Average monthly data use per Kiwi household was 158GB during 2017, up from 107GB in 2016, according to Chorus data.

“People’s viewing habits have shifted online. It’s now very mainstream to watch television shows and movies via an app on a smart television or tablet,” Chorus’s network strategy manager Kurt Rodgers says in a press release.

“Many of 2017’s most popular television shows were online. But it’s not just international providers like Netflix who are offering content online, domestic broadcasters TVNZ and Three both launched live streaming services in 2017,” Rodgers says.

He says smart televisions have also become mainstream.

“Smart phones are also increasingly being used to watch video, not just television but also social media and news; and most of this smart phone usage is via the home Wi-Fi network rather than the mobile network.”

Data usage growth is expected to continue through this year, he says.

“2018 will be the year that smart home devices become mainstream, enabled by new generation Wi-Fi mesh systems, smart speakers and personal assistants,” Rodgers says.

First published 26 April 2018

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