The Idea
Gigatown was an online and real world competition developed by Chorus to help educate and inspire New Zealanders about the possibilities that a country connected with ultra-fast broadband can provide.
When the competition kicked off in October 2013, 50 towns from around New Zealand signed up to become the country’s first Gigatown. In September 2014, only five towns made it through to the final round - Dunedin, Gisborne, Nelson, Timaru and Wanaka.
To earn points in the competition, supporters created relevant discussions on social media with town-specific hashtags, and completed different challenges that focused on the social and economic benefits of gigabit services.
In the final round, each town submitted a Plan for Gig Success that outlined how they plan to use gigabit services to foster new ways of learning, playing and conducting business. In October 2014, Chorus took representatives from the five finalist towns to Chattanooga in Tennessee, US so they could witness the real benefits of gigabit broadband connectivity. Have a look here to see how Chattanooga has transformed itself
Visits to gigatown.co.nz
Posts on social media
Supporters of Gigatown
The Winner: Dunedin
Thanks to a game well-played, Dunedin took out the top spot to win its place as New Zealand’s first Gigatown. Now well on the way to becoming the most connected town in the Southern Hemisphere, here’s what Dunedin had to say in their Plan for Gig Success.
This competition has seen a shift in our community’s perception of itself. There has been a city-wide awakening to the attributes, both physical and intellectual, that already exist here. We recognise that we have what it takes to shape a new future, which will be based around the access that the Gig will give to a global market-place.
The Finalists
Gisborne
Gisborne put up a fierce battle as one of the five Gigatown finalists.
Nelson
Nelson was a strong competitor in the Gigatown competition.
Timaru
Timaru competed in the final round of Gigatown and showed us the power of its local community along the way.
Wanaka
Wanaka’s passionate community fought hard for the chance to be Gigatown.
The Scoreboard
The Prize
Gigabit connectivity
1Gbps
UFB service
was available in the winning Gigatown at entry level broadband prices.
A Gigatown development fund
$200,000
provided by Chorus & Alcatel Lucent's ng Connect
supported entrepreneurs and innovators taking new services to market over the gigabit fibre connection in Gigatown.
A Gigatown community fund
$500,000
provided by Chorus
that organisations in the Dunedin community can apply to kick start community related developments that can be activated for social good.
The Gigatown prize also includes a
COSTARTERS
programme series run
by Co Lab
an incubator for creative business ideas in Chattanooga, Tennessee, US. Designed to turn business ideas into action.