Birmingham not content with second in the digital age
Jun 9 2008 Agenda
With Birmingham at the helm of the new digital revolution, the city
council's deputy leader Paul Tilsley explores how the area is developing its
reputation as one of the world's leading centres for digital technologies
that will benefit everyone who lives, works and visits here.
Birmingham has a long history of leading where others follow. For over two
centuries the city was the pioneer and powerhouse of the Industrial
Revolution, and now we are looking to do the same for the digital
revolution, with a dynamic agenda to put the power of digital technology in
the hands of the people - the businesses, residents and schools of the UK's
second city.
As head of the Digital Birmingham initiative, the city's strategic
partnership dedicated to encouraging people and businesses to exploit the
benefits of digital technologies, I am working with partners such as BT, the
universities, BBC, the health and voluntary sector to help Birmingham make
the transition from an industrial city to a digital city and one that's able
to compete on the global stage.
The next revolution is taking place here and now and this digital
revolution, the internet, text messaging and interactive TV are all part of
our lives. I am determined to ensure that Birmingham is a leading digital
city, with the right physical infrastructure, a thriving digital media
sector, digital showcasing at international level and crucially, all the
citizens of the city engaged with this new technology.
Not only does our region have one of the most sophisticated networks in
Europe, but it is also the most connected city in the UK with 55 per cent of
our population connected to broadband. Together with BT, the council has
created one of the UK's first city centre wireless networks and emerged as
the leading provincial wireless city in the UK.
Use of Birmingham's wireless or wi-fi broadband network has increased by
more than 45 per cent since the network was launched by BT and Birmingham
City Council in the autumn. This impressive increase has propelled
Birmingham ahead of other major cities, such as Newcastle and Liverpool,
according to the latest figures from BT's Wireless City programme.
Indeed, Birmingham is living up to its Second City status, with use of
outdoor, high-speed wi-fi second only to the City of Westminster in London.
These results are extremely impressive and proof that the people and
businesses of Birmingham are increasingly using wireless technology as part
of their everyday lives.
Whether they are downloading work files when out of the office or staying in
contact with friends on the move, we are seeing people begin to take full
advantage of the flexibility that comes with high speed wireless broadband.
Our unique free information zone developed by Digital Birmingham, known as
birminghamfiz, was part of the wireless launch, and allows people with wi-fi
devices free access to a wealth of information about travel, shows, tourist
attractions, parking and a whole lot more whilst on the move in the city
centre. Fiz is set to evolve even more to give greater power to people's
fingertips and further enhancing the visitor experience.
The key to digital empowerment isn't just having the latest flashy PDA,
though. The three Cs - Connectivity, Content and Capability - all need to
work together for people to really be able to harness the potential of
digital technology. This means providing the infrastructure for a digital
society, developing the personalised interactivity to help people run their
lives and businesses more smoothly, and ensuring that a digital mindset is
embedded in citizens from an early age.
The council is strongly supporting the Government's universal home access
(UHA) agenda, linking the excellent work that goes on in our schools with
the home environment and ensuring that the digital entrepreneurs of the
future can rely on informed support at home. Keeping IT in the Family is an
initiative running in a number of secondary schools, with students helping
family members get to grips with the basics of emailing, surfing the net,
digital photography and so on.
And the Computers in the Home programme, which provides primary age children
with a computer and internet connectivity at home, not only means children
can do their homework online but has also in several cases opened the door
to a whole new life for their families.
Mother-of-two Warda Mohammed from Aston, for example, a lone parent, has
been able to carve out a career as an online interpreter thanks to her son's
home computer, provided via the initiative. She now has the flexibility to
work hours that suit her commitments and earn a living from home - boosting
her income and improving her family's economic prospects.
Business, too, is seeing the benefits of the digital economy, despite the
current gloomy economic predictions. Plans for a Virtual Birmingham are in
development, offering city firms the prospect of being able to promote
themselves in Birmingham's cyberspace, and providing a real boost for the
visitor economy.
Virtual Birmingham could be a combination of maps and images with a Second
Life-type environment where visitors could browse the city's attractions,
residents could access local services and businesses could locate and
promote themselves. We could even hold virtual events and Virtual Birmingham
could be a key driver for the tourist economy and for inward investment.
The Birmingham Card, a "smart card" that builds on Centro's "smart" travel
tickets, is another idea currently bubbling away. Our vision is for a card
which could be used by residents for their leisure and learning needs, for
example; by visitors for information and access to theatres, restaurants and
concerts; and by children for services such as school meals and public
transport. London, York, Liverpool and Edinburgh are the only other UK
cities to have any form of smart card at the moment. Birmingham would be
able to learn from their achievements and mistakes in developing
Birmingham's more sophisticated version.
We are also embedding technology into our urban regeneration, planning and
developments such as Eastside, New Street station and the development of
Birmingham's new city library that will show the way in urban living,
learning and creativity through the use of technology. And as one of the
seven cities worldwide collaborating through CISCO's 'Connected Urban
Development' programme, Birmingham is set to become a global leader on
developing environmentally friendly "smart" homes and communities as a means
to tackle climate change.
We plan to initially test the technology in new housing developments such as
the 1,400 eco-homes planned at the old MG Rover site in Longbridge and then
longer term roll the technology out to homes across the city.
Far from being a threat, digital technologies can build real empowerment
enabling individuals, families and businesses to harness the opportunities
the 21st century increasingly brings.
It's our task together with our partner organisations, to ensure that the
infrastructure is there for people and businesses to create their own
digital lives; and by working with schools, parents and universities, to
nurture the "digital masters" of the future.
Birmingham is once again poised to pay a key role in a revolution that will
transform the life of millions.
* The Big Debate, Digital Revolution: More Power or More Powerless?, is at
the ICC today. Panellists include music industry expert Chris Cooke, Anthony
Rose, head of the BBC's IPlayer project; Doug Williams, project director for
BT and The Birmingham Post's digital journalist Joanna Geary. The event will
be chaired by BBC technology correspondent Rory Cellan-Jones. Anyone wanting
to be in the audience can turn up at the event or participate online at
www.birminghampost.net/liveblog.
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