NZ Wireless offers voice choice

Wellington WiMax network operator NZ Wireless has upped its service to small businesses in the capital and is offering voice lines as well as broadband over its wireless network.

Businesses will be able to buy two voice lines, a 2-megabit-per-second synchronous broadband connection with a 10 gigabyte datacap, ten e-mail addresses and 10 gigabytes of offsite data storage for $150 a month plus gst. It has a deal with Telecom to carry customers' voice traffic beyond Wellington.

Managing director Chris Aspros says NZ Wireless put the package together in response to demand from customers who wanted a "one-stop shop" for phones, Internet access and their online presence.

NZ Wireless invested more than $1 million setting up a network of WiMax base stations in Wellington last year that covers the cbd and Lower Hutt.

The company has not disclosed how many customers it has, or could support, on the network, which uses 28MHz of spectrum in the 3.5GHz band. Customers include the Human Resources Institute and Wellington's chain of Animalz veterinary clinics.

Human Resources Institute chief executive Beverley Main says the nine-person national office switched to NZ Wireless for Internet access on the recommendation of its IT supplier and would consider the company's voice service.

- © Fairfax NZ News