Spark is has built a new cell tower at Lansdowne Road, next to Nelson Speedway.
“We build new cell sites when demand in the immediate area reaches capacity and there has been significant growth in demand for digital services in the Nelson area,” says Arwen Vant, Corporate Relations Partner of Spark New Zealand.
“As demand reaches capacity on existing cell sites, Spark needs to invest in new “infill” sites (usually located in areas where people and businesses need the service) to boost coverage and capacity. This is occurring in many dozens of locations around New Zealand every year,” she says.
The increasing use of data in the community is being driven by the number of devices like smartphones, iPads, and connected watches, the newly adopted digital curriculum in schools, as well as customers who are adopting wireless broadband to stream video content like Netflix and Lightbox in their homes.
“Given the cost of a new cell tower is usually in the hundreds of thousands of dollars, this is not a decision we take lightly – but we need to do it to ensure our customers keep receiving the quality of service that they rightfully expect,” says Arwen.
The company expects to have it fully working early next year.