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Tag: Spark

  • New Zealand cellcos propose joint rural expansion program

    New Zealand cellcos propose joint rural expansion program

    New Zealand’s mobile operators Spark, Vodafone New Zealand and 2degrees have submitted a joint proposal to improve rural broadband and mobile infrastructure under two government programs.

    The operators have applied to be selected for the Rural Broadband Initiative Extension and Mobile Black Spot Fund programs.

    If selected, the companies have committed to investing “hundreds of millions of dollars” in the project, including NZ$75 million to deploy the infrastructure, as well as opex costs, spectrum and other resources.

    The operators said their proposed expenditure would more than match the government’s own planned NZ$150 million ($104.6 million) contribution to the program, which would come from the Telecommunications Development Levy.

    Under the proposal, the partners would roll out around 500 new cell sites providing a 25% increase in land coverage across New Zealand, providing access to fast broadband for thousands of rural households and businesses and extending mobile coverage to more than 1,200km of state highways.

    “Rural New Zealand is a key driver of our country’s economic growth and productivity and for these sectors to remain competitive they need fast broadband and mobile coverage – not just in offices, but on farms, in schools, and on the roads,” Vodafone NZ CEO Russell Stanners said.

    “The combination of the Government’s RBI funding and this investment by the three mobile network operators presents a once in a generation opportunity to deliver both competitive ultra-fast broadband and world class 4G mobile infrastructure to areas of New Zealand that today have neither.”

  • Spark deploys 200G OTN technology

    Spark deploys 200G OTN technology

    New Zealand’s largest operator Spark has deployed the market’s first 200G per wavelength production fiber link using equipment from Nokia.

    The operator’s new 200Gbps network link connects its core network with the global gateway, and will co-exist with Spark’s existing 10G and 100G channels.

    Spark general manager of networks Colin Brown said the upgrade is aimed at meeting massive growth in demand for bandwidth in an increasingly digital world.

    “Nokia has helped Spark NZ reach a new milestone with our world-class optical transport network, achieving our vision of a data-driven future for New Zealand and underpinning an integrated network including fiber, 3G, 4G, 4.5G, wireless broadband and Wi-Fi,” he said.

    Spark is using Nokia’s optical transport network technology. The vendor said it has now shipped its 200G solution to more than 88 customers worldwide, and demand is growing rapidly as operators see the benefits of 200G 8x quadrature amplitude modulation (8QAM).

    “Like many operators, Spark has faced relentless growth in bandwidth demand, largely driven by an increase in video streaming by business and consumer users,” Nokia head of Oceania Ray Owen said.

    “By taking a flexible approach to this challenge with New Zealand’s first 200Gbps fiber link, together with Nokia, Spark is well placed to meet continued demand growth while meeting existing user expectations.”

  • New Zealand’s Spark warned off marketing Gigabit plans

    New Zealand’s Spark warned off marketing Gigabit plans

    New Zealand operator Spark has been cautioned against advertising its high-speed fiber services as “gigabit” plans by competition regulator the Commerce Commission.

    The ISP launched its fastest fiber service yesterday, labeling it “Ultra Fast Fibre MAX” instead of the planned Gigabit name.

    The Commerce Commission held that advertising the service as a Gigabit speed would mislead consumers into expecting speeds of 1,000Mbps, whereas the Spark service will deliver speeds of between 700Mbps and 900Mbps.

    As well as Spark, the Commission also plans to get into contact with other ISPs making similar claims, noting that it has received enough consumer complaints to deem the action necessary.

    The Commission hasn’t made a formal ruling, but said Spark had recognized the concerns the regulator had raised and decided to take action accordingly.

    But the Telecommunications Users Association has criticized the decision as being “pedantic”, noting that other markets advertise similar-speed plans as Gigabit services, and that technical constraints will mean services always fall below their full potential speeds.

  • Spark New Zealand opposes Vodafone-Sky merger

    Spark New Zealand opposes Vodafone-Sky merger

    Spark New Zealand has revealed it is formally opposing rival Vodafone New Zealand’s planned merger with Sky Network Television.

    The operator announced it has made a submission to competition regulator the Commerce Commission opposing the proposed merger on the grounds that Spark feels it is not in the best interest of consumers.

    Spark GM for regulation John Wesley-Smith said based on Sky’s current wholesale market arrangements for premium sports content, the company has told the Commerce Commission that the merger should not go ahead in its current form.

    “Sky has a monopoly on rights for premium ‘national sports’ in New Zealand. Given Kiwis’ love of these sports, they are ‘must have’ rights for media content providers,” he said.

    “Sky’s business model seems increasingly focused around sports, which underlines how effective their monopoly is in this space. The proposed merger with Vodafone is likely to entrench that monopoly, and that’s something all New Zealanders should be concerned about.”

    He said Spark has previously abandoned an earlier reselling deal with Sky three years ago because it was not financially viable, and it relied on an outdated distribution model involving reselling Sky boxes for pay TV services that no longer works for the operator’s customers.

    “We believe if the Commerce Commission blocked the proposed merger, Sky would be forced by commercial realities to make all of its sports content available online and on-demand – and via wholesale arrangements with lots of parties that help distribute this content to New Zealand consumers,” he said.

    Sky and Vodafone announced a proposed NZ$3.44 billion ($2.5 billion) reverse takeover deal in June involving Sky Network TV buying the operator in exchange for a 51% stake in the combined company.

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