Latest news with #StevenLawrence
Scoop
2 days ago
- Business
- Scoop
Download Weekly—Winter, game updates see UFB traffic surge
Data in demand as temperatures drop June 8 saw a new record for daily data use on the Chorus network. The fibre wholesale company says it moved 30 petabytes of data as gamers downloaded the latest Fortnite update. Per-connection downloads averaged 671 GB in June. That's a four percent increase compared with 642 GB in April. At the top end of the curve, close to 19 percent of customers downloaded a terabyte of data. This coincided with the arrival of cold, wintry weather and the Big Fibre Boost which saw customers on standard plans move from 300 Mbps to 500 Mbps. Fortnite has form when it comes to Chorus network data surges. Fibre uptake Fibre uptake continued to edge up in the quarter, by 0.1 percent. This brings the total uptake to 72.1 percent across the 1,532,000 addresses passed by Chorus' network. The growth was faster in areas connected during the second phase of the UFB network build with the total in UFB2 areas climbing from 61 to 62 percent. Chorus says another 11,000 users signed up for the entry level Home Fibre Starter plan which increased its speeds from 50/10 to 100/20 Mbps in June. This is a product aimed at less well-off homes. Two-thirds of the users signing up for the plan were new connections. During the quarter, 15,000 copper lines were disconnected. The total has now dropped to 92,000. Chorus expects there will be no copper lines in its fibre areas by the middle of next year. Starlink promises terabit capacity next year A Starlink network update says SpaceX aims to launch its third-generation satellites in the first half of 2026. The update says these will 'add an order of magnitude improvement in capacity compared to the current satellite'. Specifically, the new satellites will deliver a terabyte per second of downlink capacity and 200 Gbps of uplink capacity. It says this is ten times the downlink capacity and 24 times the uplink capacity of today's second generation satellites. On top of that, Starlink says the third-generation satellites will use next-generation computers, modems, beamforming and switching to improve the network's latency. The new satellites will connect to each other with optical links for additional backhaul. Starlink says it is aiming for 20ms latency. While Starlink promises a lot, there is a catch. SpaceX has optimised its satellites to launch on the company's Starship rockets. They are the ones that keep exploding. Busy time for appointments Spark network simplification leader Steven Lawrence is the new chief technical director for Next Generation Critical Communications. During his time with Spark, Lawrence worked on the telco's contribution to the Public Safety Network's cellular roaming and priority services. He also had responsibility for Spark's delivery of 111 emergency services. Crown-owned research network operator Reannz has appointed Jo Perez as head of corporate services and chief financial officer. Perez has previously worked for New Zealand Rugby, Department of Corrections and Trade Me. Former Trustpower and Mercury chief executive Vince Hawksworth is now working as a power and energy strategy advisor for Datagrid. Phone market flat in Q2, likely to stay that way for 2025 The analysts don't agree. Canalys says the phone market 'marginally declined' in the second quarter of 2025. Counterpoint says the market was up two percent. IDC says it was up one percent. Taken collectively, we can assume there's not much going on. All three agree Samsung is the top-selling phone brand. Apple is in second place and Xiaomi in third. While Samsung and Apple grew faster than the overall market, Samsung grew the most. Canalys thinks the market will remain flat over the whole of 2025. IDC hints at growth without offering anything specific. Counterpoint makes no comment on the subject. The analysts all note the current uncertainty over tariffs is having an impact on the market. There's a sense that, if or when. the US stops its on-again, off-again tariff talk, the market is poised for take-off, but don't expect that to happen this year. Sign up for Bill Bennett telecommunications + technology from a New Zealand perspective Subscribe No spam. Unsubscribe anytime. Tuanz releases Connecting Aotearoa report Tuanz — Connecting Aotearoa Chorus has released a report based on the Connecting Aotearoa summit in Hamilton. (Download Weekly reported on the summit in May.) Like the conference, the report aims to answer the question: Why can't 100 percent of New Zealanders be connected? With one in five households still not connected, there's a pressing need to bring everyone who wants to be online into the fold. While there are issues with rural connectivity and digital skills, the cost of connecting remains the most intractable issue. In other news... Auckland firm IQ Hive could enable more MVNOs —Reseller News South Island cool climate makes it ideal for data centres —The Press New Zealand farmers falling behind on technology transformation—Farmers Weekly 'Senior industry figures I've spoken to are increasingly sceptical about whether this government can deliver on anything that requires actual strategic thinking in the tech space.'