New Zealanders top online service buyers

Analyst firm IDC says New Zealanders are now among the world’s keenest buyers of paid online services. Some 22 percent of consumers here say services like Netflix and Spark's Lightbox are their main way of viewing entertainment. 

That’s on a par with the US and a long way ahead of the worldwide figure of 14 percent.  

We’re still behind North America when it comes to buying a streaming service. On the other side of the Pacific 41 percent pay for streaming TV, here just over a quarter do. 

Three years in, we're keen

New Zealand wasted little time moving from near the bottom of the online service league to the top of the table. It is three years since Spark launched Lightbox, the first widely available local service. There were also services like the Premier League Pass which allowed fans to watch English football on digital devices. 

While many New Zealanders paid for an international version of Netflix, that service didn’t arrive in a local form until early 2015. Network companies like Chorus and ISPs like Orcon show graphs of how data consumption rates leaped after Netflix opened in New Zealand. It helps that these services arrived as the nationwide UFB fibre build hit its stride. 

These numbers give the lie to the idea that New Zealanders are software pirates or spend a lot of time downloading illegal content. 

Some of the discussion of this survey on social media centred on the poor entertainment choices had before streaming video was a practical option. 

Not just Netflix

IDC says it isn’t just movies and TV shows. New Zealanders are among the keenest users of all premium digital services. This includes online music streaming, cloud services, and console gaming. We are also among the highest users of Facebook with 81 percent of people who answered the survey using the service in the month before they were asked. The worldwide figure is 74 percent. 

People here own an average of 6.5 digital devices and spend 56 hours, roughly half, of waking hours connected to online.

In general, we’re a practical breed. We tend to use digital services if there’s an obvious benefit. If the benefit is less clear, we’re more tentative. So just 18 percent of New Zealanders have used virtual reality in the past year. This compares with 38 percent worldwide. 

To get these numbers IDC questions 30,000 adult consumers in 19 countries. 1400 of them were in New Zealand. 

Faster UFB connections as consent rules change

Utilities Disputes Limited will manage disputes when people in living in shared driveways or apartment buildings want access to new networks like the UFB. The company was appointed to deal with changes to consenting rules following the passing of the Telecommunications Amendment Act in April. 

Network operators must join the scheme to take part. Chorus is the first member. 

Communications Minister Simon Bridges says the new rules will make installation quicker and easier. 

The Act also gives telcos an incentive to use lower impact installation methods to avoid property disruption. Among other things it means they can use existing infrastructure such as electricity lines to deploy rural fibre.

Thousands of rural New Zealanders to get VDSL after Chorus upgrade

Chorus spent $7 million upgrading 125 rural cabinets to VDSL technology. The company says this could mean improved broadband for 10,000 rural customers. As part of the upgrade, the cabinets were connected to exchanges with fibre. This is similar to the approach Australia’s NBN is taking in suburban areas across the Tasman. 

Kurt Rodgers, Chorus network strategy manager, says the VDSL and fibre upgrade is a better option than fixed wireless broadband. Among other benefits, it means customers can get unlimited data plans not yet available on wireless. Both Vodafone and Spark offer fixed wireless broadband as part of the Rural Broadband Initiative. 

Rodgers says rural customers will get a speed bump. Before the upgrade they would get a 5mbps service at best with speeds often below that. Now they expect to see an average of 45mbps if they buy a VDSL connection. 

Kordia’s Aura unit launches security training tool

Aura Information Security, part of Kordia, has launched Cyberwise, an online security training tool for businesses. The tool teaches employees about online crime tactics such as phishing and ransomware. Aura general manager Peter Bailey says this is important as workers often find themselves in the online security front line, tricking them is usually the quickest way to a pay-off.

Sky falling

Sky TV saw profits fall 21 percent in the year to June. The pay TV company also lost close to 30,000 subscribers although numbers remain strong with 825,000 still on the books. 

It’s been a hard year for Sky. In February, the Commerce Commission turned down a planned merger with Vodafone. Today the two companies remain close. 

Curiously given what IDC says about New Zealanders’ willingness to pay for online services, Sky chief executive John Fellett named piracy as the company’s biggest competitor. 

TeamTalk profitable  

TeamTalk made a $5.1 million profit in the year to June 30. That’s up from a $1.3 million loss last year thanks to the sale of 70 percent of BayCity Communications to Vodafone for $10 million. BayCity is the company behind the Farmside rural broadband service. Vodafone has an option to buy the remainder of the business for $3 million. Teamtalk told shareholders it expects to make a similar profit next year. 

Vocus write-down

Vocus Group announced a A$1.46 billion net loss for the year to June 30. The announcement came two days after potential private equity buyers withdrew plans to buy the company. The main reason for the lost was a A$1.53 billion write-down on goodwill for businesses acquired, this includes the M2 Group which has previously taken over the CallPlus Group in New Zealand.