In the Commission’s view, Apple is likely to have breached the Fair Trading Act in a number of ways, including telling consumers its products are only covered by a guarantee for two years, which is in direct violation of the Consumer Guarantees Act (CGA) in that they do not expire after a legally prescribed period of time.

    “Although businesses may form a view about how long a product should generally last, they must assess each reported fault on its own merits,” said Commissioner Anna Rawlings, “they should not base decisions solely on how long a consumer has owned a product. The reasonable lifespan of a product will depend very much on what the product is.”

    Apple was also warned for pushing customers to the manufacturer of non-Apple branded products when Apple is responsible, as a retailer, for all products it sells.

    “It is natural that many retailers may wish to liaise with manufacturers to assess and remedy product defects but they must not point blank refuse to address consumer complaints and refer consumers exclusively to manufacturers for attention,” Ms Rawlings said.

    Additionally, NZSALE has been charged with failing to comply with the product safety standard for children’s nightwear, after it was found that three types of nightwear and a sleep sack were made of material that was too flammable to be used, did not carry the right fire hazard label, or had no fire hazard labelling at all.

    The Commission’s investigation was sparked by a product recall of these products in Australia following an investigation by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission. The products were publically recalled in New Zealand in December 2015.

    In New Zealand 73 units were sold – although only eight garments were returned through the recall and a further 15 were confirmed destroyed by consumers.

    Lees ook:

    Lees ook:

  • Global Savings Group is bringing Cuponation to New Zealand

    Global Savings Group is bringing Cuponation to New Zealand

    The Global Savings Group (GSG), a leading global provider of Commerce Content Solutions, launches its premium discount code portal CupoNation in New Zealand.

    The Global Savings Group, founded in Munich in 2012, is currently operating over 100 digital portals and tools in 23 countries around the world. Its portals connect commerce to content, offering product discovery, recommendations, deals, and discounts, which, in turn, help consumers to make smarter shopping decisions by connecting them to relevant offerings, provided by their favorite retailers and brands.

    The CupoNation brand is already present in 20 markets around the globe. In Asia Pacific it has already been launched in Singapore (2013), Australia (2014), Malaysia (2016), and in Indonesia (2018). By launching in New Zealand, the GSG is continuing its growth strategy in Asia Pacific, Oceania, and beyond.

    Igor Shapiro, Managing Director Asia Pacific and Oceania, says “We are constantly exploring growth opportunities that allow us to offer savvy shoppers worldwide the best deals and discounts, helping them to save on purchases from their favourite retailers. New Zealand has a rapidly growing economy with a fast-growing e-commerce market. Thus bringing our service to New Zealand, and adding a globally proven commerce content solution to the local ecosystem, is a logical step for us.”

    The Google Consumer Barometer Survey shows that 86 percent of New Zealand’s population accesses the internet daily for private reasons, spending on average about 6 hours a day online via any device. Almost every tenth online shopper in New Zealand searched for coupons and promotions, helping to make their online purchase decision, the Google Consumer Barometer Survey reveals.

    Marko Stricevic, Operational Lead Asia Pacific and Oceania adds, “CupoNation is gaining popularity in the Pacific markets. We will not only bring value to the local online shoppers but also retailers and brands will profit. We see promising market potential and high spending potential. Our aim is to generate significant value by attracting savvy shoppers to their portals, thereby increasing consumer base and revenues. We are confident about becoming the leading discount code portal in New Zealand in the next months.”

    Although online shopping is still only a small proportion of the retail market, making up roughly 7.6 percent of total retail, online retail is growing rapidly in New Zealand. According to BNZ’s Online Retail Index, annual national online spending is estimated at $4.2 billion (excl GST) (US$ 2.96 billion). Last month New Zealanders spent about $200 million (US$ 140 million) on domestic retailers and $150 million (US$ 105 million) on international retailers.

    A recent survey of the International Post Corporation found that China (32%), USA (24%), and Australia (20%) are the leading countries for New Zealanders to purchase abroad. Spending on overseas sites was especially strong in November 2017, particularly in electronics, reflecting a greater awareness of international retail events like Black Friday and Singles Day, that are heavily penetrating local retail markets.

