Internet Service Provider Survey: 2015

The number of uncapped broadband Internet connections has quadrupled in one year, Statistics New Zealand said today. In June 2015, 628,000 connections had no data cap, up from 155,000 in 2014. One-third of all broadband connections are now uncapped.

“The rise in uncapped broadband has been driven by customers wanting to use more and more data. It’s been made possible by improvements to connection technologies, which allow people to watch high-definition TV and movies over the Internet,” business performance statistics senior manager Jason Attewell said.

Sixty percent of all broadband connections allow 50 gigabytes (GB) or more data to be used each month.

“There’s been a substantial change in the way Internet services are purchased. Connections were previously priced around the units of data used, with low data cap plans being cheaper,” Mr Attewell said. “With the increasing popularity of unlimited connections, broadband plans are more often priced around the type of broadband technology used, with faster connection plans being more expensive.”

It’s becoming generally cheaper to use the Internet – the price of telecommunications services, including phone and Internet services, is 4.3 percent lower in 2015 than it was in 2014.

Cheaper connections and uncapped data plans are enabling customers to use more data than ever. New Zealanders used over 84,000 terabytes in June 2015 – an average of 45GB per household.

“The way that Internet services are provided in New Zealand is changing,” Mr Attewell said. “The shift to uncapped broadband connections allows Kiwis to use the Internet to its full potential – streaming movies, playing online games, and communicating with others.”

These figures come from the 2015 annual Internet Service Provider Survey, which is sent to all Internet service providers in New Zealand..

See Internet Service Provider Survey: 2015 for more data and analysis.

ENDS

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