BIOS: Technology Means Business

Somerset County Council is hoping to lead the way in pushing the boundaries of broadband internet technology.

Imagine using your existing broadband connection to transfer calls from your home phone to your mobile, or sending moving images from your car to your television screen and being able to send huge files in a second at the touch of a button.

This is the vision of Somerset County Council’s Economic Development team, which wants to ensure that Somerset is not left behind in the booming internet industry. Somerset County Council’s Connecting Somerset initiative, which saw broadband made available to all towns and villages across the county, has proved so successful that project leaders are gearing up to launch Somerset’s Next Generation Broadband (NGB).

The newest service, which currently only operates in large UK, is carried by a mix of wireless and fibre optic cable technology and brings even higher speed Internet communication to homes and businesses.

It is hoped the new technology will open up a wealth of opportunities and have a large impact on the way we work, how education and public services operate and how people use information and the Internet.

Among some of the other benefits of NGB are video conferencing with your colleagues or clients at work meaning they don’t have to come in to the office or with family around the globe. NGB also gives workers the opportunity to access their employer’s network from home meaning they have the same facilities as if they were at their office desk.

Friends and relatives can also be kept up-to-date with information at the touch of a button, and children may be able to learn from home by specialist teachers located around the UK.

Dave Cornish, Somerset County Council’s Business and Strategy Manager, said: “All of these possibilities are likely to be come reality over the next three to five years and it is the role of the NGB project to get them to Somerset as quickly as possible. The Connecting Somerset Project has already shown that broadband is making a real impact on local businesses and the economy of the county. Somerset’s Next Generation Broadband aims to attract the best broadband suppliers by showing there is a ready market for the service and in doing so making Somerset one of the best connected places in the UK to do business, to learn and live.”

Cllr Paul Buchanan, Somerset County Council’s Portfolio Holder for Economic Development, said: “The Council is working with its partners in the public, private and voluntary sectors to create a modern and dynamic business environment in which business can flourish. The adoption of next generation technologies is vital to Somerset’s success in the national and international market place”.

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