    Andreas Fruth, Managing Director and Co-Founder of the Global Savings Group, adds “We want to create connections to transform global digital commerce. Our aim is to help millions of consumers around the world to make better shopping decisions and advertisers to establish direct links to their consumers, by providing aggregated access to audiences across portals and markets. By launching CupoNation in New Zealand, we are strengthening our position in the Asian Pacific markets as well as further improving our position as a global leading provider of commerce content solutions.”

  • Singapore Airlines new Airbus service to begin out of Christchurch

    Singapore Airlines new Airbus service to begin out of Christchurch

    New Zealanders travellers between Christchurch and Singapore will soon have the additional choice of a Singapore Airlines A350-900 aircraft.

    It follows the recent introduction of Singapore Airlines flights from Wellington to Singapore via Melbourne, Singapore Airlines general manager New Zealand, Simon Turcotte said.

    The Christchurch service will begin in January 2019 with the A350-900 Airbus which has higher ceilings, larger windows, and wider body.

     The new aircraft have fewer seats at 253 compared with the current Boeing 777-200ER which has 312 seats – but there are more premium class seats on offer to make the airline more money per flight.

    The new A350-900 has a standard seating pattern of 42 business class fully reclining seats ($5500 one-way), 24 in premium economy class with partly reclining seats ($3300), and 187 economy class standard seats $1550).

    By contrast the Boeing 777-200ER aircraft had fewer of the more expensive premium seats.

    All the seats on the new service are described as “next generation”.

    Turcotte said the company was introducing premium economy class on the route for the first time.

    It will allow customers to enjoy the seating from the South Island to destinations such as Paris, London, New Delhi, Johannesburg, Dubai, Barcelona, and Hong Kong.

    “The introduction of premium economy will make Singapore Airlines the only long haul carrier offering the cabin daily out of Christchurch on a year-round basis.”

    Premium economy class gives customers priority handling and boarding, a 2-4-2 seating arrangement, seats with greater width up to 49.5 centimetres including a calf-rest and footrest, reclining up to 20cms with a 96cms seat pitch. They also get a  33.7 cms touch screen monitor, noise cancelling headphones, and champagne throughout the 10 hour flight.

    The business class cabin is configured in a 1-2-1 layout giving every traveller direct aisle access, a 71cms wide seat converting into a 198cms fully-flat bed with cushioned headboard, plus spaces for laptops, and 45cms HD LCD screen and noise cancelling headphones.

    Economy class passengers are stacked in a 3-3-3 configuration, 45cms seat with backrest cushion and headrest, plus smaller touch screen.

    Singapore Airlines has 67 of the A350-900 aircraft on order and has taken delivery of 21 since the first aircraft entered the fleet in March 2016.

    Passengers will also be able to use the Singapore Airlines companion app, to control their in-flight entertainment.

  • New Zealand Consumer spending finished stronger in 2017

    New Zealand Consumer spending finished stronger in 2017

    Consumer spending growth accelerated to five per cent year-on-year in the three months to the end of December last year, with retail trade picking up momentum over the holidays, new National Australia Bank data has revealed.

    Up from three per cent growth y/y in the third quarter, NAB’s latest quarterly customer spending report, which measures around 2.7 million daily transactions through the bank’s facilities, has tracked spending increases across the entirety of metro and regional Australia.

    Retail trade increased 3.4 per cent y/y in Q417, up from 2.4 per cent in the third quarter, while accommodation and food services spending was 10.4 per cent, up 3 per cent.

    The Northern Territory was the strongest growth state for retail trade, up six per cent, offsetting a 0.6 per cent decline in Western Australia.

    Retail trade spending growth was 4.7 per cent in Victoria and 3.3 per cent in NSW. Across the entire economy Victoria was the strongest performer, while NSW and NT lagged.

    Average monthly customer spending during the quarter was up $166 to $2306 in metro areas and up by $104 to $2089 in regional areas.

    Lees ook:

  • Esprit to close down Australia and New Zealand stores

    Esprit to close down Australia and New Zealand stores

    Esprit is to close its Australian and New Zealand stores after years of mounting losses. The Esprit Australia and New Zealand network comprises 67 directly managed retail stores, including 38 concessions in department stores and 13 discount outlets.

