Internet use in Auckland spikes after move to alert level 3

Internet traffic has spiked in Auckland thanks to the “Zoom effect” of homebound workers holding virtual meetings online, and school children attending lessons in virtual classrooms. Chorus, the country’s largest broadband infrastructure provider, said Auckland internet traffic on Wednesday was 67 per cent higher than it was on Monday. The rise internet traffic in the rest of New Zealand was 7 per cent, Chorus said. Chorus spokeswoman Holly Cushen said much of the extra traffic was the result of meetings that would have been held face-to-face in offices and other workplaces, but which were instead held through online video-conferencing platforms.