Five Broadband Challenge applications totalling $16.3 million for urban fibre network projects have been approved, says Communications Minister David Cunliffe.

The applicants – based on Auckland's North Shore and in Hamilton, Hutt Valley-Porirua, Nelson-Marlborough and Christchurch – are being invited to finalise a funding agreement for their projects.

“I have been impressed by the level of interest and willingness of local communities to invest in partnership with the government, to help meet their own broadband needs.” Mr Cunliffe said.

The $24 million Broadband Challenge Fund is to provide seed funding to improve the availability and quality of broadband Internet access. It aims to establish a series of urban fibre networks by 2009, and to develop broadband Internet access solutions for rural and poorly served communities

The fund is a key part of the Labour-led government's Digital Strategy and drive to transform the New Zealand economy.

In July, five successful applicants in the remote and under-served category were invited to put forward detailed projects for funding totalling $1.5 million.

The successful urban applicants and the level of funding approved (including GST), subject to finalising a funding agreement, are:

• North Shore City in association with Vector Communications Ltd ($4,640,625)
• Hamilton City Council ($3,290,625)
• Smartlinx 3 ($2,372,353)
• Nelson Marlborough Inforegion ($1,788,750)
• Canterbury Development Corporation ($4,218,750)

"The envisaged urban fibre networks will be 'open access' to encourage competitive and innovative services and should provide two-way data transfer rates of at least one Gigabyte a second – about 250 times current maximum broadband ADSL download speeds," Mr Cunliffe said.