• Strategic partnership marks the largest Microsoft Azure agreement in New Zealand 

• One of the largest Microsoft Copilot deployments in the country 

• Spark and Microsoft to collaborate on hybrid cloud offerings for Spark’s business customers 

• Businesses will team up to offer joint skilling academy and support AI learning within Spark. 

Auckland, New Zealand – 20 February 2025: Spark and Microsoft have announced the country’s largest-ever Microsoft public cloud partnership, reinforcing their commitment to accelerate cloud adoption across the country and fuel AI innovation. The agreement will also enable Spark to further modernise its own hybrid cloud environment, while accelerating its AI strategy with a large-scale deployment of Microsoft 365 Copilot across its organisation.  

In the era of AI, the telecom industry is embracing technology to elevate customer experiences, optimise business operations, modernise the network, and unlock new revenue streams. This partnership is a testament to how Spark is driving innovation and growth through the Microsoft Cloud and its AI capabilities. The partnership builds on the recent launch of Microsoft’s NZ North cloud region, providing Spark and its customers with expanded access to world-class cloud infrastructure and services.  

Key commitments include: 

• Spark moving a proportion of its workloads to Microsoft Azure. 

• One of the largest Microsoft 365 Copilot deployments in New Zealand, supporting Spark’s strategic focus on embedding AI across its business, with an uplift of 1,800 users, reaching a total of 2,500 seats. 

• A New Zealand first commitment in advanced data residency for Spark’s Microsoft 365 tenant, providing access to onshore capacity.  

• A unified enablement programme to support Spark’s adoption of Microsoft’s services. 

“We are thrilled to establish this strategic partnership with Microsoft,” says Jolie Hodson, Spark CEO. “We are like-minded companies, with a focus on enabling New Zealand businesses, investing in the digital infrastructure that underpins a modern economy, and creating the next generation of technology leaders.  

“We have a long-term strategic focus on hybrid cloud at Spark. This partnership enables us to improve our overall cloud economics by modernising our own hybrid cloud environment while continuing to collaborate with Microsoft on the best hybrid cloud solutions for our customers. 

“We also have a significant focus on embedding AI into our business, and extending our use of Microsoft 365 Copilot will support more of our people to leverage the benefits generative AI can deliver, both within our business and for our customers.”

In a recent Accenture report on unlocking the potential of generative AI in New Zealand, helping more businesses adopt public cloud was one of the key recommendations that would see Aotearoa add $76 billion to its economy every year, demonstrating the need for regions such as NZ North. 

“For us, this partnership is not just about helping Spark evolve its own cloud environments and sharing innovation for the benefit of both our companies – it’s about helping our country move forward and grow as a truly digital nation,” added Sorenson.

As part of the partnership, Microsoft and Spark will collaborate on an internal skilling programme to support the uptake of AI across the business. In December, Microsoft committed to training 100,000 New Zealanders in AI and digital skills over the next two years, creating long-term benefits for the economy as digital technologies transform the way we live and work.  

Microsoft New Zealand Managing Director Vanessa Sorenson said the partnership recognised how much the needs of New Zealand businesses and people were changing.  

“Great companies think alike, and we both know the future of business relies on a trusted cloud partner with the innovative AI capabilities to meet the needs of today’s and tomorrow’s customer. You can’t scale up generative AI innovation without hyperscale public cloud,” Sorenson said. 

“Azure is the most trusted and comprehensive cloud platform, with industry-leading cloud and AI services; more than 95% of the Fortune 500 choose Azure as their cloud provider.”

Source: https://news.microsoft.com/