—BusinessDesk (paywall). Analyst skewers Spark's Agile strategy Eden Bradfield takes no prisoners in his withering overview of Spark's performance. The story is behind BusinessDesk's paywall. Among the jabs, he connects the company's embrace of Agile to its sagging share price. Agile is a software development methodology. It doesn't necessarily translate well to other businesses disciplines. In 2018, Spark announced it was adopting Agile companywide. I asked then-CEO Simon Moutter about this. He said half of Spark's capital was spent on software. Hence Spark was a software company. Kind of. It sounded plausible. Spark owned Lightbox, a streaming TV business. There was Spark Sport and Morepork, the home security business, Qrious, a data analytics division and Mattr, focused on identify and verification software. All could be viewed through a software and digital services lens. Since then, Lightbox, Spark Sport and Morepork have left the building. To the outside world today's Spark looks less like a software company. Yet the commitment to Agile remains. Like others, Bradfield raises the prospect of a private equity buy out. It's possible. If that happens, how long do you give Agile? Download Weekly five years ago Spark plans to retire PSTN in Devonport and Miramar by Christmas. The move will affect around 1000 customers. Enjoy Download Weekly? Feel free to pass this email on to your colleagues. Have your say. Subscribers are able to comment on any newsletter or story on the website. Just scroll to the bottom of the page. Reader emails are also welcome. The Download Weekly is supported by Chorus New Zealand. Winter, game updates see UFB traffic surge was first posted at Bill Bennett Freelance journalist. Auckland-based Bill Bennett writes technology and business stories that are directly relevant to New Zealand readers. His emphasis is on telecommunications, but he also covers other aspects of technology and business. You can find his features in the New Zealand Herald and hear him regularly on RNZ Nine to Noon and the NZ Tech Podcast. Bennett's The Download Weekly here. If you want to support his work, you can make a donation to his PressPatron account.
The Advertiser
02-07-2025
- Climate
- The Advertiser
Rain, winds ease in the Hunter as low pressure system moves on
After being hammered by peak gusts of up to 110 kmh, easing conditions will hopefully bring some respite to the Hunter Region. A complex low-pressure system that brought days of intense rain and wild winds along the NSW east coast, was likely to move further east into the Tasman sea by Thursday morning, July 3. According to the Bureau of Meteorology, damaging winds averaging 60 to 70 kmh, peaking at 100kmh were still possible late on Wednesday July 2 on the Hunter coastline. In the 24 hours to Wednesday 3.30pm, Nobbys weather station recorded 20.2 millimetres while Williamtown recorded 26.4 millimetres. Newcastle's Thursday forecast was predicting a maximum of 18 degrees with an 80 per cent chance of one to 6 millimetres of rain with Friday July 4 dropping to 10 per cent chance of rain. A coastal hazard and hazardous surf warning for large and powerful surf conditions and coastal erosion was forecast into Thursday for the Hunter coast. Northern zone public information officer Steven Lawrence said the NSW State Emergency Service (SES) responded to 432 incidents in the greater Hunter area during the weather event as of July 2 at 10am. The Central Coast was hit harder, however, with 333 incidents in Gosford and 217 incidents in Wyong. The majority of call-outs were from fallen trees and, to a lesser extent, leaking roofs, Mr Lawrence said. Port Stephens SES received 50 calls for assistance since the low-pressure system began, ranging from minor flooding to requests for sandbags and trees down on houses. The local unit said while the rain and wind could hang around this evening, there were sandbagging points in Raymond Terrace and Medowie. Cooranbong and Dora Creek in Lake Macquarie were initially put on flood watch on Tuesday but have been downgraded to monitor conditions as rainfall was expected to ease on Thursday. The Barrington Tops conservation group, Aussie Ark, said they were hammered by the "cyclone bomb" that swept through after only just starting to rebuild from May's devastation. "The team is now facing fresh destruction as torrential rain, cyclonic winds, and unpredictable snowfall leave the sanctuary battered once again," they said. Fifteen trees came down across the property, ripping through fences, blocking access tracks while power cut out at several facilities. Out of hundreds of animals on site, only two Tasmanian Devils were unaccounted for, although the organisation believed they were likely sheltering in their dens. "We've only just begun to recover from the last disaster, and now we're picking up the pieces all over again," managing director Tim Faulkner said. Across the state, the SES responded to 3400 incidents. NSW SES Assistant Commissioner Nicole Hogan said the complex low-pressure system was currently shifting off the south coast, bringing risk of flash and riverine flooding around Illawarra and Shoalhaven. "Volunteers have been kept busy overnight and into today as strong wind gusts brought down trees, powerlines and damaged properties," Ms Hogan said. "We have more than 2,000 members responding to incidents, along with emergency service partners. An additional crew from ACT SES is deploying to assist in the area later today," she said. "We urge everyone to stay well clear of fallen trees and powerlines as we work to clean up the damage." The Insurance Council