With the partnership, Farm Source customers enjoy exclusive deals and pricing across business products only available from 2degrees.
The company’s Chief Business Officer Andrew Fairgray says a consistent commitment to customer value embodied in its ‘Fighting for Fair’ mantra has powered 2degrees from humble beginnings, to a merger with the Vocus Group in 2022, to today’s position where it provides complete telecommunications services and connectivity countrywide.
"We have a heritage and history of improving telecommunications services for all Kiwis. When we started, it was clear New Zealand was paying far too much for phone calls and the internet. Having made great competitive inroads and played an important role in bringing down the cost of connectivity for consumers on the one hand, and driving up innovation on the other, 2degrees is now doing the same for businesses.
"That includes rural customers. 2degrees has made specific rural investments and has a mobile network that today covers 98.5% of where Kiwis live and work."
A network built for everyone
Whether executing its mission of making mobile better and more affordable for consumers or creating services powering better business, the common foundation underpinning the 2degrees value proposition is its network. And that’s a matter of pride for the company, confirms Fairgray.
"There’s a perception that 2degrees’ network is somehow lesser than the other guys. I’m happy to say that’s untrue. We have spent more than a billion dollars on it, and reckon it’s got something to offer Farm Source customers.
"Building a countrywide network is expensive, difficult and time consuming. It’s what makes entering the market so difficult, especially as a third operator, because you can’t get customers without a network, and you can’t build a network without customers."
But you can with investor vision and determination. That’s what 2degrees has done over the past 13 years, creating network which today features more than 4,600 kilometres of fibre and more than 2,000 mobile sites.
2degrees has also been investing in ‘Edge Gateways’ – which allow for better and faster cloud computing.
"Business services are all moving to the cloud. It’s great, it means you can do business from anywhere, but it also means a good reliable connection is key."
The gateways are a crucial feature, Fairgray explains.
"For our rural customers, this doesn’t just mean better performance for smartphones, from which many cloud services are accessed. The gateways also serve as essential infrastructure for being future proofed for ‘smart farming’ using Internet of Things devices for tasks such as stock management, monitoring, and control."
Just as impressive is the number of people who have chosen 2degrees as their service provider of choice. With some 345,000 broadband and 1.5 million mobile customers, the good folks of New Zealand have provided a ringing endorsement of the company’s value proposition.
In early 2023, 2degrees became the first NZ telco to sell Starlink Business– a beefed up version of Elon Musk’s Starlink broadband service, and has been installing the units on remote medical centres, schools, businesses, and as a temporary connection on some of the country’s largest construction sites.
Getting (even more) rural
Everyone on the farm knows why connectivity in the regions is challenging.
It is by nature a service that favours the high population densities associated with major centres and not the low ones in the regions. And while mobile networks are more rapidly introduced and cover greater areas, even they have their limitations – from an economic standpoint.
Noting that until recently 2degrees hasn’t really had much of a rural presence, Fairgray says the Farm Source partnership signals a focus on the regions, helping eliminate the digital divide between rural and urban connectivity.
That’s what makes 2degrees’ participation in the Rural Connectivity Group (RCG) exciting. "As a partnership between all three major connectivity providers and Government, this makes it possible to extend our collective networks into areas where the cost of serving customers would otherwise be prohibitive," he explains.
Under the initiative, RCG is building 500 cellular sites which extend 4G wireless broadband and 4G voice calling (VoLTE) under the Rural Broadband Initiative 2 (RBI2) and the Mobile Black Spot fund (MBSF). RCG is expected to cover an additional 30,000 rural homes and businesses, 1,000 kilometres of rural state highways and provide coverage at 100 tourist hotspots.
"In the context of the Farm Source partnership," Fairgray points out, "RCG means you can expect excellent connectivity from 2degrees. And that, of course, is the first and biggest step towards ‘business quality’ services we provide."
Fairgray is enthusiastic about the project, noting that it enhances the already-impressive network operated by 2degrees.
"More is more," he says.
"Our existing network meets the needs of 98.5% of New Zealanders, but we’re really interested in hitting that last 1.5% – and included in there are our farm customers and those involved in other rural occupations.
"2degrees has made a massive difference to Kiwis lives. The Reserve Bank calls the break-up of the Vodafone (One NZ) / Spark duopoly ‘The 2degrees effect’, and we want to see that effect brought to rural New Zealand as well.
"With cost and inflationary pressures, getting the best deal you can on services is key. We think farmers will snap this up."
Fairgray says the offers and commitment to the Farm Source partnerships shows 2degrees is serious about rural New Zealand and its associated industries.
"The most important thing about a mobile or broadband service is knowing you can trust it to work. For rural customers that aren’t sure about 2degrees, the answer is simple. Test us out and if you aren’t happy, we’ll give you your money back," Fairgray says.
Obsessive about customers
Finally, Fairgray says something every 2degrees customer – whether rural or urban, business or consumer – can expect is a great customer experience.
"Thanks to the old guard, telecoms has a shabby reputation for service. We’ve built 2degrees on doing it better and showing we value every customer. This is what we mean by Fighting for Fair; we’re here to give you a great deal, increasing competition and challenging the status quo. And we believe that’s good for NZ Inc."
Fairgray says his message to Farm Source customers is pretty simple: "Give us a go! We are pretty sure you’ll like what you see."
To find out about exclusive mobile and broadband offers from 2degrees, visit 2degrees or call 0800 022 FARM (3276) to discuss the best mobile and broadband options for you.