Latest news with #OneNZ
Newsroom
4 days ago
- Business
- Newsroom
Starlink approved for military use in NZ
The New Zealand navy spent the first half of the year procuring a Starlink satellite connection from One NZ before the process was derailed by concerns about information security. According to documents released under the Official Information Act, the technology was intended to only handle unclassified information – though talks to expand the scope appeared to be underway.
RNZ News
02-07-2025
- Climate
- RNZ News
Tasman comms back up and running after big storm
Photo: Samantha Gee Mobile phone companies say all cell services have been restored in the Tasman District. Spark, One New Zealand and fibre network provider Chorus came under fire for delays in fixing services following last week's storm . Spark said damage to the fibre line put four of its cell sites out of action - but all were now back online. Network and operations director Renee Mateparae said emergency mobile satellites were used for the first time to restore service in Murchison soon after the storm hit. "Since Cyclone Gabrielle, Spark has been working to establish a network of satellite-connected small cells throughout the country, which can be deployed to provide access to a basic level of mobile connectivity during emergencies," said Mateparae. "In addition to the satellite solution, we set up more emergency temporary mobile sites - called 'cell sites on wheels' or 'COWs' - in Wakefield to restore coverage. This was up and running at midday on Tuesday with 4G capability." One NZ said fibre damage took out its mobile tower near Wakefield on Monday. Starlink satellites photographed in 2020. Photo: Unsplash / Forest Katsch Head of sustainability and corporate affairs Nicky Preston said the tower was a backup cell site to a newer tower in the town, and the impact on customers was minimal. Preston said the site and all mobile services were restored just after 2pm Wednesday. She said One NZ's collaboration with SpaceX meant the Starlink satellite network made text messaging available when cell towers were down. "This service isn't intended to replace the existing mobile network but acts as a vital safety net, a backup that can save lives during disasters." Preston said because of industry back-up protocols, if another mobile network was down and someone was in a One NZ coverage area but were a Spark or 2degrees customer, if they dialled 111 then the call would route to emergency services via One NZ's mobile network (or reciprocal among the three mobile operators). Chorus said all its fibre network was up and running. Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero, a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
RNZ News
25-06-2025
- Business
- RNZ News
Tech: What's going on in NZ telecoms?
Spark's headquarters in Auckland Photo: RNZ / Kim Baker Wilson Technology correspondent Bill Bennett looks at Chorus' plan to extend the fibre network further into rural New Zealand, which has made it onto the Infrastructure Commission priorities programme. It would cost $2b to extend fibre from 87 to 95 percent of the country, but an NZIER report two years ago found those connections could bring $17b in benefits. He'll also look at the tough times at Spark, and why Spark and One NZ have recently raised broadband prices - higher than inflation. But did you notice your fibre speeds got a bump this month? Bill Bennett is an Auckland-based technology journalist
The Print
22-06-2025
- The Print
I got a call but the phone never rang—communications expert explains why this happens
There's a certain feeling I get in the pit of my stomach when I'm waiting for an important call to come through. You know the type – maybe a call from your boss, a potential new employer or news of a loved one who's due to give birth. Then it pops up – the missed call notification. But the phone never rang. What happened? In these situations, I usually stare at my phone, willing it to ring. I make sure – over and again – it's not on silent or 'do not disturb' mode. When the screen is out of my sight, I imagine I can hear the familiar ringtone. How do mobile calls work? When making a mobile call using 4G or 5G networks, the caller dials a number and their network operator (Telstra or OneNZ, for example) routes the request to the recipient's device. For this to work, both phones must be registered with an IP Multimedia Subsystem – or IMS – which automatically happens when you turn on your phone. IMS is the system that allows the combination of voice calls, messages and video communications. Both phones must also be connected to a 4G or 5G cell phone tower. The caller's network sends an invite to the recipient's device, which will then start to ring. This process is usually very fast. But as generations of cellular networks have evolved (remember 3G?), becoming faster and with greater capacity, they have also become more complex, with new potential points of failure. From phone failures to 'dead zones' Mobile phones use Voice over LTE (VoLTE) for 4G networks or Voice over New Radio (VoNR) for 5G. These are technologies that enable voice calls over those two types of networks and they use the above mentioned IMS. In some countries such as New Zealand, if either of these aren't enabled or supported on your device (some phones have VoLTE disabled by default), it may attempt to fall back to the 3G network, which was switched off in Australia in 2024 and is currently being phased out in New Zealand. If this fallback fails or is delayed, the recipient's phone may not ring or may go straight to voicemail. Another possibility is that your phone may have failed to register with the IMS network. If this happens – due to something like a software glitch, SIM issue, or network problem – a phone won't receive the call signal and won't