One NZ to retire HFC (cable) network

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#3463427 21-Feb-2026 07:33

5. The "unofficial" Chorus copper withdrawal in areas that don't have fibre available. I know a couple of people in Otakiri, Bay of Plenty who moved to Starlink after Chorus sent letters saying "yeah copper is technically still supported but it'll take ages to fix if it breaks, so best to move".

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#3463539 22-Feb-2026 02:21

Behodar:

5. The "unofficial" Chorus copper withdrawal in areas that don't have fibre available. I know a couple of people in Otakiri, Bay of Plenty who moved to Starlink after Chorus sent letters saying "yeah copper is technically still supported but it'll take ages to fix if it breaks, so best to move".

That was not a withdrawal (I'm familiar with the Otakiri case). We had a few localised customers who had already suffered repeated faults due to regular lightning strikes to our network in the area. The previous repairs took time for a number of reasons - one instance being that the fried section of cable was under a state highway - queue NZTA bureaucracy, traffic management plans etc.

Unfortunately Chorus can only do so much to mitigate lightning strikes causing network damage so we offered assistance to affected customers to move to a newer technology of their choice which was less likely to be susceptible to lightning.

One of the reasons Chorus has publicly signalled our intention to retire copper nationwide by 2030 is because our rural network in particular is old, tired and increasingly unreliable. For these customers, moving to a newer technology sooner rather than later would at least remove the very real prospect of future copper failures.

Switching away from copper was entirely voluntary for these customers and we were upfront about that when communicating with them. This is not an isolated case - we will always consider and discuss alternatives whenever a particularly challenging copper fault is likely to leave rural customers without service for an extended time.

(Apologies for hijacking the thread, but I thought it important to clarify)

The views expressed by me are not necessarily those of my employer Chorus NZ Ltd

Behodar

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#3463549 22-Feb-2026 08:32

Thanks for the extra information. I hadn't seen the actual letter, and of course what people tell you it says vs what it actually says can often be very different.

lchiu7

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#3463551 22-Feb-2026 09:09

quickymart:

lchiu7:

quickymart:

Totally different networks - the Chorus tech can't touch another company's network.

I had my cable disconnected a couple of years ago. There is existing cable from the overhead wires, down a lamppost and into a long conduit nailed to my fenfe. Then it had to be pushed under my driveway to reach the other side of the house into a demarc. From there it runs through more conduit nailed to the side of the house into into my house where I had asked for the cable modem to be installed. Who owns all the cable that is run through conduit on my property? Who can remove it?

I would say that would be a job for One. Might be a bit of a challenge getting their overseas call centre to understand your request, though (I have heard of people being referred to Chorus to get help with their own cable network previously).

I think I am going to leave it in place. It's not bothering me and not worth my effort to find somebody to remove it.

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#3463817 23-Feb-2026 18:35

Just got my new convoluted bill from One NZ designed to confound. Is anyone else being charged for the new router SmartWifi X53 DSL? Can see it charged at $5 per month but don’t see it credited. It was meant to be included in the package. Maybe the next bill clears it all up.

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#3463822 23-Feb-2026 19:16

Just in case anyone is trying to track progress, today our whānau member affected got their eight weeks notice in southern Upper Hutt! They have fibre to the ETP. Just need to get an ONT installed. Should be easy!

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#3463825 23-Feb-2026 19:23

Eva888:

Just got my new convoluted bill from One NZ designed to confound. Is anyone else being charged for the new router SmartWifi X53 DSL? Can see it charged at $5 per month but don’t see it credited. It was meant to be included in the package. Maybe the next bill clears it all up.

Don't think so, the deal was that you paid $5 a month for it(that specific plan). That gave you the $30 discount and $200 credit.

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#3463851 23-Feb-2026 22:39

@Eva888 ... as said above, the router charge is rebated within the overall $30 discount.

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#3464814 25-Feb-2026 16:57

Anyone know if Kelburn, Wellington yet been subjected to or notified of the change?

TomAckroyd

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#3464826 25-Feb-2026 18:28

Has anyone posted on this thread about retention offers? I'm being offered a downgrade from Ultrafast HFC Max (1000/500) to Fibre Everyday with SmartWiFi (500/100) for a similar price with a $200 12month retention incentive. I already have a Deco mesh network so the SmartWiFi is redundant I assume? I'm in Mount Vic Wellington and already have a Chorus fibre ONT.

Cheers
Tom

quickymart

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#3464829 25-Feb-2026 18:36

What sort of offers were you thinking of?

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TomAckroyd

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#3464831 25-Feb-2026 18:51

quickymart:
What sort of offers were you thinking of?

We currently get a $30 discount on Ultrafast HFC Max, so $71. They are offering the same price for Fibre Everyday with SmartWiFi which is a $20 discount without Smart WiFI, but only for 12 months.

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#3464833 25-Feb-2026 18:58

TomAckroyd:
quickymart:

What sort of offers were you thinking of?

We currently get a $30 discount on Ultrafast HFC Max, so $71. They are offering the same price for Fibre Everyday with SmartWiFi which is a $20 discount without Smart WiFI, but only for 12 months.

You can get the higher plans as well with a $30 discount just have to make sure it includes SmartWifi.

TomAckroyd

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#3464839 25-Feb-2026 19:36

Not sure I need SmartWiFi, I already have three meshed Deco units supplied by OneNZ

Rickles

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#3464843 25-Feb-2026 19:58

@TomAckroyd .... you could always give them a call and discuss options, I'm sure a 'customer retention' deal could be had.

Failing that, accept the deal as is and sell the router?

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