of Australia recorded almost $2 billion in flood, cyclone and rain insurance in six months. The Mid North Coast and the Hunter Region claims from the May floods had numbered 11,500, reaching almost $200 million, they said. After being hammered by peak gusts of up to 110 kmh, easing conditions will hopefully bring some respite to the Hunter Region. A complex low-pressure system that brought days of intense rain and wild winds along the NSW east coast, was likely to move further east into the Tasman sea by Thursday morning, July 3. According to the Bureau of Meteorology, damaging winds averaging 60 to 70 kmh, peaking at 100kmh were still possible late on Wednesday July 2 on the Hunter coastline. In the 24 hours to Wednesday 3.30pm, Nobbys weather station recorded 20.2 millimetres while Williamtown recorded 26.4 millimetres. Newcastle's Thursday forecast was predicting a maximum of 18 degrees with an 80 per cent chance of one to 6 millimetres of rain with Friday July 4 dropping to 10 per cent chance of rain. A coastal hazard and hazardous surf warning for large and powerful surf conditions and coastal erosion was forecast into Thursday for the Hunter coast. Northern zone public information officer Steven Lawrence said the NSW State Emergency Service (SES) responded to 432 incidents in the greater Hunter area during the weather event as of July 2 at 10am. The Central Coast was hit harder, however, with 333 incidents in Gosford and 217 incidents in Wyong. The majority of call-outs were from fallen trees and, to a lesser extent, leaking roofs, Mr Lawrence said. Port Stephens SES received 50 calls for assistance since the low-pressure system began, ranging from minor flooding to requests for sandbags and trees down on houses. The local unit said while the rain and wind could hang around this evening, there were sandbagging points in Raymond Terrace and Medowie. Cooranbong and Dora Creek in Lake Macquarie were initially put on flood watch on Tuesday but have been downgraded to monitor conditions as rainfall was expected to ease on Thursday. The Barrington Tops conservation group, Aussie Ark, said they were hammered by the "cyclone bomb" that swept through after only just starting to rebuild from May's devastation. "The team is now facing fresh destruction as torrential rain, cyclonic winds, and unpredictable snowfall leave the sanctuary battered once again," they said. Fifteen trees came down across the property, ripping through fences, blocking access tracks while power cut out at several facilities. Out of hundreds of animals on site, only two Tasmanian Devils were unaccounted for, although the organisation believed they were likely sheltering in their dens. "We've only just begun to recover from the last disaster, and now we're picking up the pieces all over again," managing director Tim Faulkner said. Across the state, the SES responded to 3400 incidents. NSW SES Assistant Commissioner Nicole Hogan said the complex low-pressure system was currently shifting off the south coast, bringing risk of flash and riverine flooding around Illawarra and Shoalhaven. "Volunteers have been kept busy overnight and into today as strong wind gusts brought down trees, powerlines and damaged properties," Ms Hogan said. "We have more than 2,000 members responding to incidents, along with emergency service partners. An additional crew from ACT SES is deploying to assist in the area later today," she said. "We urge everyone to stay well clear of fallen trees and powerlines as we work to clean up the damage." The Insurance Council of Australia recorded almost $2 billion in flood, cyclone and rain insurance in six months. The Mid North Coast and the Hunter Region claims from the May floods had numbered 11,500, reaching almost $200 million, they said. After being hammered by peak gusts of up to 110 kmh, easing conditions will hopefully bring some respite to the Hunter Region. A complex low-pressure system that brought days of intense rain and wild winds along the NSW east coast, was likely to move further east into the Tasman sea by Thursday morning, July 3. According to the Bureau of Meteorology, damaging winds averaging 60 to 70 kmh, peaking at 100kmh were still possible late on Wednesday July 2 on the Hunter coastline. In the 24 hours to Wednesday 3.30pm, Nobbys weather station recorded 20.2 millimetres while Williamtown recorded 26.4 millimetres. Newcastle's Thursday forecast was predicting a maximum of 18 degrees with an 80 per cent chance of one to 6 millimetres of rain with Friday July 4 dropping to 10 per cent chance of rain. A coastal hazard and hazardous surf warning for large and powerful surf conditions and coastal erosion was forecast into Thursday for the Hunter coast. Northern zone public information officer Steven Lawrence said the NSW State Emergency Service (SES) responded to 432 incidents in the greater Hunter area during the weather event as of July 2 at 10am. The Central Coast was hit harder, however, with 333 incidents in Gosford and 217 incidents in Wyong. The majority of call-outs were from fallen trees and, to a lesser extent, leaking roofs, Mr Lawrence said. Port Stephens SES received 50 calls for assistance since the low-pressure system began, ranging from minor flooding to requests for sandbags and trees down on houses. The local unit said while the rain and wind could hang around this evening, there were sandbagging points in Raymond Terrace and Medowie. Cooranbong