New cell sites increase Woosh’s Welly coverage

Seven new cell sites bring Woosh’s coverage to a further 37,000 Wellington homes

Portable broadband provider Woosh Wireless has dramatically increased its coverage in Wellington with the commissioning of seven new cell sites this week. The new sites will bring an additional 37,000 households within reach of its high-speed wireless broadband service.

Woosh chief executive Bob Smith says the company is continuing to receive a good response from families, business and commercial customers seeking the efficiency benefits that broadband offers.

“We are continuing to build our network as quickly as possible, given the approval and testing constraints that are an inevitable part of the process.

“We are delighted with our solid progress since we launched in Wellington in May and we now have 11 sites in this area.

“The new sites are both extending our reach and building the density of our coverage in terms of our roll-out plan.”

Previously Woosh had four cell sites bringing coverage to 14,000 households and 3,000 businesses in Wellington’s CBD. The seven new cell sites will strengthen existing coverage and extend Woosh’s network throughout Petone, Lower Hut, Gracefield, Naenae, Newtown, Strathmore and Miramar.

Potential customers can check the company’s website www.woosh.com to find out if Woosh is now available at their address.

Woosh recently cut the cost of high-speed broadband to $29.95 a month with the introduction of its Woosh Elevate plan.

“Woosh is up to five times the speed of standard dial-up and now available at the same price. We’re making it easy for New Zealanders to step up to broadband from dial-up,” says Bob Smith.

Broadband penetration in New Zealand is the lowest in the OECD at around 6% to 8% compared to, for example, well over 30% in the UK.

“Our new entry level pricing plan means the price jump between dial-up and broadband Internet has been reduced to the kinds of levels that have seen broadband take off in markets like the United Kingdom and Australia.

“As well as price, we know that broadband penetration seems to have certain trigger points in the market, and that once a certain proportion of subscribers have it, uptake really takes off.

“We expect that trigger point to be reached this year in New Zealand, as it was in Australia last year.”

“As our coverage expands and with competitive pricing, portability and greater ease of use, we look forward to seriously driving broadband uptake in New Zealand.”

Installation is a three step, 10 minute process that does not require a technician. Potential customers can call 0800 4 WOOSH and have a modem delivered to them within 48 hours.

Woosh is currently offering new customers a month of free high-speed broadband Internet throughout March, with no payments until April 1. Modems are available at $99 for those signing a 12 month contract.

Woosh offers a range of services on top of these new plans that are now available to any customer, including static IP addresses, free virus and SPAM protection.

Full details of plans and offers are available on the company’s website http://www.woosh.com.

The company’s network now covers 70 per cent of the Auckland market and steady network building in Wellington, Christchurch and Southland mark its ultimate plan to achieve 80 per cent coverage of New Zealand’s population.

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