    The announcement came just a few hours after the embattled fast-fashion retailer warned shareholders its third-quarter performance was “well below expectation” and several days after it announced it would not renew the lease on its Causeway Bay flagship store.

    In a statement to the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, Florence Ng Wai Yin, Esprit’s company secretary, said divesting the ANZ operations will allow management to concentrate efforts and resources in developing other markets in Asia, singling out China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Singapore and Malaysia, “with profitable growth opportunities for the future” and avoid incurring further losses in Australasia.

    In the year to June 30 last year, Esprit Australia and New Zealand reported sales of HK$297 million, (US$37.8 million) which works out at a weekly per-store average of just US$10,850.

    It accounted for less than 2 per cent of the group’s total global revenue.

    Esprit says closing the stores down will cost between HK$150 million and HK$200 million.

    Executive director and group CFO of Esprit Holdings in Hong Kong, Thomas Tang, said the company had undertaken “intensive efforts” in past years to turn the Esprit Australasia business around, to no avail.

    Stephen Newnham, director of Esprit Australia and New Zealand described the group’s decision as “unfortunate but unavoidable”.

    The company expects to close all of its stores by the end of the year and will continue to honour gift cards until then.

    Strategy to be sped up

    The closure marks just one step in a promised acceleration of a strategic plan to improve top-line sales and reduce running expenses.

    “Given the challenging sales performance in the first nine months of the fiscal year, the group remains cautious about its expectations for the rest of the year,” said company secretary Florence Ng Wai Yin in a stock exchange filing.

    Group-wide sales in the nine months to March 31 were down 10.9 per cent year on year, to HK$11.8 billion (US$1.5 billion). The retail selling space was rationalised by 9.2 per cent over the same period.

    More worryingly, Esprit’s sales fell 13.8 per cent in the three months to March 31.

    Offline retail sales totalled HK$1.404 billion during the quarter, down 17.1 per cent, while online sales fell 11.4 per cent to $1.09 billion.

    Yin said the offline sales drop was the result of fewer sales points and unseasonably cold weather in Europe which aggravated the decline in customer traffic to stores.

    Online revenue in Asia Pacific declined due to management’s decision to reduce discounting in order to enhance profitability.

    Lees ook:

  • T-Mobile and Sprint announce merger plans

    T-Mobile and Sprint announce merger plans

    US operators T-Mobile US and Sprint have announced an agreement to merge in an all-stock combination. The combined company will be named T-Mobile, will initially serve some 127 million customers, and will be led by current T-Mobile US CEO John Legere.

    The deal is an important step toward 5G for both companies, which were facing some big capex bills if they tried to do it alone. While the integration of the two companies’ networks will be quite a task, the fact that they can combine their 5G buildout efforts at an earlier stage will surely help a lot.

    Well, it will if the deal gets approved relatively quickly. So now that the companies have made up their minds, all eyes will turn toward the Trump administration’s regulators and, umm, twitter. The last time T-Mobile US and Sprint were close to a deal, regulators threw ice water on the concept. There are reasons to expect the situation to be different this time, but there is plenty of uncertainty in just what the response will be.

    As for the deal, each Sprint shareholder will receive 0.10256 T-Mobile share per Sprint share, which puts the total enterprise value of the combined company at $146 billion. DT’s share of the company will be about 42%, while Japan’s Softbank would own 27%, the rest being publicly traded. Synergies of about $6 billion in annual cost savings are anticipated.

    One sector that probably would in some ways have preferred to not have a deal is the metro fiber infrastructure space, which would understandably like to build out four 5G backhaul networks rather than three. But on the other hand, what they might see is one effort start earlier with the funding to do it right rather than two efforts trailing the field and cutting corners.

    Lees ook:

    Lees ook:

    Lees ook:

  • Sephora creates long queues during new shop opening

    Sephora creates long queues during new shop opening

    Sephora has drawn a crowd to the opening of its first store of the year in Queensland, as shoppers queued overnight to access the international cosmetics giant’s new Robina Town Centre store.

    At one point on Thursday morning the line outside the new location was more than 300 metres long, snaking around to adjacent areas of the centre.

    The launch is a good start for the business, which expanded to Australia in 2015, after it announced last month that it would open the Gold Coast location, drawing in customers with new virtual artists that allow visitors to try on products virtually in-store.

