In a matter of weeks online video game enthusiasts and movie buffs will be able to download and experience high-definition quality data at home in Blenheim.

More than 3000 Blenheim connections will be hooked up to the network when the first phase of ultra-fast broadband rollout in central Blenheim and Springlands is completed by the end of the month.

PC Media owner Lee Harper has been exploring the options available to people in Blenheim who want to take advantage of the ultra-fast broadband.

While there is still no date set for when Chorus will switch on the cable, he expected internet service providers to have firm packages and prices available for customers by the end of the month, he said.

ISPs Pacific Net and Inspire Net would be the first to offer packages in Blenheim and larger telecommunication companies Telecom, Aurecon and Vodafone would "slowly get on board", he said.

"There are lots of home users wanting to get connected and I've been speaking with a number of different ISPs. People can expect to pay something like $90 a month for 40 gigabytes of data at speeds of 30 megabytes per second, the connection and home phone line.

"The amount of data people use will increase because it is going to be so easy to download great-quality data, that people won't bother with TV."

While it will not be quicker to surf the internet or check Facebook, people will be "blown away" by the speed of downloading movies and music, he said.

"It will be great for people using TVNZ on demand and providing superb high-definition movies."

Chorus external media manager Robin Kelly said the first stage of the ultra-fast broadband roll out is on schedule to be completed at the end of the month and people should go through their ISPs to get connected to the network.

Connection is free for houses and businesses within 15 metres of the cable running down the street, but he could not say how much people would pay who were further away.

In the second year of the project, from July to June 2013, Chorus will deploy fibre cables to the rest of Springlands and parts of Mayfield and Burleigh. The $1.35 billion project aims to deliver ultra fast internet services to three-quarters of New Zealanders by 2019, with parts of Blenheim not scheduled to be connected until then.

To see when cable will be laid outside your home or business and how you will be connected, go to chorus.co.nz and check out the rollout and network services map.

- The Marlborough Express

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