April 1, 2009

West Coast well off for broadband capability

Over 95 per cent of the West Coast is broadband enabled, the only thing holding it back is the very low uptake by the region’s businesses and residents, according to Development West Coast.

Warren Gilbertson, Chief Operating Officer for Development West Coast, said statements from West Coast mayors that the region was missing out on Government’s $1.5 billion investment in ultra-fast broadband were misleading.

“If the mayors were arguing that population based funding formulae generally disadvantage the West Coast, they would have a valid point, but in terms of the Coast not having reasonable broadband coverage, this is not the case.

“The West Coast is 97 per cent enabled as far as broadband services are concerned, but we only have just over 40 per cent uptake of this technology, which is well below the national average of 45 per cent.

“Why we have such a low uptake remains unknown. It could be a price thing, but when you see the number of SKY dishes on houses you probably conclude that is a matter of priorities,” he said.

In recent times Development West Coast has been working with the Crown and Telecom on the implementation of a broadband infrastructure on the West Coast.

“There are still some gaps, especially South Westland, where broadband needs to be installed, but we know we have pretty good coverage. In fact, the Grey District is probably one of the most advanced areas in New Zealand for broadband enablement.

“Getting broadband coverage into Haast is a priority as it is both an important tourism region as well as a centre for emergency services,” he said.

Mr Gilbertson said that the Government was still working on its pre-election promise to set aside a further $48 million to improve rural broadband.

“We believe these announcements are still several weeks away, but hopefully it will see the region’s coverage increase even further,” he said.

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