11 th ATIE FORUM, SAR HONG KONG Presentation by Lord John E. Shazell President, Association of Telecommunications Industry of Singapore (ATiS)

Transcription

1 11 th ATIE FORUM, SAR HONG KONG 2006 Presentation by Lord John E. Shazell President, Association of Telecommunications Industry of Singapore (ATiS)

2 An update on Singapore and in2015 Some Statistics How Singapore is Bridging the Digital Divide The barriers to Broadband ICT deployment and how WiMAX can break them egovernment Services delivered over WiMAX Platform

3 An Update on Singapore and in2015

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5 Intelligent Nation 2015 (in2015) is a Masterplan that harnesses the potential of InfoComm in the coming decade to transform every aspect of daily life and business It is the culmination of a collaborative effort, reflecting the ideas and vision of the people, public and private sectors in2015 is Singapore s sixth InfoComm Masterplan since 1981 and was launched in June 2006 by Dr Lee Boon Yang, Minister of Information, Communications and the Arts The development of Singapore s ten-year Masterplan kicked off in May 2005 when a high-level steering committee chaired by Chairman of ida was formed

6 In tandem with gathering inputs from the industry, ida launched Express IT! in2015 to gather views and ideas from the public Over 3,000 entries were received from the enthusiastic public

7 in2015 aims to transform Singapore into an Intelligent Nation and a global city by the year 2015 and it hopes to achieve these targets: be Number 1 in the world in harnessing InfoComm to add value to the economy and society Achieve a 2-fold increase in value-add of InfoComm industry to $26 billion Achieve a 3-fold increase in InfoComm export revenue to $60 billion

8 Add 80,000 jobs, both InfoComm and non-infocomm Achieve 90% of home broadband usage Achieve 100% computer ownership in homes with schoolgoing children

9 An Update on Statistics

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15 The current statistic is 101.5% (2G + 3G)

16 The current statistic is 58.9%

17 The current statistic is 721,100

18 Does Singapore Have a Digital Divide?

19 By 2015, life in Singapore will be greatly powered by InfoComm and the Government is striving to build an allinclusive digital society where InfoComm is used as a powerful enabler for everyone, including the elderly, needy students and people with disabilities But even as prices have fallen for items like computers, broadband access and handphones, they remain out of reach of some pockets of society To most of us, these are not even considered luxury items - they have become necessities in this Digital - Connected Age But 14 per cent of households with school going children still have no computers at home

20 The Government will build InfoComm bridges, so that no student will be denied computer and Internet access due to financial destitution; people with disabilities can receive InfoComm training, improve employability and integrate with mainstream society; and the less tech-savvy elderly can be at ease with technology and get connected in the Digital Age Three of such InfoComm bridges are being built to help these groups of people cross the Digital Divide: Equipping the Needy - NEU PC Plus Empowering the Disabled - InfoComm Accessibility Centre Engaging the Elderly - Silver InfoComm Initiative

21 The NEU PC Plus will help to build an all-inclusive digital society where needy students can have equal access to Infocomm, through highly-subsidised computer ownership and Internet access Some 10,000 low-income households with school-going children or disabled family members can benefit from this programme, enhanced from the current NEU PC programme For a start, IDA, Microsoft Singapore, SingTel and Trend Micro are prepared to contribute $31 million to help them

22 Since NEU PC's inception in 1999, more than 20,000 needy families have received assistance The longer term vision, as mapped out in the in2015 Masterplan, is to ensure that there is 100 per cent computer ownership in homes with school-going children by 2015.

23 What's New in NEU PC Plus Better Connectivity - Needy families get to enjoy broadband Internet access, an upgrade from the existing dial-up access Given today's bandwidth-intensive web applications, having home broadband access is in line with increased technology sophistication The Plus is thus a subsidised computer package for under $300, that comes with three years of SingNet broadband access

24 That's just under 30 cents a day to get plugged into the Digital Age In addition to the better connectivity, the package comes bundled with a Microsoft Office Standard Edition, a Trend Micro anti-virus subscription (PC-cillin Internet Security), and up to five years of service warranty

25 Wider Reach - While the NEU PC programme catered to low-income households, the Plus now extends Infocomm to children homes, orphanages and other Voluntary Welfare Organisations serving youths Targeted Approach - The big Plus is that ida and MOE will work together to help students from low-income families own a computer at home, through proactively identifying the needy from among the student population Easier Access - For some, $300 is still a princely sum to pay for a computer which is why additional avenues are available to help the needy students co-pay for their new computer.

