Vaughan Baker, managing director of internet provider MyRepublic, was in Dunedin recently to help businesses make the most of Chorus’s gig technology.
He visited pubs and cafes in the Octagon to talk about the impact of fibre on tourism and hospitality businesses, and how to make the most of the technology.
Following the Gigatown competition victory in late 2014, business owners wanted to know what it all meant, Mr Baker said.
Wi-Fi and broadband connectivity was increasingly becoming a part of the retail experience and also the entertainment and hospitality experience.
Whether it was some posting a photograph of a meal they had just enjoyed on Facebook or having a beer at the pub and ribbing their mates who were still at work, connectivity was being used to do that, he said.
There was an opportunity for the hospitality and retail sector to start using that technology to find out more about their customers.
MyRepublic had a "tremendous focus" on Dunedin at the moment to try to lift its gig uptake.
The city had been given a "tremendous head start" it needed to take advantage of, as it did not have long before it would be available in other parts of the country, he said.
