Crown Infrastructure Partners reports a total of 966,773 homes and businesses were connected to the UFB fibre network at
the end of March.
A further 17,038 connections were added in the first three months of 2020.
Across the country UFB uptake is now at 58 percent. Rolleston remains the most connected town with a 76 percent uptake.
The extended UFB build, that’s the first and second phases, has reached 91 percent and is running slightly ahead of
schedule.
Faster and faster
There is a clear move to the fastest UFB plans. CIP CEO Graham Mitchell says just under 22,000 homes and businesses moved to gigabit connections in the first quarter.
Around 82 percent of New Zealanders can now connect to the fibre network. It operated 169 cities and towns across the
country.
Outside of urban areas the Rural Broadband Initiative increased its footprint by 3,078 homes and businesses in the first quarter of 2020. The network also connected 52 marae
— if you are an overseas reader that’s a Māori meeting house.
A total of 27 new rural cellular towers began operating in the quarter. There are now 86 new rural towers nationwide
serving around 46,000 connections.
How are we doing?
The big picture is positive. The fibre network proved its worth before the Covid–19 lockdown, but that only went to amplify its importance.
Fibre reaches a little over four-fifths of New Zealanders. Things are a little less clearcut when it comes to the
remainder of the country.
Those rural users who live in sight of an RBI tower and are not waiting for a spare connection have a good fixed
wireless experience. Performance can slow a little at times, but for most purposes RBI fixed wireless delivers.
Likewise people with the good fortune to be serviced by one of the Wisps — wireless internet service providers — are
likely to get the broadband they need.
The problem comes for everyone else. That’s, perhaps as much as 10 percent of the population, probably more like six or
seven percent. These are people who don’t have fibre, a capable Wisp or line of sight to a cellular tower.
Given the small number and the importance of decent broadband, it should be possible over time to fill in more and more
of these gaps. The cost per connection might be high and it may be unrealistic to expect these people to pay the same as
city folk. That is a decision for telcos and government policymakers.
UFB uptake closes on a million as 58 percent connect was first posted at billbennett.co.nz