and Dora Creek in Lake Macquarie were initially put on flood watch on Tuesday but have been downgraded to monitor conditions as rainfall was expected to ease on Thursday. The Barrington Tops conservation group, Aussie Ark, said they were hammered by the "cyclone bomb" that swept through after only just starting to rebuild from May's devastation. "The team is now facing fresh destruction as torrential rain, cyclonic winds, and unpredictable snowfall leave the sanctuary battered once again," they said. Fifteen trees came down across the property, ripping through fences, blocking access tracks while power cut out at several facilities. Out of hundreds of animals on site, only two Tasmanian Devils were unaccounted for, although the organisation believed they were likely sheltering in their dens. "We've only just begun to recover from the last disaster, and now we're picking up the pieces all over again," managing director Tim Faulkner said. Across the state, the SES responded to 3400 incidents. NSW SES Assistant Commissioner Nicole Hogan said the complex low-pressure system was currently shifting off the south coast, bringing risk of flash and riverine flooding around Illawarra and Shoalhaven. "Volunteers have been kept busy overnight and into today as strong wind gusts brought down trees, powerlines and damaged properties," Ms Hogan said. "We have more than 2,000 members responding to incidents, along with emergency service partners. An additional crew from ACT SES is deploying to assist in the area later today," she said. "We urge everyone to stay well clear of fallen trees and powerlines as we work to clean up the damage." The Insurance Council of Australia recorded almost $2 billion in flood, cyclone and rain insurance in six months. The Mid North Coast and the Hunter Region claims from the May floods had numbered 11,500, reaching almost $200 million, they said. After being hammered by peak gusts of up to 110 kmh, easing conditions will hopefully bring some respite to the Hunter Region. A complex low-pressure system that brought days of intense rain and wild winds along the NSW east coast, was likely to move further east into the Tasman sea by Thursday morning, July 3. According to the Bureau of Meteorology, damaging winds averaging 60 to 70 kmh, peaking at 100kmh were still possible late on Wednesday July 2 on the Hunter coastline. In the 24 hours to Wednesday 3.30pm, Nobbys weather station recorded 20.2 millimetres while Williamtown recorded 26.4 millimetres. Newcastle's Thursday forecast was predicting a maximum of 18 degrees with an 80 per cent chance of one to 6 millimetres of rain with Friday July 4 dropping to 10 per cent chance of rain. A coastal hazard and hazardous surf warning for large and powerful surf conditions and coastal erosion was forecast into Thursday for the Hunter coast. Northern zone public information officer Steven Lawrence said the NSW State Emergency Service (SES) responded to 432 incidents in the greater Hunter area during the weather event as of July 2 at 10am. The Central Coast was hit harder, however, with 333 incidents in Gosford and 217 incidents in Wyong. The majority of call-outs were from fallen trees and, to a lesser extent, leaking roofs, Mr Lawrence said. Port Stephens SES received 50 calls for assistance since the low-pressure system began, ranging from minor flooding to requests for sandbags and trees down on houses. The local unit said while the rain and wind could hang around this evening, there were sandbagging points in Raymond Terrace and Medowie. Cooranbong and Dora Creek in Lake Macquarie were initially put on flood watch on Tuesday but have been downgraded to monitor conditions as rainfall was expected to ease on Thursday. The Barrington Tops conservation group, Aussie Ark, said they were hammered by the "cyclone bomb" that swept through after only just starting to rebuild from May's devastation. "The team is now facing fresh destruction as torrential rain, cyclonic winds, and unpredictable snowfall leave the sanctuary battered once again," they said. Fifteen trees came down across the property, ripping through fences, blocking access tracks while power cut out at several facilities. Out of hundreds of animals on site, only two Tasmanian Devils were unaccounted for, although the organisation believed they were likely sheltering in their dens. "We've only just begun to recover from the last disaster, and now we're picking up the pieces all over again," managing director Tim Faulkner said. Across the state, the SES responded to 3400 incidents. NSW SES Assistant Commissioner Nicole Hogan said the complex low-pressure system was currently shifting off the south coast, bringing risk of flash and riverine flooding around Illawarra and Shoalhaven. "Volunteers have been kept busy overnight and into today as strong wind gusts brought down trees, powerlines and damaged properties," Ms Hogan said. "We have more than 2,000 members responding to incidents, along with emergency service partners. An additional crew from ACT SES is deploying to assist in the area later today," she said. "We urge everyone to stay well clear of fallen trees and powerlines as we work to clean up the damage." The Insurance Council of Australia recorded almost $2 billion in flood, cyclone and rain insurance in six months. The Mid North Coast and the Hunter Region claims from the May floods had numbered 11,500, reaching almost $200 million, they said.
