Big-money hopes for broadband on the farm

By ADAM GIFFORD

A $50 million Southland investment in broadband internet is expected to return $190 million a year within five years, more than $400 million a year in 10 years and create at least 490 jobs.

Venture Southland strategic projects manager Steve Canny revealed the figures at the opening of the first Woosh Wireless transmission site, at Tuatapere, on Friday.

He said the figures, based on work done by Christchurch economist Geoff Butcher, were conservative.

"This reflects the opportunity for intensive management of primary sectors like farming, tourism and process industries," Canny said.

"That means adding a little bit extra to traditional farming practices. Broadband allows precise inputs into primary production, so you can better understand what comes off the farm, understand what is happening and activate remedial action quickly."

Fonterra gives milk quality and health risks information through its Fencepost internet portal.

The dairy co-operative is touting a Telecom-BCL internet service to farmers, but is likely to face competition from the Woosh system.

"It also means farmers or farm businesses will be able to send high resolution images of flowers, meat cuts and so on to prospective markets," Canny said.

One beta user, highland cattle breeder Tim Gow, has used the service to beef up his website images, and is looking at posting QuickTime videos of his beasts.

"With tourism, there is the opportunity to not just shift information but to surround it with rich content, which increases the ability to differentiate in the market," Canny said.

Tourism already accounts for more than 9 per cent of the region's jobs.

Canny expects Woosh's voice service to be ready for soon after the Invercargill transmission site goes live in November.

An entry-level package will include high-speed data and two phone lines, including free regional calls and flat-rate national toll calls, for $85 a month.

Canny said cutting the region's toll bill and Telecom access charges would save $35 million a year.

"There is a direct saving to schools of $800,000 a year if they adopt this technology," he said.

The investment estimate includes $2.75 million from Probe - provincial broadband extension, a Government project, which aims to connect all New Zealand schools to high-speed internet.

The Southland Community Trust and regional development funding each provided $1 million.

Southland District Council chief executive Mike Ross said the run-down state of Telecom's network was one of the main reasons the region's councils went looking for alternatives, starting in 2000 with his council's submission to the telecommunications review headed by Hugh Fletcher.

"We were there because we are solely a rural council, we have no major population centres," Ross said.

"At the same time we have Edendale, the second largest milk manufacturing operation in the country, where Fonterra was investing $200 million."

Ross said dairy farming was booming, and the council could see its farmer ratepayers needed high speed, reliable communications to help them reach their potential.

Working with the Invercargill and Gore councils, it set up Venture Southland as an economic and community development agency, with one of its major projects to bring broadband to the south.