S'pore govt unveils plans to boost infocomm and media
industry
Yahoo! Newsroom – 4 hours ago
(Photo by Sean Gallup/Getty Images) - Consumers can expect
faster Wi-Fi access from [email protected] from April onwards.
Faster free public Wi-Fi network access islandwide.
Digital free-to-air television channels by the end of the
year.
Over S$182 million in budget more for locally-produced
programmes on culture and heritage.
These were among the wide-ranging plans to boost the info comm
and media infrastructure announced by Minister for Communications
and Information (MCI) Yaacob Ibrahim in Parliament on Friday.
Wi-Fi speeds on [email protected] will be bumped on from 1Mbps to a
maximum 2Mbps from next month.
"IDA will enhance our national wireless infrastructure by
expanding the capacity and speed of [email protected]," said the Minister
during the debate on the recently unveiled Budget.
Aside from faster speeds, the login process for [email protected] will
also be simplified from next April with users only needing to
log-in once instead of repeated sign-ins currently. This will be
possible because
"This will complement our mobile networks and allow subscribers
to more seamlessly shift from 3G/4G networks to [email protected]," said
Dr Yaacob.
Turning to the media industry, free-to-air channels 5, 8, Suria
and Vasantham will begin broadcasting in hi-definition by the end
of the year. Other channels like Octo would do so only in 2016.
By April, consumer labels to identify digital TV sets will be
available on televisions and separate set-top boxes.
The Media Development Authority (MDA) will ensure low income and
the elderly will also benefit from this.
Dr Yaacob also said the MCI is still reviewing their media
convergence plan and are looking at these areas: content
regulation, encouraging local content, copyrights and licensing
framework.
Regarding local content, Dr Yaacob said it would devote another
S$182 million to increase the quality and quantity of public
service broadcast (PSB) programmes over the next four years to
focus on local heritage and culture.
This amount is on top of a S$630 million budget that had been
earmarked for public service programmes earlier in July 2012,
spread across five years till 2016.
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Good news ....................
but ........ will they in turn increase costs in
other areas to back up money spend on these ............
free wi fi island wide.
good news, no need subscribe data plan ......
