SpaceX IPO impact, Golden Bay resilience, fibre review
SpaceX IPO impact on NZ telecoms
Last week SpaceX launched what it hopes will be the largest stock market listing in history. The company aims to raise US$75 billion to fund its rocket and space travel development programme. See this separate analysis of what this means for New Zealand's telecommunications sector.
Golden Bay resilience group warns telecoms gap remains
A Golden Bay resilience group says the government has confirmed a major gap remains in emergency communications for remote communities dependent on vulnerable telecoms infrastructure.
Project Strim spokesperson Shelley Grell says residents in Mohua-Golden Bay are exposed because the region relies on a single fibre link over Tākaka Hill. When that link fails, mobile services, internet access, landlines, Eftpos and connected medical alarms can all go down at once.
In a recent letter to the group, communications minister Paul Goldsmith says the government does not have regulatory powers to compel telecommunications companies to invest in regional backhaul resilience.
The minister also acknowledges satellite-to-mobile services do not yet support 111 emergency calling, although he says evolving satellite technology “may” improve this in future.
Beyond emergency calling
Grell says the issue is broader than emergency calling.
“Communities also need to contact family, check on neighbours, receive emergency information, organise welfare support and communicate with Civil Defence,” she says.
Golden Bay has experienced a series of major outages in recent years after fibre connections over Tākaka Hill were severed during storms and floods.
Grell told The Download Weekly that residents often underestimate the seriousness of prolonged communications failures.
“When the internet’s out, the power is out and the roads are closed, it is absolutely destabilising and frightening,” she says.
Preparation for outages
Project Strim says households should prepare with backup power, radios, cash and emergency plans, but argues household preparedness is not a substitute for resilient regional infrastructure.
The group is now investigating practical local measures including public emergency WiFi hubs, backup power planning and improved community coordination during outages.
The issue follows wider industry debate about rural connectivity resilience after Cyclone Gabrielle exposed weaknesses in New Zealand’s regional telecommunications networks.
Background reading:
Bill Bennett
Chorus responds on Fibre IM Review
Following up on the May 1 report on the Fibre IM Review, Chorus has responded to Spark’s criticisms in a cross-submission.
The Commerce Commission is reviewing the rules that govern how Chorus can invest in and charge for its fibre network.
Chorus rejects Spark's call to delay network expansion rules. It argues that separating incremental upgrades from existing network technologies is impractical. The fibre company argues that measuring what consumers are willing to pay remains the most transparent investment test.
Also in its response, Chorus defended treating service failure penalties as an ordinary "cost of doing business" that belongs in regulated pricing. he company rejects Spark's argument that this weakens performance incentives. Chorus says it already faces strong discipline from market competition and strict government quality standards.
In other news...
- Warnings about dangers of Starlink rural broadband monopoly — RNZ.
Rural ISPs warn against over-reliance on a single provider. - Infratil boosts earnings — NZ Herald (paywall)
One New Zealand is the group profit generator. - 6G: Next generation wireless nobody's ready to pay for — The Register
The technology will be ready, but the business case and markets will not.
One NZ research shows AI trust gap
Research commissioned by One New Zealand found AI is becoming mainstream with three quarters of New Zealanders used AI tools or services in the last year.
Yet that familiarity is making us sceptical. Researchers found fewer than two in five believe AI will deliver what the research terms 'better outcomes for society'. A further 70 percent of AI users reported experiencing problems in the past year.
The problems include AI systems being unable to understand requests or context and difficulty getting past the AI to a human. Respondents also encountered incorrect information.
In a response to these shortcomings, One NZ says it has opened an AI trust hub on its website giving customers information about where and when AI is being used.
Tait Communications wins at Hi-Tech Awards
Christchurch-based radio communications specialist Tait Communications was named as the PwC Hi-Tech Company of the Year at the Hi-Tech Awards. The award judges said: “Tait is coming off a phenomenal year, passing the half billion dollar revenue mark.”
Reanz adds international back-up link
Academic and research network provider Reanz (Research and Education Advanced Network New Zealand) has added a connection to the Tasman Global Access cable from Hamilton. The move gives customers a physically separate route to the rest of the world that reduces the network’s reliance on a single landing point.
Reanz worked with One NZ’s wholesale fibre business EonFibre to build the link. Reanz says there is dedicated capacity on the TGA cable, supporting consistent performance with room to grow.
This time last year: ComCom warns 2degrees
The May 30 2025 newsletter reported onthe Commerce Commission warning to 2degrees that its May 2023 “No Giant Wait” advertising campaign may have breached the Fair Trading Act. The advertising claimed the telco would be able to offer customers “satellite coverage launching this year, not next”. The newsletter also covered Tait Communications’s bid to buy Vital Limited. The deal concluded in September 2025.
Five years ago Orcon began offering a business class fibre broadband service where customers paid a premium to get priority support and site visits.
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