Highlands & Islands Enterprise previously ran an extremely successful Broadband marketing campaign during 2003 with the specific aim of raising demand sufficiently to influence the supply of Broadband services within the Highlands and Islands. The campaign was followed by an extensive programme of awareness and training events for businesses, which ran during 2004, early 2005.

The campaign achieved its objectives of demonstrating demand sufficiently to persuade BT of the business case to enable the majority of exchanges within the HIE area. The remaining exchanges are now being upgraded through the Scottish Executive’s Broadband for Scotland Rural and Remote Areas initiative, where BT will upgrade the remaining exchanges to deliver basic broadband to households and businesses which would otherwise not have received the service. This work is due to be completed by the end of 2005. This initiative does not include the Western Isles, who are enabling their remaining exchanges through the Connected Communities project, which is supported by the Executive, HIE and ERDF funding.

Considerable public and private sector funds are being invested to achieve pervasive broadband access across Scotland. By the end of the year, every community in the Highlands & Islands will have access to either mainstream ADSL or Exchange Activate broadband services.

It is therefore proposed to undertake a significant marketing campaign to a) ensure that people take up the access that is being delivered to them and b) utilise the significant value that broadband can offer to businesses and communities. At the same time, high uptake and demonstration of advanced use will be an important lever to ensure continued investment by the telco’s in next generation broadband technologies.

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