Skinny Jump modems

[John Zoetebier]

The purpose of the Skinny Jump modem scheme is to provide affordable, low cost internet access to homes that do not have a broadband connection, especially if the cost of internet access is a significant barrier for that household. The scheme is also designed to provide heavily subsidised internet connectivity to groups  that have been identified as being at risk of being digitally excluded. These groups include: families with school aged children in low socio-economic areas, job seekers, senior citizens, people with disabilities, migrants and refugees whose first language isn’t English, people living social housing, and offenders / ex-offenders.

 

The Skinny Jump modems work like a pre-paid mobile phone. The modems use a sim card and you “top-up”  the account using a voucher from the store, a credit card or debit card.  It costs $5 per 30GB which last one month (i.e., it doesn’t roll over) and you can top up a maximum of 5 times per month (i.e., $25 / 150GB).  The use of the modem is free. There is no rental fee. You just pay for the data you used.  Many families find that they spend $5-$15 a month. This is dependent on what they use the internet for and what they are downloading.

There are no credit checks, no contracts, and no cabling.  There is nothing to install. All you need is an electricity socket.

 

If you and/or your clients are interested, there are a couple of ways they can sign up:

·         They can go directly to any of the Hutt City Libraries and ask for a Skinny Jump modem.  We keep about 5-10 in stock at each library (with the exception of Moera Library where we have only 2).  This involves the library staff registering the person’s name, address, the modem number, and the modem SIM phone number.  Your clients will need to set up the modem once they get it home.

·         If there are many of them, we can organise a session where we go over how to set up a modem, explain how to top-up, and hand out the modems.  This would be good for clients who are not familiar with devices (computers, laptops and smart phones) and who may need extra help. They would still need to set up the modem once they go it home; but, they will know what they are supposed to do.

 

There is also a third way.  They can complete the self-service form (https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScJvaTgGBBeY6dLm7yQqaO243MsOTEDLu5IA5Uqp4z6wCN1Xg/formResponse) after checking to make sure they are in a Skinny Jump zone by checking this website: https://www.skinny.co.nz/jump/home.html#checkmyaddress.  This can sometimes be difficult for people who are not used to filling in forms online.

 

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