Sponsor's Message

They make you just want to run out and sign up for a full-blown Jetstream connection don't they?

Unfortunately, as we all well know, only someone like Peter Jackson's production company could afford such luxuries -- the rest of us will have to make do with JetStream Starter or plain old dial-up.

Do you need proof?

Well check out this Jetstream bill reportedly received by the members of a student flat recently.

Owch!

In this story from today's NZ Herald we're once again confronted with information we already know to be true.

I love this quote: "The Government's heart is in the right place but it does not have the strategies to move forward."

Unfortunately I now honestly believe that even this statement places the government in far too favourable a light when it comes to their actions over broadband.

Oh yes, you can talk about wireless and other forms of broadband all you like -- but the reality is that DSL is the only service that can reach the largest group of NZ's population right now.

If we look at what Government has done then the first thing that pops up is Project Probe -- a seemingly noble attempt to extend broadband to the maximum number of users.

Unfortunately we now have the anomalous situation where many people in outlying rural areas often have a far more affordable broadband service than those who live in the cities -- how clever is that?

Yes, if you live in a rural town in the South Waikato area, you're not only spoilt for choice but you can get some damned fine wireless connectivity without the fear of being bankrupted through over-cap data charges.

So why, apparently, are a few privileged rural folk getting access to services that most (sub)urban dwellers would kill for?

Simple -- its because the government really doesn't have a clue when it comes to broadband.

And, as Paul Buddle quite rightly points out, we're now falling so far behind our competitors in the global knowledge economy that we can't afford to simply take our time to catch-up, we'll have to sprint like hell just to draw level.

Reforming the NZ broadband market -- which really means forcing Telecom to unbundle the local loop, is simply taking far too long.

And, if you want more evidence that this government is paying little more than lip-service to the issue of allowing us to really compete in a knowledge economy -- compare the paltry $30m invested in Project Probe with the tsunami of funding freely thrown at "The Arts" community. Arts funding in the form of grants and entitlements now total hundreds of millions of dollars -- even when you exclude the latest hand-outs to the film industry.

Perhaps the government's new catch-cry should be "let them eat cake"

Is this really good enough?

TVNZ Charter?
This is wildly off-topic but I simply had to say something about the latest programming change at TVNZ.

Now I'm sure you'll all remember that TVNZ is now operating under its revised charter that is supposed to improve the "quality" and relevance of material broadcast in NZ -- particularly on TV1 as opposed to TV2, which has always been considered the more commercial channel.

Well here's an interesting improvement in the "quality and relevance" of TV1's content -- as of December, the US soap Days of Our Lives will start screening on weekday afternoons at 2pm.

Perhaps, as a sop to cultural correctness, they'll invest a few million dollars into adding subtitles in Maori?

Let them eat soap?

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