    Its decidedly less positive for Sephora’s competitors though, of which there are many.

    Myer, David Jones, Priceline and L’Occitane all have stores in QIC’s Robina Town Centre, signalling yet another increase in competitive pressure in the beauty sector.

    “Sephora always generates great crowds because they are the undisputed global beauty leaders and people are always keen to try out and play with their wide selection of brands,” Savills’ Leighton Hunziker said of the opening.

    It’s not the first-time international entrants have drawn big crowds, when others like H&M, Zara and Forever 21 opened their stores in Sydney’s Pitt St Mall shoppers flocked, creating queues that lasted for days.

    But increasing competition and subdued consumer sentiment have put pressure on established beauty retailers in recent months, driving elevated levels of discounting in the sector that’s weighing on margins.

    Reporting its half-year financials last month, Priceline owner Australian Pharmaceuticals Industries said lacklustre beauty sales had driven a 1.7 per cent decline in comparable store sales in the first-half.

    “The amount of discounting and competition that has emerged inside the health and beauty sector has ramped up significantly,” API chief executive and managing director Richard Vincent said in April, revealing that price deflation was between 3-4 per cent in the half.

    For the likes of Myer and David Jones the growing influence of international competitors is particularly disruptive, given the already weakened statuses of both businesses.

    Louise Grimmer, a lecturer in marketing at the University of Tasmania, said customers are increasingly turning to specialists in the beauty category over department stores in search of education and personalisation.

    “Increasingly we are witnessing consumers abandoning department stores for specialist retailers such as Sephora,” Grimmer said.

    “If they weren’t already, department stores should be on notice that customers now demand much more than has been on offer. They want high levels of customer service, knowledgeable staff, specialist product offerings and a multichannel experience.”

    Robina Town Centre is Sephora’s 14th Australian store, and alongside the continued expansion of other international beauty brands such as Mecca and MAC, its unlikely competition will ease any time soon.

  • Adidas appoints new president

    Adidas appoints new president

    Adidas has appointed a Kiwi as its new president of Adidas North America.

    Former Adidas New Zealand product manager Zion Armstrong will oversee American operations from 1 July, succeeding Mark King, who has decided to step down after a long career with the company.

    Armstrong, who has co-led Adidas North America as general manager together with King since June 2015, will be reporting directly to Roland Auschel, member of the executive board of Adidas AG, responsible for global sales.

    Armstrong first joined Adidas New Zealand as product manager for footwear in 1998 before moving to Adidas headquarters in Germany in 2002. From 2005 to 2014, the Kiwi held various leadership roles in Asia Pacific including managing director for Adidas South Korea.

    Armstrong has served as general manager of Adidas North America since 2015. He competed in the IAAF World Junior Championships and the Commonwealth Games and is a former New Zealand record holder for 400 meter hurdles.

    “We are very excited to promote Zion Armstrong to one of the most important roles in our company,” the sportswear retailer said. “We are convinced that Zion’s leadership will enable us to continue our successful journey in North America.”

    In the coming years, King will continue to serve Adidas North America as an advisor.

    Lees ook:

    Lees ook:

  • Vocus Group scraps plans to sell NZ business

    Vocus Group scraps plans to sell NZ business

    Australian enterprise-focused fixed line operator Vocus Group has abandoned plans to sell its New Zealand business, ending negotiations with all interested parties.

    In a statement, Vocus Group said none of the multiple offers it had received for the New Zealand business appropriately reflected the strategic value of the operation.

    The offers also did not provide the required certainty of funding and execution, according to Vocus Group chairman Bob Mansfield.

    As a result, Vocus Group now plans to “continue to invest in and grow Vocus NZ to enable that business to realise its strategic potential for shareholders.”

    Vocus Group first revealed it was seeking a buyer for its New Zealand operations in October 2017, and had originally planned to complete the sale by June this year.

    The company meanwhile announced that it is in the process of finalizing the appointment of several banks to arrange a full refinancing of its existing debt facilities, which will include an upsizing of the facilities. Vocus expects to complete its debt refinancing by the end of June.

    “The board would like to thank our bank group for their strong support shown to date,” Mansfield said.

