Monday 1 March 2010

Digital Scotland Consultation

Update 23 June 2010 if you wish to comment on the draft consultation report, please use the comments section below this post. The consultation document will be launched on Wednesday 30th June.
Please comment on this and earlier posts to contribute to the development of a Digital Strategy for Scotland.
The development of digital society is changing the ways we live, work and play. These changes are global, but local action is required to maximise local benefit.
Scotland needs a Digital Strategy to remain competitive in a rapidly changing world. This should enable local enterprises to participate in the global digital economy, include local communities in the global digital society, and allow Scotland to exploit new opportunities — afforded by current and future technologies — for innovation in devolved areas of government.
To contribute to the factual basis on which such a strategy must be built, we will survey four major areas and conclude with our recommendations:
  1. Users and benefits
    • How may different communities be affected by digital society?
    • To include communities of interest as well as geographic communities.
    • To include business sectors as well as social groups.
    • To assess the benefits digital inclusion may bring.
  2. Infrastructure
    • Geography and demographics
    • Installed capacity
    • Technology survey (copper, fibre, wifi, satellite, etc.).
    • Technology foresight - five-year/ten-year.
  3. Content and access
    • Consider how Scottish policy may affect re-use of public-sector information in devolved matters (including, e.g. education, health, government).
    • Public access – schools, libraries, parks.
  4. Comparators
    • We will consider a range of international comparators matched for demographics and geography, to see how both policy and practice elsewhere might inform a Scottish strategy.
  5. Recommendations
    • Our recommendations for policy and action will be founded on the evidence gathered in earlier sections.
    • We will gather, and invite comment on policies and actions being proposed and adopted elsewhere, as well as novel suggestions for the Scottish context.

We invite public contributions to help us both shape and answer the questions we will address under each of these headings. We intend this to be a flexible process.
Each of the five headings above is linked to its own page, where you will find more detailed questions and discussion.
In the first instance, please contribute by commenting on the appropriate page (for general suggestions on content and process please comment on this page).
All comments will be moderated – please, no spam: spam will be rejected. Please indicate in what capacity you are writing. Indicate clearly any parts of your message not intended for open publication (private messages for the committee or personal contact details). 
Always assume that participation online results in your comments being permanently available and open to being republished in other media. Be aware that libel, defamation, copyright and data protection laws apply.

Digital Scotland: Users and benefits

We will identify groups, activities and communities that will be affected by Scotland's Digital Strategy. These will include communities of interest as well as geographic communities, and business sectors as well as social groups:
  • Commerce
  • Entertainment
  • Farming and fishing
  • Tourism
  • Education
  • Health
  • Government
We will assess, and where possible quantify, the requirements of different groups and the benefits digital inclusion may bring.

Economic framework


We hope to demonstrate that:
  • Broadband is not only the web and email—it's also a radio, a tv, a daily newspaper, a library and a town hall.
  • Digital infrastructure contributes to education, health care, energy, public safety, and democratic engagement.
  • It supports collaboration and innovation, and provides producers and entrepreneurs with access to global markets.
  • It makes remote communities more sustainable, and supports social inclusion.

Please add your comments and contributions below.
All comments will be moderated – please, no spam. Please indicate in what capacity you are writing. Indicate clearly any parts of your message not intended for open publication (private messages for the committee or personal contact details). 
Always remember that participation online results in your comments being permanently available, and open to being republished in other media. Be aware that libel, defamation, copyright and data protection laws apply.

Digital Scotland: Infrastructure

We will identify the capabilities of current and future technologies that may contribute to Scotland's digital infrastructure, and examine their applicability in relation to Scotland's geography and demographics.
  • Geography and demographics
    • Urban Scotland
    • Rural Scotland
    • Suburban Scotland
  • Current and planned provision
  • Technology summary
    • Fibre
    • Copper
      • POTS
      • Co-ax
      • Power Line
    • Wireless
    • Satellite
  • Technology forsight
    • Computation
      • Moore's Law
    • Communication
      • Nielsen's Law
    • Data
      • The Data Deluge

Please add your comments and contributions below.
All comments will be moderated – please, no spam. Please indicate in what capacity you are writing. Indicate clearly any parts of your message not intended for open publication (private messages for the committee or personal contact details). 
Always remember that participation online results in your comments being permanently available, and open to being republished in other media. Be aware that libel, defamation, copyright and data protection laws apply.

Digital Scotland: Content and access

We will consider how Scottish policy may affect re-use of public-sector information in Scotland — in particular, in devolved matters (which include, e.g., education, health, government).
What barriers exist to universal digital inclusion in Scotland?br /> What opportunities may be provided for public access – e.g. through schools, libraries, community meeting places and parks?
We invite contributions to help us both shape and answer the questions we will address.
Please comment below.
All comments will be moderated – please, no spam. Please indicate in what capacity you are writing. Indicate clearly any parts of your message not intended for open publication (private messages for the committee or personal contact details). 
Always remember that participation online results in your comments being permanently available, and open to being republished in other media. Be aware that libel, defamation, copyright and data protection laws apply.

Digital Scotland: Comparators

This section will benchmark a selection of local initiatives and international comparators, in order both to learn from practice elsewhere, and to identify the plans and capabilities of our present and future competitors.
Please add your comments and contributions below.
All comments will be moderated – please, no spam. Please indicate in what capacity you are writing. Indicate clearly any parts of your message not intended for open publication (private messages for the committee or personal contact details). 
Always remember that participation online results in your comments being permanently available, and open to being republished in other media. Be aware that libel, defamation, copyright and data protection laws apply.