Download Weekly: Concern as 3G shutdown nears

In this newsletter:

• Digital Equity Coalition Aotearoa identifies 3G shutdown risks.
• Number porting to stay regulated.
• Chorus CTO steps down.
• NCSC absorbs Cert NZ.

Breaking news: Major Starlink outage

A message on the Starlink website earlier this morning (Friday July 25, NZ time) told customers the SpaceX low Earth orbit satellite broadband network was "experiencing a service outage". By 8:00AM the Starlink site was also offline, possibly because of the high traffic from customers looking for answers.

The problem appears to be worldwide with users from all over reporting problems on sites like Reddit. Down Detector shows the outage was first reported at around 7:00 NZ time.

Mixed awareness, lots of worries as carriers prepare to pull 3G plug

Research carried out for the Digital Equity Coalition Aotearoa (Deca) shows mixed awareness of the coming 3G mobile network shutdown and high levels of concern among those most likely to be affected.

One New Zealand and 2degrees plan to switch off their 3G networks before the end of the year. Spark will keep its 3G service running until March 2026.

That means most remaining 3G users have less than six months before their phones stop working.

One in five unaware

Presenting the results in a webinar, Deca co-chair Vic McLennan said only three percent of survey respondents were “very aware” of the shutdown. Another 36 percent were “somewhat aware”. One in five had no awareness at all.

This suggests mobile companies have not done a good job informing their customers.

“Everyone seems to be concerned about the shutdown,” McLennan says. The survey found 53 percent of respondents are very concerned. A further 43 percent are somewhat concerned.

Not ready

A report published in June 2024 by OpenSignal also found few users were ready for the change. At that point, One NZ planned a March 2025 shutdown. Spark was aiming to close its 3G service by the end of this year.

Deca says barriers to upgrading are a concern. For many, the issue is financial. While it’s possible to buy a basic 4G phone for under $100, there were reports of vulnerable users being sold far more expensive models.

In some cases, customers took on debt they could not afford.

A lack of digital confidence

There are other issues. Some users lack digital confidence and struggle to make the shift. Others worry about losing access to emergency calling. That’s also a particular concern for users with older 4G handsets that rely on 3G for voice.

Another worry is coverage. In some areas, 3G signals reach further than 4G. The change could leave people in those fringe locations without service

On a more positive note, the number of 3G-only users continues to fall.

Tuanz CEO Craig Young told the webinar that 3G now accounts for just two percent of Spark’s mobile data traffic. Voice calls over 3G have dropped by 85 percent.

That suggests a shrinking number of users could be left behind when the service is switched off.

Number porting services to remain regulated

In a draft decision published this week, the Commerce Commission says there are no reasonable grounds to investigate number portability services.

Local and Mobile Number Portability (LMNP) is what lets you keep your phone number when switching providers. Although they are two different services, the rules are much the same for landline numbers, which are now on the way out, and for mobile numbers.

While portability is convenient for phone customers, it is also important for competition as it lowers the barriers that might otherwise stop people switching service providers.

Number portability services have been regulated services since 2001. Under the Telecommunications Act, the Commerce Commission has to consider whether to stop regulating these services every five years.

The Commission says there is no practical alternative to LMNP. If the rules were removed there would be no mechanism to stop phone companies from either refusing to change numbers or from charging excessive fees to do so. Which means, for now, the Commerce Commission wants to keep the rules in place.

Chorus CTO Ewen Powell to step down

A Linkedin post from Chorus chief technology officer says he will step down from the role at the end of July. Powell has been in the role for more than 14 years. In his post he says his journey took him from the Post Office to Telecom to Chorus. For now he will be taking a break before looking for a new role.

Collins grants Tāwhaki Joint Venture $5.85 million

Space minister Judith Collins has granted the Tāwhaki Joint Venture $5.85 million for three years of operational funding. Collins says: “This funding will help it scale up aerospace operations, attract new customers and strengthen New Zealand’s position in the global advanced aviation sector.”

In other news...

• Starlink could be facing a congestion problem — Interest.
• Why Sky TV bought Three — NZ Herald.
• How many landlines are in service worldwide in 2025? — Telegeography.
• The Department of Internal Affairs has new digital identity rules — Reseller News.

NCSC and Cert NZ integration now complete

The National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) says it has now completed integrating CertNZ into its organisation. As part of the change, the Cert brand, the website and the hotline will disappear.

In a statement on the now merged website the government agency says the integration “improves the experience for all New Zealanders reporting cyber security incidents, making it easier for people to know where to go for help”.

They are nice words. Yet while the new structure might make sense from a cost point of view, there is no visible evidence of improved experience or ease of use.

Download Weekly five years ago

Spark upgrades to self healing Optical Transport Network. The telco built a 800 Gbps link connecting Glenfield and Papakura. It was the first self-healing fibre connection of its kind in New Zealand with the ability to automatically restore services after an outage.

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