    “We are comfortable that the increased financial capacity and covenants that will be sought through the refinancing will provide sufficient financial flexibility for the company to complete its strategic and transformation initiatives over the next few years.”

  • Credit card spending rebounds in March

    Credit card spending rebounds in March

    New Zealand retail spending on electronic cards rebounded in March on the back of increased grocery and liquor spending.

    Seasonally adjusted total retail spending on credit and debit cards increased 1 per cent in March, Statistics New Zealand.

    Economists had expected a lift of 0.5 per cent, according to a Bloomberg poll. Core retail spending, excluding fuel and vehicles, rose 1.6 per cent.

    “Despite losing a trading day to Good Friday, retail card spending rose in March,” retail manager Sue Chapman said.

    “The rise was driven by an increase in spending on grocery and liquor retailing, rebounding from a fall in the previous month.”

    Ms Chapman said spending may have been lower in February due to two large storms that hit several parts of the country.

    Consumables spending, which covers grocery and liquor retailing, rose 2.9 per cent in March.

    Spending on durables – which includes hardware, furniture and appliances – lifted 1.2 per cent on the month while hospitality rose 1.4 per cent in March versus February.

    Apparel spending, however, fell 1.1 per cent on the month. Spending on vehicles fell 1.8 per cent and spending on fuel fell 0.5 per cent.

    Thursday’s figures show actual total retail spending climbed rose 6.0 per cent in March to $5.5 billion.

    Card-holders across all industries made 151 million transactions in the month. The average value of $49 was unchanged on the year and down from $50 in February.

    “Election-related uncertainty looks to be well behind us, with consumers voting with their wallets. We remain constructive on the outlook for consumer spending over 2018 and beyond,” said ASB senior economist Mark Smith.

    Lees ook:

    Lees ook:

  • Spark launches LoRa IoT network across NZ

    Spark launches LoRa IoT network across NZ

    New Zealand operator Spark has announced the commercial launch of its nationwide IoT network for businesses across the nation, with coverage reaching 60% of the country’s population.

    The IoT network, using the LoRaWAN technology, has been switched on in Auckland, Tauranga, Hamilton, Rotorua, Palmerston North, Shannon, Wellington, Nelson, Blenheim, Christchurch and Dunedin. Sites in Hastings and Invercargill will go live in the next few weeks, the telco said in a company statement.

    The network consists of gateways and antennas installed on Spark’s 4G cell sites. Spark is using Actility’s ThingPark Wireless platform, Kerlink’s gateways, and Kordia to build and maintain the network.

    Spark initially announced its LoRaWAN plans in July 2017, and details of coverage plans in December 2017.

    “Our IoT capability is really gathering pace, and now we’ve got this critical mass of coverage we’re able to make the network commercially available. This is a real milestone for Spark as we help New Zealand organizations win big in IoT,” said Michael Stribling, Spark’s general manager of IoT solutions.

    “While we currently have 60% of rural and urban New Zealand covered, we’ll be working to extend that to 70% by July this year. We’re also looking to partner with organizations to extend coverage into areas where they need it.”

    With its LoRaWAN IoT network, Spark said, business and local governments can deploy sensors across on a range of objects including vehicles, waterways, rubbish bins, machinery, carparks and livestock, with the sensors sending such information as the volume of rubbish in a public bin or water pH in a stream, over the network to the people managing these objects.

    Spark said LoRaWAN technology, which carries small amounts of data over long distances, uses less power than cellular networks, making it an affordable IoT solution.

    Compared to cellular connectivity, it works with a wide range of low-cost sensor technologies that are significantly cheaper on average than sensors for cellular networks. The cost to use the network is based on the number of sensors connected, and the number of messages those sensors send each month, the telco explained.

    For example it would cost a local farmer around NZ$1.79 ($1.29) per cow each month to track location and body temperatures of their cows using the LoRaWAN IoT network, Spark said.

    Spark has been testing LoRaWAN technology on trial sites for well over a year, with partners from a range of industries, including agriculture, marine and smart buildings.

    Some of its early adopters of the new commercial network include Levno, which has signed up as Spark’s first customer and will be working with the telco to extend network coverage to other areas. The Pamerston North-based agriculture firm is using Spark’s network to connect its fuel tank monitoring sensors.

