BBC Sets Out Vision For Broadband Britain
The BBC has launched its vision for a broadband Britain by calling on the Government and the new media industry to work together to avoid the creation of a ‘digital underclass’.
The BBC’s director of new media and technology, Ashley Highfield, appealed for the ‘collaboration and co-operation’ of the industry’s key players to launch a digital literacy campaign aimed at ‘those members of society who might find themselves on the wrong side of the digital divide’.
Delivering the keynote speech at the recent Broadband Britain Summit, Highfield stressed that a higher speed of internet connection could offer both the BBC and the UK media industry new ways of involving audiences and providing them with choice.
He described broadband as a new era in the world of content and confirmed that the BBC is already working on an on-demand strategy that would use the potential of broadband to deliver its content and programme schedules in new ways.
The on-demand strategy will allow viewers to download television programmes on their home PC. The downloaded content can then be viewed on a computer screen or burned on a DVD. Content for PDA computers will also be made available.
Highfield stressed that the BBC would continue to play a key role in helping to drive broadband, but emphasised that a fully connected digital Britain could only be achieved if all parties work together to make high-speed internet cheaper and more accessible.
The BBC’s vision for broadband Britain comes as new figures from media super-regulator Ofcom show that the total number of broadband subscribers hit the 5.3 million mark in the third quarter of this year, up from just over 5 million in the previous three month period.
The research shows that by the end of 2005 there will be more than 8.2 million UK broadband subscribers, with nearly 5.6 million of them connected on phone lines using high-speed DSL technology. This should help the Government reach its target of being the most extensive and competitive broadband market among the G7 countries by the end of next year (see Britain On Track To Lead Broadband Nations).
BBC: 020 8743 8000 www.bbc.co.uk
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