Best VPNs for New Zealand

Though it might not affect you at all, it is important to state that in New Zealand, ISPs often offer internet with data caps. If you are planning to connect to the internet with a New Zealander IP address via a VPN service as an expat for example, inform yourself appropriately. Advertisements might offer unlimited bandwidth and data traffic, but it might not be true in the case of New Zealand. As with the rest of the world, the deployment of IPv6 protocols is active. While the availability of IPv4 remains above 95%, IPv6 is still gaining ground. Speed values have yet to meet the 20+ Mbit/s of IPv4, but anywhere between 10 to 17 Mbit/s is a good number. Considering there is no full support for IPv6, these are pretty good signs. Therefore on this technical note, New Zealand fares relatively well, considering its geographical hardship.

It’s most important to emphasize that internet regulation in New Zealand is executed by the Department of Internal Affairs (DIA). While there is no actual legal framework in existence for filtering and censorship, the DIA “claims authority under the Films, Videos, and Publications Classification Act of 1993”. (Tech Liberty) This governmental body thus has a total oversight over Kiwi internet. As mentioned before, Whiteclean Netbox is the primary software used for this purpose. On the other hand, it is a bit more comforting that New Zealand does not intend to follow Australia‘s footsteps of strict regulations. Overall more lenient, but regulations exist.

The availability of streaming services In New Zealand is not that bad, actually. In fact, it is similar to its neighbor, Australia. The most important participant to highlight is Pandora, which is only available in these two countries and the United States. Other music streaming services open for business include Spotify, Apple Music and Google Play Music. New Zealand, being a Commonwealth country, does not gain any advantage from it in terms of the availability of other Commonwealth countries’ restricted content. This means that Amazon Prime is not available and you will find BBC iPlayer blocked as well – they are restricted to the United Kingdom’s inhabitants. Services with global availability like Bandcamp or SoundCloud are very present in New Zealand as well. Netflix also thrives in New Zealand, but Hulu is a US only streaming service.

Lastly, we would like to show you three VPN services that are useful when connecting to New Zealand from both in and outside the country, whether you are an expat or a fascinated visitor. If you strive for a great community experience, we advise you to take a look at HideMyAss. Goofy names aside, the people socializing on their site and the staff are similarly elevated in mood, and for a good reason. Pioneers in VPN, their complete service and 30-day risk-free trial and refund time on top of that are rare and generous offers. While HideMyAss already comes at affordable prices, ibVPN fares even better. At $3.08 a month, they are among the best in terms of the value you get for your money. And lastly for a balanced mix, try out PureVPN. With splendid customer service even after purchases, there is a lot to look around here. PureVPN also supports businesses with separate packages, making it is wise to inform yourself first thoroughly.