    NB Smartcities NZ, a local firm offering smart city services, will also use Spark’s connectivity for smart outdoor lighting across the country.

    Claus Oustrup, director NB Smartcities NZ said the Spark network enables its council customers to leverage a range of smart city applications in addition to smart light technology.

    “For many councils, having real-time data, asset information and being in control of these devices can increase customer service response times and create real benefits for communities. For example, street lighting can account for as many as 50% of call center complaints. By having adaptable street lighting managed with real-time systems, these complaints can be quickly addressed, and their volume decreased,” said Oustrup.

    According to Stribling, the new LoRaWAN network will also enable more IoT technologies from overseas, like smart street lighting, to be adopted in New Zealand. At the same time, it is expected to give New Zealand developers of IoT technologies the chance to launch their products locally.

    “We’ve worked with the International LoRa Alliance to agree on Asia-Pacific standards so that products developed on LoRaWAN in New Zealand will work the same way on LoRaWAN networks in other countries,” he said.

    In addition to LoRaWAN, Spark has also deployed an IoT network using the 3GPP-compliant LTE CAT-M1 standard to cater different use cases. The company is also monitoring the global progress of the emerging Narrow Band (NB-IoT) standard and will invest in it when the use cases and ecosystem for NB-IoT become more mature.

    Last week, Spark also kicked off a 5G trial in Wellington, making it the country’s first mobile carrier to do so. The 5G trial came weeks after Spark announced changes to its management team as part of the company’s restructuring.

    Lees ook:

  • Vietnam Prime Minister meets New Zealand’s milk firms

    Vietnam Prime Minister meets New Zealand’s milk firms

    Prime Minister Nguyễn Xuân Phúc said his Government encouraged foreign firms in milk production and processing to expand production, upgrade technology and apply energy-saving solutions in the country.

    He said this during his meeting with the representatives of some milk companies in New Zealand in Auckland on March 13 as part of his official visit to the country.

    During his reception for Lukas Paravicini, chief executive of Fonterra Cooperative Group Ltd – the leading milk exporter of New Zealand, Phúc said Việt Nam appreciated the cooperation of the firm with its Vietnamese partners. He highlighted the development of Việt Nam’s dairy and nutritional food market, saying the 93-million-strong market was considered one of the most attractive market groups in the world.

    Talking about the vast opportunities brought by the newly signed Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership, Phúc expressed hope that Fonterra and other enterprises in New Zealand would fully tap those opportunities to increase investment in Việt Nam with the aim of expanding their market to other ASEAN member nations.

    He said the Vietnamese Government would promote investment in developing the dairy sector as well as create favourable conditions for enterprises to foster production in the field, contributing to generating more jobs and improving social welfare.

    On his part, Paravicini affirmed his firm’s interest in the Vietnamese market and said Fonterra had cooperated with many Vietnamese dairy firms.

    He said the group was providing dairy material for Việt Nam’s dairy, beverage and nutritional food companies and was selling high-quality products in the Vietnamese market.

    Fonterra pledged to further boost cooperation with Vietnamese enterprises, broadening its investment for production and business in Việt Nam, Paravicini said.

    The same day, Phúc received Kim Willoughby, director of Deosan Company, and Victor Trương, director of Richmond Company.

    Expressing their pleasure to meet the Vietnamese leader, the representatives of the two companies said they had worked with a number of Vietnamese partners with the intention of assisting Vietnamese firms in producing and processing dairy, contributing to improving the capacity of Vietnamese dairy companies.

    Willoughby spoke highly of the development potential of leading dairy businesses in Việt Nam, such as Vinamilk and TH True Milk. He said Deosan had cooperated with Vietnamese farmers processing milk and planned to invest in the dairy industry in Việt Nam.

    He also said Deosan would support Việt Nam’s dairy farms by providing suitable products and services, such as milking equipment and consumer goods, veterinary services, farm design management and quality management.

    Phúc said he highly valued Deosan’s assistance to Vietnamese dairy companies and affirmed that the Vietnamese Government always supported business and cooperation with local firms.

    Việt Nam is developing its dairy-processing industry in a modern and comprehensive direction, aiming to improve its competitiveness for regional and global integration, Phúc said.

     

    Lees ook: