Telecommunications In New Zealand: Much More For Less

The New Zealand Telecommunications Forum’s Annual Report for 2025 reveals just how much Kiwi get for the dollar after nearly a quarter century of innovation and growth. “Twenty years ago, my broadband cost $100 a month and gave me 600MB at a blistering 1Mbps. Today that connection is one thousand times faster with unlimited data,” says CEO Paul Brislen.

“Telecommunications have become an essential service, whether you’re at home, in the office or at school, or on the go. It’s the backbone of our daily lives in ways we couldn’t have imagined just a few years ago. Today the question isn’t ‘How much data do you use?’ but ‘What do you do with it?’. The possibilities are endless thanks to world-class networks.”

Key highlights include:

• Mobile data consumption keeps climbing, with New Zealanders using more than 400,000 terabytes annually.
• The average fixed-line data usage per connection has soared from 12GB in 2011 to 648GB today.
• Fibre prevails as NZ’s leading technology, accounting for 74% of all connections nationwide.
• Low Earth Orbit (LEO) satellite services now account for 19% of rural broadband connections.

“These numbers show our sector is delivering more for less even as demand and expectations rise. We’re also seeing the retirement of legacy technologies like 3G and copper networks, making way for faster, more resilient connectivity through fibre, mobile, and satellites,” says Brislen.

View the full TCF Annual Report for 2025 here: https://www.tcf.org.nz/news/tcf-annual-report-2025

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