Engineers Journal / Technology

Dublin goes digital with launch of the city's Digital Masterplan

Thursday 27 June 2013

A new plan to prepare Dublin for the digital future aims to see every house in the city enjoying 100 MB fibre-powered broadband by Easter 2016. The Digital Masterplan for Dublin also proposes the setting up of a specialist team within Dublin City Council that will drive delivery of the plan, which was launched last week by European Commission Vice President Neelie Kroes with Dublin’s lord mayor, Naoise Ó Muirí. The rollout for the 100MB speed fibre broadband to every home in the Dublin region is estimated to cost up to €117 million a year over three years, it was revealed at the launch in City Hall, with 50% of the cost being divided between local and central Government. Residents would be expected to co-fund this investment. The State investment would be delivered via a tax credit to be set against an individual’s Local Property Tax. The cost to individual homeowners would be €1,500, although it was announced at the launch that provision would be made for industry to provide free connection for areas of social disadvantage. This would allow telecos to deliver alone or through shared development of the last mile of fibre from the cabinet to the home. Central Government will have to allow for a variation in the Local Property Tax arrangements. [login type="readmore"] DIGITAL LEADERSHIP FORUM The Digital Masterplan, according to the city council, is a roadmap for the ‘smart economy’ and society. It was developed in co-operation with the Digital Leadership Forum, which brought together individuals and organisations from business, academia, civil society and citizens, and is the culmination of a year of collaboration and events. A fundamental element is the development of the Digital Maturity Scorecard (DMS), an analytical tool to benchmark Dublin’s digital performance internationally. The impact of the actions carried out under the Masterplan will be evaluated against the DMS. The Scorecard is a world first and was developed by Intel, Maynooth’s Innovation Value Institute and Dublin City University. [caption id="attachment_5453" align="alignright" width="836"] Dublin's lord mayor, Naoise Ó Muirí[/caption] “We like to talk the talk about Dublin being a great internet capital, but in some areas, we’re falling behind – some of the Scandinavian countries are pulling ahead on their connectivity,” said Ó Muirí, who studied engineering at the National University of Ireland, Galway and runs technology company Zing. “If we want to really be a cetre of excellence when it comes to technology, we have to do this.” “The Masterplan is going to be a guide for the city in terms of adaption, creation and adoption of digital technologies and processes. It’ll also provide policy guidance and help ensure that various actions that are already under way aren’t being pursued in isolation, but as part of a comprehensive plan.” BIG-TICKET ACTIONS The Digital Masterplan sets out seven ‘big ticket’ actions:

The first action is to provide a minimum of 100MB-speed fibre broadband to every home in the Dublin region by Easter 2016. Fast, reliable and cost-competitive broadband infrastructure is critical to the development of Dublin as a smart city region and an ICT hub for Europe;
The second action is the development of a flagship Digital Accelerator District programme. This programme aims to build on existing digital hotspots and initiatives in Dublin including Launchbox.ie, Dogpatch Labs and the Digital Hub, amongst others;
The third action is to support improved ways of working between multi-nationals and indigenous SMEs. The Digital Masterplan outlines the need for indigenous SMEs to enter the supply chain of multinational corporations in order to deliver a substantial expansion of eCommerce trading and digital business. This plan proposes to partner with the SME representative organisations (such as the Irish Small and Medium Enterprises Association, Irish Internet Association, Small Firms Association and Chamber of Commerce) to develop a web-based portal for Dublin-based multinationals to auction packages of digital/innovation/R&D work to the local SME market;
The fourth action is an online ‘Dublin Storefront’ project. This will involve the activation and expansion of work already being undertaken by other organisations in developing an online presence and the use of digital systems by Irish business. There is a requirement to build on this work and create an eCommerce and digital adoption support platform targeting businesses in the non-ICT sector such as food, hotels, construction and other small start-ups. This work will facilitate the development of a globally promoted digital ‘Created in Dublin’ brand;
The fifth action is to create a network of digital cities where ideas are generated and shared, involving a remodelling of the Citieslinked.com website and targeted at sister cities;
The sixth action is a commitment by Dublin City Council to make information in relation to all services available in a digital format;
The seventh action involves the commitment by local and national Government to establish programmes to support the development of digital skills in communities, Government organisations, young people and adults.

ATTRACTING BUSINESS “The Digital Masterplan will give direction to Dublin’s future smart development,” said Peter Finnegan, acting assistant city manager at Dublin City Council. “It’s building on a lot of what’s already done and it directs the way we’re going to go forward. So it’s a bit like a road map, although you never really known what the future holds when it comes to technology. “We’re trying to empower people to build business, create jobs and to do that using digital technologies to improve life in the city. We want to help businesses to do business online and to use digital processes in their procurement processes. The primary deliverable is to facilitate further innovation in the region, long-term sustainability, enhanced citizen-focused governance and job creation. It’ll improve the attractiveness of the city for home-grown and foreign tech companies and digital start-ups. “What we really want is to make Dublin a go-to place for digital initiatives – that’s the type of business we want to attract.” Ó Muirí added that the Masterplan challenged national and local Government to put technology and innovation to the forefront. “We want to see Dubliners becoming ‘DigiDubs’ – digitally active and engaged citizens – who’ll submit ideas to shape the digital future for the city of Dublin.” Commissioner Kroes said that Dublin, and Ireland in general, had a reputation in the technology area. “That reputation has to be protected, so you have to be proactive,” she added. “You have to prove that you’re facing up to the challenges of developing technology. A few years ago, we didn’t smartphones or iPads and now we’re all using them. So it makes sense that also cities and countries are taking the lead – and working hard to keep their lead.”