Ambient access gained at a cost

By MICHAEL FOREMAN

Graphics software company Ambient Design has succeeded in a long fight to gain broadband access to its rural location - but at a cost.

Having failed to persuade Telecom New Zealand to enable digital subscriber line (DSL) connections at the Waitakere telephone exchange, Ambient has settled for a frame relay service.

"We've given in," director Andy Bearsley said. "The set up costs are a little astronomical but at least it delivers a reasonable speed."

Ambient hoped the new connection would be in service by late January. It will provide a connection speed of up to 2 megabits per second (Mbps) with a guarantee of at least 512 Kbps.

Mr Bearsley said installation costs would be $3500 all up and connection charges would be $1200 to $1400 a month. This compares with Telecom's Jetstream service which would cost from around $100 to several hundred dollars a month.

Ambient requires a fast internet connection as it needs to send large graphics files regularly to clients in the United States, but Mr Bearsley doubted that many businesses in the area could afford frame relay.

"We can't really afford it either but our business really needs it so we have to have it. Telecom have told us that the existing cables may be adequate with some boosting, but it may require some extra cabling to the exchange."

Telecom had told Ambient that no data services were available at the Waitakere exchange, even though Ambient had offered to pay for and then lease back the equipment necessary to run DSL services.

Telecom government relations manager John Goulter said Telecom did not comment on individual cases but it did not enter into leaseback arrangements as Ambient had originally proposed.