Clutha customers have been the first to benefit from a phasing in of improved rural broadband speeds throughout Otago, as the Government's Rural Broadband Initiative phase two (RBI2) rolls out across the region.
Otago RBI2 contract winner, Dunedin and Balclutha-based internet service provider Unifone, brought the first of a planned 33 new, region-wide broadband repeaters online at Mt Stuart, near Milton, earlier this week, and nearby rural users were able to access improved speeds and reliability from Wednesday.
Unifone also plans to upgrade 30 repeaters from Waitaki to the Catlins, and inland to the Maniototo, as part of the scheduled four-year project.
The roll-out would improve the available speeds of about 10Mbps by 250% to a guaranteed minimum of 25Mbps, for up to 700 rural households, Unifone contracts manager Glenn Hutton said.
"The main differences people subscribing to the improved service will notice are in consistency and capacity, with more people in the household able to surf and watch video simultaneously."
Early interest in the new service had been "strong", he said.
