Axia NetMedia, the Cinderella in the Government's $1.5 billion fibre beauty contest, went public with an alliance with Vodafone today, holding a joint press conference.
Axia has put forward a national solution to the Government's Ultra Fast Broadband plan and is the third alternative to Telecom's two solutions and the New Zealand Regional Fibre Group's national alliance of regional bids.
Vodafone CEO Russell Stanners says the alliance with Axia means the telco will provide fibre-based services on infrastructure built by Axia, should its proposal be picked by the government. Vodafone may also invest in Axia's fibre network, although the rules would prohibit Vodafone from owning more than 49%.
Axia NetMedia is a public company listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange with a market capitalisation of $110 million. It has built fibre networks in Alberta in Canada, France and Singapore. Chairman and CEO Art Price (pictured) says that if successful Axia will form a New Zealand entity that would ultimately become a public company floated on the NZX.
Axia's bid is a national solution - a passive fibre grid that could encompass existing fibre networks in addition to building new infrastructure. It's an open access solution, so despite the alliance with Vodafone, other providers will be offered services on the same terms.
Price says he's been in discussions with existing fibre companies but has not spoken to Telecom. According to Axia's press information "our competition is frequently the incumbent telco in every jurisdiction we enter into".
The information also states: "In New Zealand Telecom has no meaningful fibre to the premise, but 80% of the cost of deploying fibre is to the premise. The fibre Telecom has is about 5% of what is needed; this should not drive the debate.
Axia signalled the alliance with Vodafone in its bid to Crown Fibre Holdings, so when asked why they have gone public today Price replied that previously there were "some commercial sensitivities". Stanners added that they didn't see why they should keep the alliance quiet any longer.
While it might seem that Crown Fibre Holdings is making the decision, the $1.5 billion Ultra Fast Broadband project is highly political. Vector has mounted a widespread Fibre to the Door campaign with a web forum, billboards, print and television advertising. Telecom has now conceded it's prepared to consider the sale, or part-sale, of Chorus and has received plenty of coverage about the move.
Axia may have decided that being a wallflower is no longer its best strategy (its initial submission during the fact finding process in March last year was only revealed following an official information request, although Axia has been lobbying in this part of the world for a couple of years).
Axia may now be dancing openly at the ball, but will it claim the Prince's hand?
Vodafone already has a committed partnership with Vector for the latter to supply fibre backhaul for its unbundled exchanges on the copper network in Auckland. Stanners says there are plans to extend unbundling to other parts of New Zealand, but none he was prepared to discuss today. As for whether Vodafone supports Vector in its bid to partner with the government in the UFB project, he replied: "We have talked with Vector and supported their bid, we're further advanced in talking with Axia about how theirs works.
