Communications Minister Simon Bridges has welcomed Akamai’s latest State of the Internet Report which shows that the average internet connection speed in NZ is up by 38 per cent since 2015.
The State of the Internet Report shows that in the final three months of 2016, the average broadband internet connection speed had increased to 12.9 Megabits per second (Mbps) – a significant leap from 2015.
It also shows that almost 50% of Kiwis have an internet connection that provides speeds of over 10 Mbps… that is a 75 per cent increase from 2015... in other words a HUGE growth!
Further to this, a quarter of New Zealanders now have an internet connection that provides speeds in excess of 15 Mbps – a 134 per cent increase from the previous year… even bigger!!
“These figures demonstrate that Kiwis are increasingly reaping the benefits of faster, better internet, stimulated by the Government’s investment in the Ultra-Fast Broadband programme and the Rural Broadband Initiative,” Minister Bridges says.
“Improved broadband access and faster internet delivers huge opportunities for homes, schools and businesses right across New Zealand. It’s great to see we’re making real progress in terms of uptake and connection speeds on the world stage.
“For example, the Report found that mobile broadband users in New Zealand enjoy average speeds of around 12 Mbps. This is the fourth fastest in the Asia Pacific region and puts New Zealand alongside other global internet leaders such as Japan and South Korea.”
The latest Akamai Report comes just a few weeks out from the due date for tenders for the Government’s extension of the Rural Broadband Initiative and coverage of mobile black spots under the Mobile Black Spot Fund. This process will see more improvement in access to fast broadband across harder to reach areas of New Zealand and for areas with slower rural broadband coverage.
The NZ Government’s $150 million investment in these latest broadband initiatives will deliver high speed broadband to even more rural communities as well as cellular mobile coverage to key stretches of state highways and tourism locations that do not already have coverage.
Download the full report from the Akamai website here.
