A group of Nelson schools has set up an innovative new system to give hundreds of children faster internet access.
A $1 million donation of fibre optic cable and funds from a local power company has enabled 13 Nelson schools to create their very own loop, and pupils at Nayland college now insist the internet world is their oyster.
"We didn't have any option, we couldn't go out there and buy the sort of product we wanted, not one that was big enough, fast enough and affordable," says Principal Charles Newton of Nayland College.
The government wants New Zealand to be one of the highest users of the super-fast internet connection broadband by 2010; currently it is one of the lowest
"I believe
we need to do even better. Nobody in the government is satisfied
with things as they currently are - we need a steep change in
peformance," says IT Minister David Cunliffe.
The Nelson schools hook up to the TelstraClear network in
Wellington, but the company says it should not be that
difficult
"There's only two places in the world that haven't unbundled the local loop or provided us with access to the copper; that's New Zealand and Mexico," says Allen Freeth, the Chief Executive of TelstraClear.
But Telecom - which owns the lines - says a fifth of users are now receiving broadband from their competitors.
"We think things are growing in the right direction as far as the overall market's concerned," says Telecom's John Goulter.
Schools within the Nelson loop say they have created a far superior product, and it has already generated huge interest in schools across the country.
