TelstraClear
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
TelstraClear is New Zealand's second largest full-service telecommunications company.
The company provides business telephony and data services, and toll-bypass services. The company also provides line rental services, internet services, cable TV/cable modem and also mobile telephone services in New Zealand with 62,000 subscribers on its network in three areas (Wellington, Christchurch and Kapiti).
In 2004 TelstraClear began offering residential line service outside those areas where it has its own network, reselling a wholesale product from Telecom New Zealand.
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[edit] History
Telstra New Zealand was set up in 1996 by Telstra as part of Telstra's international expansion. Competing with both Saturn Communications and Clear Communications Telstra New Zealand initially focused on providing services to top tier international organisations who were already Telstra clients in Australia in the same way that Telecom New Zealand Australia, an Australian subsidiary of Telecom New Zealand currently does for New Zealand based customers in Australia.
Telstra slowly expanded its operations in the business market bundling Telecom New Zealand services distributed as a reseller with its own network services. It installed a switch in Auckland to manage incoming and outgoing international traffic and maintained an interconnect agreement with Telecom New Zealand and is likely to have had others with companies such as Clear Communications.
In 2000 Saturn Communications was sold by its parent company, Austar United Communications, to a new joint venture with Telstra entity that became known as TelstraSaturn.
TelstraClear was then created by the merger of Telstra's operations in New Zealand TelstraSaturn Limited and Clear Communications in 2001. Austar United Communications held an initial investment of 42% in TelstraClear before selling it back to Telstra.
[edit] Services
[edit] Subscription Television (InHomeTV)
TelstraClear operates the Hybrid Fibre Cable pay television network developed by Saturn Communications in Wellington, Kapiti and Christchurch, prior to the sale to Telstra. The network infrastructure includes twisted pair cabling used for residential and business local telephone service.
Programming is now managed by Sky Communications following an agreement that saw TelstraClear move out of the role of sourcing developing a competitive pay television offering. The agreement allowed TelstraClear to distribute and bill for services provided by Sky on its own Direct to Home satellite service and TelstraSaturn's cable network.
InHomeTV is available on TelstraClear's Cable network in Wellington, Christchurch and Kapiti. The service is not available by itself, it must be bundled with TelstraClear's Telephony service.
In 2005, the network was upgraded to a fully digital transmission network.
[edit] Channel Lineup
This lists all current digital and analouge channels. Channel numbers were changed March, 2007, to coincide with Sky channel number changes.
- Channel 1 TV ONE
- Channel 2 TV2
- Channel 3 TV3
- Channel 4 Prime
- Channel 5 SKY 1
- Channel 6 UK.TV
- Channel 8 The Living Channel
- Channel 9 Food Television
- Channel 11 E!
- Channel 15 Visitor TV (Christchurch only) (Digital only)
- Channel 16 CTV (Christchurch only)
- Channel 17 Discovery Travel & Living
- Channel 18 TBN
- Channel 19 Māori Television
- Channel 20 SKY Movies 1
- Channel 21 SKY Movies 2
- Channel 23 MGM
- Channel 24 TCM
- Channel 25 Rialto Channel
- Channel 28 SKY Box Office Previews
- Channel 30 SKY Sport 1
- Channel 31 SKY Sport 2
- Channel 32 SKY Sport 3
- Channel 34 ESPN
- Channel 35 TAB Trackside
- Channel 36 The Rugby Channel
- Channel 40 Disney Channel
- Channel 41 Nickelodeon
- Channel 42 Cartoon Network
- Channel 44 SKY Box Office Pay per view guide (Analogue only, Digital customers can use the interactive PPV guide)
- Channel 45-59 SKY Box Office Movies (Analogue only, Digital customers use channels 201-227)
- Channel 45 Playhouse Disney Channel (Digital only)
- Channel 60 MTV New Zealand (Digital only)
- Channel 62 Juice TV
- Channel 63 J2
- Channel 64 C4
- Channel 70 Discovery Channel
- Channel 72 National Geographic Channel
- Channel 73 The History Channel
- Channel 74 Documentary Channel (Digital only)
- Channel 75 Animal Planet
- Channel 79 The Arts Channel (Digital only)
- Channel 90 Sky News NZ
- Channel 91 CNN
- Channel 93 BBC World
- Channel 94 Deutsche Welle (Digital only)
- Channel 97 Saturn Scan
- Channel 98 Saturn Weather
- Channel 99 Saturn Choose (Analogue only, Digital customers can use the interactive EPG guide)
- Channel 201-227 SKY Box Office Movies (Digital only, Analogue customers use channels 45-59)
- Channel 300, 302-307 WTV (Digital only)
[edit] Radio Stations
All radio stations are only available on digital.
- Channel 400 SKY Digital Music NZ Chart
- Channel 401 SKY Digital Music Pop
- Channel 402 SKY Digital Music Smooth
- Channel 403 SKY Digital Music Grooves
- Channel 404 SKY Digital Music Jazz
- Channel 405 SKY Digital Music House
- Channel 406 SKY Digital Music 50s & 60s
- Channel 407 SKY Digital Music Party
- Channel 408 SKY Digital Music Rock
- Channel 409 SKY Digital Music Country
- Channel 410 SKY Digital Music Classical
- Channel 411 SKY Digital Music Kids
- Channel 412 SKY Digital Music Blues
- Channel 413 SKY Digital Music Theme
- Channel 501 Radio New Zealand National
- Channel 510 Core Internet Radio
[edit] Interactive Services
All interactive services are only available on digital.
- Electronic Programme Guide (EPG) - Television listing information.
- Pay Per View (PPV) Guide - Sky Box Office listing information.
TechTV was available up until May 2004, when current owner Comcast halted international broadcasts. (Source TelstraClear website)
Chilli (an adult channel) was also available until 2004 when CEO Alan Freeth discontiuned the product on moral grounds. (Source TelstraClear staff memo)
The following analogue channels are unofficially available without needing decryption:
- TV One
- TV2
- TV3
- Prime
- Māori Television
- Sky Box Office Previews
- Sky Box Office Pay per view guide
- C4
- Saturn Scan
- Saturn Weather
- Saturn Choose
[edit] POTS Telephone Services
Residential telephone service is available in two ways:
1.Through TelstraClear directly within the areas covered by its own network, that is parts of Kapiti, Wellington and Christchurch. 2.Through a resale agreement with Telecom New Zealand for the rest of the country.
Business telephone services are offered across the country, either on Telstraclears own network in Auckland, Hamilton, Rotorua, Napier, Palmerston North, Whanganui, Kapiti, Wellington, Christchurch and Dunedin. Services are offered in the rest of the country via a resale agreement with Telecom.
[edit] Internet
TelstraClear owns two ISP's, Paradise.net and Clear Net. Both offer nationwide dialup and DSL service, and cable modem internet access within TelstraClear's own (built) network. Outside of this network, connections are resold over Telecom's DSL lines.
[edit] Technical information
TelstraClear currently does not operate their own mobile network, they instead use Vodafone's network for cellphones which means their customers will actually be using the Vodafone New Zealand network.However a new service being launched in Tauranga, called "Unplugged" http://www.telstraclear.co.nz/unplugged/ will enable users to use cell phones and have broadband over a completely wireless solution.