26 The Plus comes in three forms: Through the inspire fund, students in financial hardship will be able to do some form of work in the spirit of "paying it forward The fund aims to, through infocomm, SPark an Inspiring and Rewarding Experience Schools can tap on the Ministry of Education's Opportunity Fund to help needy Singaporean students own computers so as to widen their learning, and provide more opportunities to use Infocomm in their school work

27 Self-Help Groups such as the Chinese Development Assistance Council and Singapore Indian Development Association offer financial assistance for needy students to co-pay the top-up amount for the computer package

28 Empowering the Disabled - Infocomm Accessibility (IA) Centre The centre will help people with disabilities realise their potential and enrich their lives in the Digital Age, through providing InfoComm training and employment opportunities Technology has literally opened new worlds to people with disabilities, permitting them to achieve greater autonomy and independence

29 The centre, co-funded by ida and the Ministry of Community Development, Youth and Sports (MCYS), is expected to be operational from the first quarter 2007 The Ministry of Community Development, Youth and Sports will study the proposal further and consider funding the apprenticeship component of the programme

30 IA Centre Key Offerings: Customised Courseware - For a start, IDA and Society for the Physically Disabled will work with Microsoft Singapore, Temasek Polytechnic and commercial training providers like COMAT on a structured InfoComm training curriculum for the disabled community There will be three levels of training - elementary, intermediate and advanced - that will lead to industry certification

31 Training For All Disability Groups - The IA Centre will be equipped with a range of Assistive Technology (AT) tools like sip-and-puff mouse and voice-recognition software for the physically-disabled, screen reader and magnifier for the visually-handicapped and sound amplifiers for the hearing-impaired These tools will aid trainees with different disabilities as they learn and interact together.

32 Apprenticeship & Employment Opportunities - Trainees can enrol in the InfoComm industry-relevant apprenticeship programme, e.g. Web design, database administration etc. The IA Centre will provide hands-on work experience through a sheltered workshop, conduct vocational assessments and facilitate job placements to enhance the employability of Singaporeans with disabilities and create new employment opportunities for them This idea will be looked at in greater detail under MCYS s Enabling Masterplan which charts the development of national programmes and services in the disability sector for the coming five years

33 Infocomm AT Library - The centre will also house an InfoComm AT Library that will showcase a variety of AT tools, and make them available for loan and trial by people with disabilities, so that they can assess its suitability prior to purchase.

34 Engaging the Elderly - Silver Infocomm Initiative Singapore is a fast-greying society This initiative aims to help the elderly get connected in the Digital Age, and lead more fulfilling and enriched lives

35 What's Coming Up: Experiencing InfoComm - Senior-friendly InfoComm workshops will be conducted to help the senior citizens embrace the use of mobile devices and web-based applications (e.g. SMS, Skype, Instant Messaging) in their daily lives, and forge closer ties with their loved ones

36 Partners to Bridge the Digital Divide The three initiatives are only possible through the concerted efforts of partners from the industry and society

37 Singapore is not the Real World How about other places?

38 All men are equal, but some are more equal than others Animal Farm, George Orwell

39 At birth we all come into this world the same At death, we all leave this world the same

40 In life, it is a sad fact that some people get get a better deal than offers

41 Life is NOT a level playing field and for some, it is an uphill struggle from Day 1

42 The fact of the matter, is that there is a Digital Divide and it can be argued it is getting wider!

43 There are the Haves and the Have Mores George W. Bush President USA

44 In reality, there are the Haves and the Have Nots

45 The Haves

46 We now live in the Connected Age

47 The Have Nots

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52 In whatever context you look at it, in a large number of countries, particularly in the Peri-urban and Rural areas, people are suffering due to lack of Education, Primary Healthcare, lack of basic services like Potable Water, Sanitation, Food, Roads, Transportation, Communications... This also fuels terrorism!

53 How wide the divide? Distribution and population, fixed and mobile telephone subscribers, personal computers and Internet users and fixed and mobile telephone subscribers, personal computers and Internet users per 100 inhabitants, by economic grouping, 1992 and

54 What are the Barriers to be overcome

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56 How WiMAX will break the Barriers to Broadband ICTs

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58 An Overview of WiMAX

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60 WiMAX is a Transport Medium for egovernment Services to ALL Sectors of the Community

61 elearning Application

62 Religious Instruction Application

63 Healthcare Learning Application

64 Mass Communications Application

65 Learning Snippet Application on egovernment Portal

66 ehealth Application

67 ehealth Application

68 TeleMedicine Application

69 eagriculture Application

70 eveterinary Application

71 Communications Application

72 Security Monitoring or C4i Police Application

73 Like to learn more: Contact or www/tcint.biz

74 Thank You