Dear Ministry of Business, Innovation & Employment,

A telecommunications infrastructure map managed by your department has been available at http://www.broadbandmap.govt.nz/ since February 2008.(1) Its stated purpose was to "comprehensively map New Zealand's Broadband landscape and provide information and tools to aid in demand aggregation and infrastructure planning."(2)

A new map was published on the Koordinates website (3) in February 2012.

1.) Was there a tender process for the 2012 Broadband Map?
2.) What was the development budget for the 2012 Broadband Map?
3.) What was the ongoing funding for the 2012 Broadband Map?
4.) What are the license conditions for publication and use of the data?

In May of 2014, the Ministry and ".nz registry services" sent a letter on Ministry letterhead to a number of Internet Service Providers requesting data for a new Broadband Map. The following paragraphs are an excerpt from one of the letters:

"...we would like your help to ensure that up-to-date information about your company's services is included on our website and on maps about broadband availability.

This is a joint project between New Zealand Registry Services (a subsidiary of InternetNZ that is responsible for operating the .nz domain), and the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE).

A list of the information that we are seeking is attached. This detailed information will enable us to accurately represent the areas covered by your company, but it will not be published in this form and it will be treated as commercially confidential.

The information you provide will be used in three ways:
- to update a map of broadband coverage across New Zealand
- for a new Broadband Quality and Availability tool, where people can input their addresses to learn which providers they can contact for service
- to ensure that MBIE holds accurate information about existing telecommunications infrastructure, to avoid inadvertent overbuilding of infrastructure in areas which already receive quality broadband through local providers.

Benefit to your company

In appreciation of your help, we will in turn provide you with geographic information systems (GIS) files of your network coverage (where we create these for your network) and documentation on the use of GIS files.

Your company will also benefit from being listed as a provider on the website and having more potential customers aware of your service."

1.) Was there a tender process for the 2014 Broadband Map?
2.) What was the selection criteria that led MBIE to engage NZRS in a joint project?
3.) What is the development budget for the 2014 Broadband Map?
4.) What is the ongoing funding for the 2014 Broadband Map?
5.) Did all New Zealand telecommunications providers receive this request letter?
6.) If not all providers received the letter, which ones did?
7.) What percent of providers contacted supplied data?
8.) Has an updated map of broadband coverage been produced?
9.) Has a Broadband Quality and Availability tool been produced?
10.) Has the joint project announced it holds information about existing telecommunications infrastructure to parties bidding on RBI2 funding?
11.) Has the joint project provided GIS files of network coverage to any telecommunications providers?
12.) Has information provided to telecommunications providers also included information on availability of existing RBI services provided by Chorus and Vodafone?
13.) Have Chorus and Vodafone been provided access to any new data as a result of the joint project?

This information is highly relevant to bidders on the next phase of the Rural Broadband Initiative. I would appreciate its release as soon as possible.

Yours faithfully,

(1) https://web.archive.org/web/200802150815...
(2) https://web.archive.org/web/201202011029...

Dear BRM Official Correspondence,

Please respond to the OIA in full. The questions that were not answered are as follows:

1.) Was there a tender process for the 2012 Broadband Map?
2.) What was the development budget for the 2012 Broadband Map?
3.) What was the ongoing funding for the 2012 Broadband Map?
4.) What are the license conditions for publication and use of the data?

Yours sincerely,

Jonathan Brewer

Dear Alan,

It is very clear from the correspondence recorded at fyi.org.nz that my questions were received by the Ministry on the 8th of July, not on the 11th of September. They were ignored. Please amend your response letter to indicate that the request was received in July and not answered by the Ministry.

Yours sincerely,

Jonathan Brewer