Telecommunications in New Zealand are fairly typical for an industrialised country.
A television network is a telecommunications network for distribution of television program content, whereby a central operation provides programming to many television stations or pay television providers. Until the mid-1980s, television programming in most countries of the world was dominated by a small number of terrestrial networks. Many early television networks evolved from earlier radio networks.
NTL Incorporated, branded as ntl:, was a United States-listed British company founded in 1992, which provided cable television, cable internet and fixed-line cable telephone services. While NTL had its headquarters in New York City, the company's activities focused heavily on the United Kingdom, with operational headquarters in Hook, Hampshire.
Television in New Zealand was introduced in 1960 as a state-run service. The broadcasting sector was deregulated in 1989, when the Government allowed competition to the state-owned Television New Zealand (TVNZ). There are currently three forms of broadcast television: a terrestrial (DVB-T) service provided by Freeview; satellite services provided nationwide by both Freeview and Sky; and an internet television service delivered over cable and fibre broadband.
Vidéotron is a Canadian integrated telecommunications company active in cable television, interactive multimedia development, video on demand, cable telephony, wireless communication and Internet access services. Owned by Quebecor, it primarily serves Quebec, as well as the Francophone communities of New Brunswick and some parts of Eastern Ontario. Its principal competitors are Bell Canada and Telus Communications.
Spark New Zealand Limited, more commonly known Spark, is a New Zealand telecommunications company providing fixed line telephone services, a mobile network, an internet service provider, and a major ICT provider to NZ businesses. Its name in te reo Māori is Kora Aotearoa, and it was formerly known as Telecom New Zealand until it was rebranded with its current name in 2014. It has operated as a publicly traded company since 1990.
Sky Network Television Limited is a New Zealand pay television satellite TV provider. It is also a wholesale channel provider to New Zealand cable television provider Vodafone. On 30 June 2019, Sky had 778,840 subscribers across satellite and OTT services, making it the largest pay television platform in New Zealand, but still a lower amount than in 2016, when subscriber numbers peaked at over 850,000. Despite the similarity of name and services, such as Sky Go and MySky shared with its British equivalent, Sky, there is no longer a connection between the companies.
Vodafone New Zealand is a telecommunications company operating in New Zealand. It was a subsidiary of the London-listed company Vodafone Plc. On July 31, 2019 the sale of Vodafone New Zealand Limited to a consortium comprising Infratil Limited and Brookfield Asset Management Inc. was settled. Vodafone is New Zealand's largest mobile phone operator, based in Auckland, and was formed in 1998, after Vodafone purchased BellSouth's New Zealand operations. The company employs over 3,000 people and has operations nationwide, with its main offices based in Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch. The company is part of New Zealand Telecommunications Forum.
TelstraClear Limited was New Zealand's third-largest telecommunications company before being acquired by Vodafone New Zealand in October 2012.
Neighbourhood Cable was a telecommunications provider based in regional Victoria, Australia. The company owned and operated hybrid fibre coaxial (HFC) cable networks in three Victorian regional cities of Mildura, Ballarat and Geelong before being acquired by TransACT in 2007 and the brand ceased to be used in 2011.
Now TV is a pay-TV service provider in Hong Kong operated by PCCW Media Limited, a wholly owned subsidiary of PCCW. It provides 197 TV channels including 176 channels branded under now TV, 21 channels from TVB Network Vision, and over 30 video on demand categories. Launched on 26 September 2003, its TV signal is transmitted with IPTV technology through HKT's fixed broadband network.
Sky Cable is a cable television service of Sky Cable Corporation. Its covers areas across the country with both digital and few analog services, and it has 700,000 subscribers controlling 45% of the cable TV market.
Virgin Media Limited is a British company which provides telephone, television and internet services in the United Kingdom. Its headquarters are at Green Park in Reading, Berkshire. Since 2013, Virgin Media has been a subsidiary of Liberty Global plc, an international television and telecommunications company. The company was previously listed on the NASDAQ Stock Market and London Stock Exchange. Virgin Media is not a sister company of Virgin Mobile USA, which is owned by Sprint Corporation.
Saturn Communications are an Australian ICT integrator based in Hobart, Tasmania. They service Southern Tasmania as well as most parts of Northern Tasmania. Saturn Communications are playing a key role in providing services via the nationwide rollout of fibre optics.
Virgin TV is a digital and analogue satelite television service in the UK, owned by Liberty Global. Its origins date from NTL and Telewest, two of the largest cable operators in the country which merged on 6 March 2006. All services were rebranded under the Virgin name in February 2007. Virgin TV is the largest cable television provider in the country.
G Sat is a subscription-based direct-to-home (DTH) satellite television service commercially available in the Philippines. G Sat is owned by Global Satellite Technologies Services, Inc. (GSTS), a subsidiary of First United Broadcasting Corporation, registered in the Philippines with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
HBO Go is a TV Everywhere service offered by the American premium cable network HBO. It allows HBO subscribers to stream video on demand selections of HBO content, including current and past series, films, specials, and sporting events, through either the HBO website, or apps on mobile devices, video game consoles, and digital media players. The service first launched on February 18, 2010.
HBO, which was originally established as a premium cable television channel in the United States, has expanded worldwide. Since 1991, HBO has overseen a number of partnerships that operate HBO-branded television networks around the world. As HBO was launched in new markets, the brand has been used in several countries.
The distribution of cable television around the world:
Sky Direct is a direct-broadcast satellite subscription television service in the Philippines owned and operated by Sky, a subsidiary of ABS-CBN Corporation. Sky Cable has been eyeing for a DBS service and considered on acquiring Dream Satellite TV from Antonio O. Cojuangco, Jr. The acquisition of Dream was reported to have reached an advanced stage but for some undisclosed reasons, the deal was not sealed. Sky's entry to the DBS market was hindered by various oppositions from the industry, citing legal issues and the slow growth of the pay TV market in the country. On December 23, 2015, Sky was granted by the NTC a provisional authority to operate and maintain a DBS service in 251 cities and municipalities in the country for a period of 18 months. Sky Direct offers both prepaid and postpaid packages with exclusive channels from ABS-CBN and Creative Programs such as ABS-CBN HD, ABS-CBN News Channel, ABS-CBN Sports+Action HD, Cinema One, Jeepney TV, Metro Channel, Liga, and Myx. As of the March of 2019, Sky Direct has over 1 million subscribers.