ring. Then there are handover issues. Each cell phone tower covers a particular area, and if you are moving, your call will be handed over to the tower that provides the best coverage. Sometimes your phone uses 5G for data but 4G for voice; if the handover between 5G and 4G is slow or fails, the call might not ring. If 5G is used for both data and voice, VoNR is used, which is still not widely supported and may fail. Mobile apps introduce other potential problems. For example, on Android, aggressive battery-saving features can restrict background processes, including the phone app, preventing it from responding to incoming calls. Third-party apps such as call blockers, antivirus tools, or even messaging apps can also interfere with call notifications. Finally, if your phone is in an area with poor reception, it may not receive the call signal in time to ring. These so-called 'dead zones' are more common than telcos would like to admit. I live at the end of a long driveway in a well-covered suburb of Auckland in New Zealand. But, depending on where I am in the house, I still experience dead zones and often the WiFi-enabled phone apps will more reliably cause the phone to ring. What can I do to fix it? If your phone frequently doesn't ring on 4G or 5G there are a few things you can do: make sure VolTE/VoNR is enabled in your network settings restart your phone and toggle airplane mode to refresh network registration check battery optimisation settings and exclude the phone app you are using contact your carrier to confirm VoLTE/VoNR support and provisioning. But ultimately, sometimes a call will just fail – and there's very little an everyday person can do about it. Which yes, is annoying. But it also means you have a failsafe, expert-approved excuse for missing a call from your boss. Jairo Gutierrez, Professor, Department of Computer and Information Sciences, Auckland University of Technology This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons licence. Read the original article.
Techday NZ
18-06-2025
- Business
- Techday NZ
One New Zealand invests NZD $100 million, wins top network award
One New Zealand has been recognised as the "Best in Test" mobile network for the fourth consecutive year following independent benchmarking by umlaut. Umlaut, a global mobile network testing specialist owned by Accenture, conducted detailed assessments of mobile operators across urban, regional, and rural regions. The evaluation combined on-the-ground drive testing with six months of crowd-sourced data from April and May 2025, providing a comprehensive review of New Zealand's mobile network performance. In the 2025 umlaut benchmark, One New Zealand achieved an overall score of 852 out of a possible 1000 (85.2%), ahead of Spark with 787 points and 2Degrees with 789 points. The testing criteria gave particular emphasis to real-life performance indicators including voice call quality, data speeds, and network reliability. Testing results According to the umlaut assessment, One New Zealand led in three core categories. These included voice services, which were measured by factors such as call setup time, continuity of data connectivity during calls, and overall voice quality. The company also ranked highest for data services, which examined web browsing performance, file download speeds, and the experience of streaming YouTube videos. Finally, One New Zealand was noted as the most reliable mobile network in New Zealand, leading on successful voice and data connections as well as call quality. Thaigan Govender, General Manager Mobile Access Networks at One New Zealand, outlined the reasons behind the network's continued recognition: Our fourth consecutive win is the result of smart, data-driven investment decisions that directly reflect how and where New Zealanders use our network and connectivity services. Govender detailed the level of investment and infrastructure development over the past year, noting, "Over the past full year, we've invested over NZD $100 million into our mobile network alone, building or upgrading almost 300 cell sites to 4G and 5G across metro, urban and regional areas, plus working with the Rural Connectivity Group. These improvements materially improve coverage and performance in the places Kiwis live, work, and travel." He continued, "We're stoked to be recognised as best in test for a fourth year running and are motivated to keep improving even further, using real-world data to deliver the best mobile experience in Aotearoa for One NZ customers and wholesale partners." Ongoing development One New Zealand has indicated further developments for the year ahead. Govender said, "We'll keep working to improve the network for our customers – whether that's through coverage and resilience innovation with the recently launched One NZ Satellite or through retiring legacy networks and re-using spectrum as we have planned with our 3G switch off from the end of the year – you can expect things to keep getting better as a One NZ customer." Umlaut's benchmarking methodology is recognised for incorporating a robust set of criteria, drawing on a mixture of controlled test data and metrics collected from real users. The benchmarks assess networks based not only on speed but also on reliability and quality of service in a variety of real-world conditions. The network's performance improvements over the past year are attributed by One New Zealand to substantial network investment. These included significant upgrades and new builds across different parts of the country, with a focus on upgrading cell sites to support the latest 4G and 5G technologies, and collaboration with initiatives aimed at expanding rural coverage. The latest umlaut testing affirms One New Zealand's position as the highest-performing national mobile network during the most recent evaluation period.
