The Ultra-Fast Broadband initiative is a New Zealand Government programme of building fibre-to-the-home networks covering 87% of the population by the end of 2022.
[2] In the 2008 election National promised to rollout a fibre broadband network to 75% of New Zealand homes and businesses in ten years for $1.5 billion.
Telecom also wanted to remain as a vertically integrated provider, but finally announced agreement to structural separation into Chorus (wholesale only) and Spark in 2011, after losing out to other companies in several areas.
Steven Joyce had supported the proposal as “doable”, and was given the job as Minister of Transport in the Fifth National Government of implementing it, until about 2014 when Amy Adams and then Simon Bridges took over.
In December 2010 deals were made with two parties; Northpower for Whangarei and WEL Networks for Hamilton, Tauranga, New Plymouth, Whanganui, Te Awamutu Cambridge and Hawera.
On 24 May 2011 Crown Fibre announced agreement with Enable in Christchurch and with Telecom in Auckland and areas elsewhere in the country not yet contracted.
[9] CFH was to invest NZ$929 million directly in Chorus with 50% being non-voting shares and 50% interest free loans.
After protests by telecommunications companies, consumer groups and opposition parties,[13] the government allowed Crown Fibre Holdings to be regulated by the Commerce Commission.
If the fibre lead-in needs to travel along shared rights of way or through cross-lease land, all affected neighbours must consent to the installation.
For each area an ISP wishes to serve, it needs to put in a handover point and organize a backhaul link back to its core network.
Tiny villages like Midhurst in Taranaki, Naseby in Central Otago, Fox Glacier on the West Coast and Taipa in the far North got fibre.
[8] UFB2+ (August 2017) will provide fibre to more than 190 new towns bringing coverage up to 87% of the population with the UFB2/2+ project to be fully rolled out by end of 2024.
By the end of 2014 takeup was 22%, well ahead of expected; by mid 2017 33% and by 2022 nearly 70%, putting NZ in the top ten fibre-connected countries.
[43] The discussion paper ultimately resulted in the Telecommunications (New Regulatory Framework) Amendment Bill, which was passed in late 2018.