TelstraClear IP network extended

By PETER GRIFFIN

TelstraClear has completed a $7 million expansion of its IP (internet protocol) network to reach business customers in Hamilton, Tauranga, Palmerston North and Dunedin.

Regional businesses in those areas can now tap into TelstraClear's Private IP service, buying broadband access at maximum speeds of 10 Mbps (megabits per second), 100 Mbps or 1000 Mbps.

The Private IP network feeds from the newly connected centres into TelstraClear's national fibre-optic backbone. New customers will plug in to the service using a simple Ethernet connection.

While businesses in the central business districts of Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch have for years had a range of fibre-based service suppliers to choose from, regional centres have largely remained the domain of Telecom.

The TelstraClear move has also extended the service to the industrial area of Albany.