Netflix review of NZ broadband speeds puts Snap in pole position

The Netflix survey takes in 29 countries where it offers service and ranks New Zealand 14th fastest in those markets. Photo / Thinkstock

Film and television streaming firm Netflix has released its first assessment of New Zealand broadband speeds since launching in the country in March.

It finds the fastest internet service provider is Snap, the Christchurch ISP acquired in March by mobile phone operator Two Degrees. Snap is followed by multi-national Vodafone and then Orcon, which is now Australian-owned.

Local heavyweight Spark, formerly Telecom NZ, came in eighth at an average speed of 2.39 megabits per second (mbs).

The Netflix survey takes in 29 countries where it offers service and ranks New Zealand 14th fastest in those markets.

Snap took out the top spot among New Zealand ISPs with an average of 3.77mbs, according to Netflix, whose recent entry along with Spark's rival online video content service, Lightbox, is being blamed around the country for slowing speeds on copper-based broadband services, such as ADSL, during peak residential viewing hours.

"The New Zealand ISPs with the highest ratio of VDSL (an enhanced ADSL service on the copper network) and fibre customers were higher up the list, while those with more rural and ADSL customers are lower down the list," the company said.

The Government's ultra-fast broadband initiative, rolling out fibre-optic cable past 75 per cent of New Zealanders' homes and workplaces, has also seen higher levels of uptake than forecast, as demand for high speed online services starts to mature in the New Zealand market.

Third placegetter Orcon was bought last year by CallPlus, which ranked fifth, and which itself was bought last month by ASX-listed M2 Group.