In April 2023, we announced a partnership with SpaceX, which we said will bring coverage to all parts of New Zealand, effectively ending mobile blackspots. This ground-breaking technology will help keep New Zealanders safer and more connected.
One New Zealand will vigorously defend the legal charges laid by the Commerce Commission. The charges relate to a three-month advertising campaign about a new network technology, which was approximately 18 months away from launching, and was not being marketed for purchase.
The Commerce Commission’s decision to bring these charges could have significant implications across the entire telecommunications sector regarding how coverage and service availability are described and marketed.
Our language was consistent with long-standing practice of how coverage is described by the industry and the regulator in New Zealand. Other telcos globally have used similar statements and we’re not aware of regulatory issues regarding these.
We are concerned with the Commission’s approach and strongly disagree with the basis for this legal action.
We remain confident that SpaceX will be able to deliver mobile coverage across New Zealand, and our testing is demonstrating this.