Are there cities in Australia or New Zealand where developing businesses are relatively cheap and spoken english is very good? Offshoring is an option but with the countries I have in mind (China, Malaysia and Japan) language may be an issue.

I’m pretty sure developing business in Australia is pretty much the same everywhere – though some states may offer incentives in certain areas. You would have to contact each state government to find out if grants are available. Regarding English, I think you are safe everywhere in both Aus and NZ since this is the official language here! (We speak English here!)