News: DRBSY Ltd launch next generation broadband innovation facility in Rotherham

DRBSY Ltd are opening up their network infrastructure to allow developers and service providers to test their applications with real time users in the field.

The company secured 46,000 sq ft of colocation at the South Yorkshire data centre in Manvers as it signed up to be a provider for the £90m Digital Region.

The Digital Region project will bring continuous 25mb+ broadband to over 97% of South Yorkshire, including 550,000 homes and 1.3 million people. The project is financed by European, regional, local and private investment of over £90 million, including £30 million from the European Regional Development Fund.

George Taylor, CEO of DRBSY Ltd said: "We have an extremely powerful capability, available exclusively to South Yorkshire, now we need to take advantage of it!

"Imagine sitting in a dentist's surgery, streaming three-dimensional medical imaging over the web, and discussing your condition with a specialist dental consultant in London. Or downloading a high-definition, full-length feature film in less than ten minutes. Or collaborating with students around the world whilst watching live interactive video of a university lecture.

"Ubiquitous, super-fast Internet access will make all this, and more possible. What we now need to do, is bring together cutting edge ideas to foster a culture of innovation which will maximise the value of the technology and deliver real benefits to society.

"Our Rotherham datacentre is ideally placed at the hub of the Digital Region to allow this collaborative action to occur."

DRBSY are putting out a Request for Information (RFI) to help identify interested parties and welcome responses from the public sector, as well as members of the private sector or even residential users.

The objective is to experiment with innovative ways to help make Internet access better, and faster for everyone. This includes seeing what developers and end-users can do with super-fast speeds, operating an "open access" network and working on new roll-out techniques through working with new developers such as Harworth Estates on the Waverley site where there are over 4,000 homes planned over the next 25 years.

DRBSY website


Images: DRBSY Ltd