ICONZ
Encyclopedia
The Internet Company of New Zealand Limited (otherwise known as ICONZ) is a New Zealand
hosting and Internet service provider
(ISP) company, and was a pioneer in providing Internet connections to residential New Zealand users. ICONZ now provides Internet solutions in New Zealand, and colocation/dedicated hosting solutions across the Asia Pacific region.
The ICONZ Group is made up of several smaller Internet related companies: ICONZ Ltd, 2day.com, Webfarm, and Freeparking. Their competitors include Xtra
, Orcon
and Vodafone New Zealand
(previously ihug
).
ICONZ is now a part of the Webvisions Group of companies.
In 1995, ICONZ hosted auckland.nz.undernet.org IRC node setup which was significant step forward for New Zealand global communications. The Undernet
is now one of the largest Internet Relay Chat
(IRC) networks.
ICONZ was acquired by AsiaOnLine in 1999 and moved from being a New Zealand based ISP to a Pacific based ISP. The branding was changed to AsiaOnline, and it was given a new look. It joined a multinational company scattered around the Pacific Rim, with offices in California, Hong Kong, The Philippines, China, South Korea, India, Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore, Australia and New Zealand. AsiaOnline went into liquidation in November 2001, and the New Zealand portion was sold to the Spencer family who reinstated the ICONZ branding.
Under the leadership of Michael Spencer, the operations acquired from AsiaOnline were merged with his existing ISP business, VISP and E3. The company centralised operations to ICONZ House in Airedale Street, Auckland. In 2003, ICONZ acquired New Plymouth-based WebFarm and Freeparking, leading shared hosting providers in the New Zealand market. These business units continue to operate from New Plymouth. In 2005, ICONZ acquired 2day.com, a specialist Windows hosting company based in Auckland.
In 2006, the Spencer Family made a significant investment in the Pan-Asian hoster Webvisions, headquartered in Singapore. In 2009 the operations of Webvisions and ICONZ began to merge, headed by Roger Lim, the Group CEO and Webvisions founder. The joint group is called The Webvisions Group.
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
hosting and Internet service provider
Internet service provider
An Internet service provider is a company that provides access to the Internet. Access ISPs directly connect customers to the Internet using copper wires, wireless or fiber-optic connections. Hosting ISPs lease server space for smaller businesses and host other people servers...
(ISP) company, and was a pioneer in providing Internet connections to residential New Zealand users. ICONZ now provides Internet solutions in New Zealand, and colocation/dedicated hosting solutions across the Asia Pacific region.
The ICONZ Group is made up of several smaller Internet related companies: ICONZ Ltd, 2day.com, Webfarm, and Freeparking. Their competitors include Xtra
Xtra (ISP)
Xtra Limited is New Zealand's largest Internet service provider . It was founded in 1996 and is a wholly owned subsidiary of Telecom New Zealand. Xtra has provided dial-up Internet access throughout New Zealand since its inception...
, Orcon
Orcon Internet Limited
Orcon Internet Limited , is a state-owned New Zealand telecommunications company. It is currently New Zealand's fourth largest ISP.-History:...
and Vodafone New Zealand
Vodafone New Zealand
Vodafone New Zealand is a British owned telecommunications company, a subsidiary of Vodafone Plc operating in New Zealand. It is New Zealand's largest mobile phone operator, based in Auckland, New Zealand and was formed in 1998, after Vodafone purchased BellSouth's New Zealand operations...
(previously ihug
IHUG
ihug was New Zealand's third largest ISP , before it was bought, then absorbed by Vodafone New Zealand . According to 2005 estimates, it had over 100,000 internet and phone subscribers...
).
ICONZ is now a part of the Webvisions Group of companies.
History
In 1992 ICONZ was founded as a small business by Chris Thorpe and Jon Clarke in Clarke's garage. By 1994 ICONZ had grown and was one of only two companies providing Internet solutions to the Auckland and far north regions of New Zealand, with 18 dial-up lines and a 48K MDDS circuit.In 1995, ICONZ hosted auckland.nz.undernet.org IRC node setup which was significant step forward for New Zealand global communications. The Undernet
Undernet
The Undernet is the fourth-largest publicly-monitored Internet Relay Chat network circa 2011, with about 12 client servers serving 60,000 users in 11,000 channels at any given time....
is now one of the largest Internet Relay Chat
Internet Relay Chat
Internet Relay Chat is a protocol for real-time Internet text messaging or synchronous conferencing. It is mainly designed for group communication in discussion forums, called channels, but also allows one-to-one communication via private message as well as chat and data transfer, including file...
(IRC) networks.
ICONZ was acquired by AsiaOnLine in 1999 and moved from being a New Zealand based ISP to a Pacific based ISP. The branding was changed to AsiaOnline, and it was given a new look. It joined a multinational company scattered around the Pacific Rim, with offices in California, Hong Kong, The Philippines, China, South Korea, India, Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore, Australia and New Zealand. AsiaOnline went into liquidation in November 2001, and the New Zealand portion was sold to the Spencer family who reinstated the ICONZ branding.
Under the leadership of Michael Spencer, the operations acquired from AsiaOnline were merged with his existing ISP business, VISP and E3. The company centralised operations to ICONZ House in Airedale Street, Auckland. In 2003, ICONZ acquired New Plymouth-based WebFarm and Freeparking, leading shared hosting providers in the New Zealand market. These business units continue to operate from New Plymouth. In 2005, ICONZ acquired 2day.com, a specialist Windows hosting company based in Auckland.
In 2006, the Spencer Family made a significant investment in the Pan-Asian hoster Webvisions, headquartered in Singapore. In 2009 the operations of Webvisions and ICONZ began to merge, headed by Roger Lim, the Group CEO and Webvisions founder. The joint group is called The Webvisions Group.