Vodafone New Zealand Ltd. launched its 5G mobile service in parts of Auckland, Wellington, Christchurch and Queenstown, New Zealand.
The telecom operator will offer the next-generation mobile service free of charge until June 30, 2020. Customers will be able to continue their 5G access from July 1 next year by subscribing to a 5G add-on for $10 per connection or an equivalent prepay term every month.
Vodafone New Zealand teamed up with Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. to offer the Galaxy A90 5G and Note 10+ 5G smartphones to its customers. Subscribers will also need to be in a 5G-covered area and have a 5G Ready plan to enable 5G access.
The telco also presented two 5G use cases in a launch event in Wellington. These include a 5G-enabled drone that can take videos and feed them to police officers, as well as a 5G heat-map tool that tracks people interactions with products in business establishments.
In August, Vodafone New Zealand tapped technology company Nokia Corp. as a partner to deliver and integrate its 5G network.
Vodafone New Zealand is owned by a consortium that includes infrastructure investment company Infratil Ltd. and Canada-based Brookfield Asset Management Inc.