Here at the Commerce Commission we are looking to expand our Measuring Broadband New Zealand (MBNZ) programme to cover more broadband technologies such as satellite, 4G and 5G fixed wireless, and WISP fixed wireless across the country.
In order to do this, we are looking for more volunteers who are on these specific technologies to sign up to the MBNZ programme. We would also love to have volunteers who are on satellite with providers like Gravity, Woi, Wireless Nation, Brdy and Farmside so we can report how these players stack up against Starlink.
Being part of the programme simply involves plugging a device into your broadband connection which will run automated tests at different times of the day to measure the performance of your broadband service.
The device will not record any personal information or browsing history and the testing will not run when you are using the internet so it will not affect your broadband performance.
Some of your broadband data will be used to conduct testing. The faster your broadband connection, the more data the testing will use. If you aren’t on an unlimited data cap, you might want to check how much its likely to use in the FAQs on our website.
Once the device is plugged in and running tests, you get access to your own personal broadband performance results, and to RealSpeed, a tool which gives you the ability to assess your WiFi performance, help you diagnose problems and improve your home broadband performance.
You also get to bask in the warm glow of knowing your results contribute to regular reports that help Kiwis choose the best broadband for their needs.
If you, or someone you know, likes what we’re doing and wants to participate, you can find out more information here.
The MBNZ programme was first launched in 2007. It monitors and compares the performance of individual broadband providers and technologies so that consumers have independent information to help them make informed choices about who to rely on for their connectivity.
The programme produces four reports a year, which help consumers, such as yourselves, understand what performance you can expect from the various providers and technologies.
If you’re thinking of changing provider or technology, the reports will help you decide which one might be a better fit and give you confidence to make the change. They show how well fibre, fixed wireless, LEO satellite, copper and other broadband technologies perform for typical uses, including downloading files, video streaming (watching movies on Netflix, or One News over the internet), video conferencing (calling loved ones using Skype or attending a Zoom meeting) and gaming.
You can see the reports here, and the Commission also produces a dashboard which shows the key results in a more visually friendly format.
