Telcos drop data caps, prep networks and staff for Covid-19

Telcos kill data caps, battern down for a storm

New Zealand's telcos have temporarily removed data caps on broadband plans. Meanwhile they are either preparing of have started rejigging operations so more people can work from home.

Vodafone, 2degrees and Vocus, which includes the Slingshot, CallPlus, Orcon and Flip brands, have all removed data caps until at least the middle of the year.

Spark has, in effect, done the same thing by removing overage charges when customers exceed their data caps. The company has also waived late fees for customers experiencing hardship and promises not to terminate services.

Skinny Jump

Meanwhile Spark has relaunched its Jump service, a low-cost plan designed to connect low-income customers who do not yet have broadband. Spark CEO Jolie Hodson says “we were in the process of relaunching our subsidised and not-for-profit broadband product as Skinny Jump – which aims to bridge the digital divide for New Zealanders who don’t have access to broadband at home.

"Since we first launched Jump in 2016 we have connected close to 5,000 families with school-aged children to broadband.

"Skinny Jump will be even more affordable and open to a wider range of New Zealanders who experience digital exclusion, beyond those with young families.”

Zero rate traffic

Telcos have also moved to zero rate traffic to government education and health sites with information on the Covid-19 outbreak.

Removed data caps apply to all residential and small business customers.

While the telcos expect to see increased data consumption, they say the networks are prepared for surging demand.

Meanwhile the telcos are moving to protect their staff from the Covid-19 virus. In many cases this means increasing the number of employees who work from home and planning for when every employee may need to stay away from offices and work places.

Chorus says its engineering teams are now contacting households before visiting to confirm no-one has been overseas or is otherwise in self-isolation. If they are, the appointments are being rescheduled.

Spark closes Manila call centre

Spark's Manila call centre has been temporarily closed because of Philippine government precautions to slow the spread of the Covid-19 virus. Calls are being diverted to New Zealand based agents, which the company says could mean longer than usual wait times.

Crown Infrastructure: Gigabit UFB soaring

There were more than 110,000 gigabit broadband connections at the end of 2019 according to Crown Infrastructure's quarterly update. Of those, 20,000 connections were added in the last quarter of 2019, a little under half of all new UFB connections.

With 2, 4 and 8Gbps options now available, Crown Infrastructure Partners CEO Graham Mitchell says only the UFB can deliver these high speed services and they clearly demonstrate the network's capacity.

At the end of 2019 there were 146 towns or cities on the UFB network which reached 81 percent of all New Zealanders. An additional 35 marae were connected in the last quarter of 2019 taking the total connected marae to 62.

The RBI phase 2 and Mobile Black Spots programme saw 20 mobile towers added. When combined with improved reach by the wireless internet service providers, a total of 2,612 rural homes and businesses were connected.

Spark Sport free until May

Spark Sport is dropping all subscription charges until May. The streaming sport service has been seen almost all its live content either cancelled or postponed because of the Covid-19 virus outbreak. The company says there are hundreds of pieces of content still available.

Telstra calls halt on Australian copper shut-down

CommsDay reports that Telstra intends to suspend the planned disconnection of copper and HFC services. In Telstra's words this is so that everyone can get service continuity "at a time when staying in touch is more important than ever.” The services were required to be closed as Australia moves to the NBN. The moratorium will last until June 30.