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A VI SION SO IN SPI RI NG TH E FUTURE MOST EXCITI NG ISSN-0219-7286 The proof of great vision is in sharing and experiencing it. IDA leads the drive towards realising Singapore's vision of technology-enabled growth, which is mapped out in the Intelligent Nation 2015 (iN2015) infocomm masterplan. We bring together the public, private and people sectors, creating a powerful synergy that will propel us from the vision towards the exciting future that lies ahead. CONTENTS 2 Chairman’s Message 22 DRIVE IT WITH PASSION 36 LIVE IT WITH JOY 4 IDA Board of Directors Strengthening Capabilities Infocomm for All 7 Senior Leadership Team Bringing Infocomm Singapore to the World Extending the Reach of Public Services 8 Highlights FY2007 10 Infocomm Statistics 28 USE IT WITH FORESIGHT 42 DO IT WITH CONVICTION Work@IDA Digital Media and Entertainment Fun@IDA 12 BUILD IT WITH VISION Education and Learning Infrastructure Financial Services 47 Infocomm Investments Pte Ltd Policies and Regulations Healthcare 48 Singapore Network Information Infocomm Security Small and Medium Enterprises Centre Pte Ltd Integrating the Public Sector Tourism, Hospitality and Retail Attracting and Developing Infocomm Manpower Trade and Manufacturing 49 Financial Statements Transport Trade and Manufacturing Small and Medium Education Enterprises and Learning Society Infocomm Infrastructure and Policy Infocomm Manpower Development Government Services Healthcare Digital Media and Financial Entertainment Services Tourism, Hospitality and Retail Chairman’s Message 2007 has been a good Strengthening Our Infocomm Industry year. We saw much We look forward to seeing many innovations launched for progress in the Next Gen services. In the last year, multi-national corporations transformation of such as Alcatel-Lucent, Siemens and SingTel have set up Singapore’s infocomm innovation centres in Singapore to develop services ranging landscape to realise from Internet protocol transformation to public security and our Intelligent Nation administration technologies for city management to mobile 2015 (iN2015) vision. applications and contents. We believe the rollout of the Work has proceeded at Next Gen NBN in the next few years will see a flowering of an exciting pace on all many innovative services from our vibrant local companies. fronts - infrastructure development, policy Programmes such as the infocomm Local Industry Upgrading and regulation, industry Programme (iLIUP) and the Overseas Development Programme development, manpower (ODP) are also seeing more partnerships between infocomm development and the transformation of various sectors local enterprises (iLEs) and larger industry players. Over through infocomm. In 2007, the infocomm industry revenue the last three years, iLIUP has helped iLEs generate S$81.5 grew by 13.8 per cent to S$51.68 billion. Export revenue million in revenue, while ODP has helped iLEs generate also grew by 15.8 per cent to S$33.56 billion. Mobile S$66.8 million in export revenue. penetration hit an all-time high of 122.5 per cent. In addition, 79 per cent of all households in Singapore have at least Nurturing Infocomm Talent one computer at home, and 77.1 per cent of them have The number of infocomm professionals working in the broadband access. infocomm and other economic sectors grew by 8.9 per cent from 2006 to reach 130,400 in 2007. As infocomm is a talent industry, we must have enough quality manpower to support Building the Next Generation Infocomm Infrastructure growth. IDA, together with the industry, plans to invest We are on track with our plans, but infocomm is an area where S$70 million in manpower development programmes over one can never afford to rest on our laurels. Thus, we are the next three to five years. These programmes aim to deepen continuing with our efforts. The major catalyst coming up technical capabilities and business domain knowledge of is the open-access Next Generation National Broadband infocomm professionals. Network (Next Gen NBN). A Request for Proposal was issued in December 2007 to design, build and operate the passive To provide a pipeline of infocomm manpower, talented students infrastructure layer of the Next Gen NBN, followed by a second are being nurtured through the National Infocomm Scholarships. tender called in early 2008 for a company to operate the In 2007, we received a record 633 applications and awarded operating layer. With the capability of offering ultra-high scholarships to 39 outstanding individuals. The Infocomm speed of up to 1Gbps and beyond, the Next Gen NBN will Clubs are also thriving with 7,000 students in 150 clubs. catalyse the delivery of Next Generation (Next Gen) services such as high-definition video conferencing, telemedicine, and grid computing-on-demand, as well as many other Enabling Government and Key Economic Sectors innovative services that we cannot even begin to imagine Developments in the public sector were headlined in 2007 today. Supported by S$1 billion funding from the Government, by the award of the S$1.3 billion Standard Operating we believe this strategic project will totally transform our Environment (SOEasy) contract, which went to the oneMeridian infocomm landscape and enable us to remain internationally consortium. When rolled out to agencies by 2010, SOEasy competitive in infocomm. will allow public officers to communicate through voice, text, faxes, SMS and video messages using one integrated system. Complementing the wired network is the extensive wireless The consolidation of infocomm services under SOEasy is network. Under the Wireless@SG initiative, there are now expected to see about S$500 million in cost savings for the more than 7,200 WiFi hotspots around the island and a public sector. subscriber base of over 800,000 since its launch in December 2006. People accessing the internet wirelessly from public IDA also continued to develop the strategic use of infocomm places, including cafes and libraries, is becoming a common technologies in education, healthcare, trade and logistics sight around Singapore. and digital media sectors. In May 2007, five schools were 2 selected to pioneer the FutureSchools@Singapore programme. to think again – policies, plans and programmes that work This exciting programme aims to create an engaging learning well today may nevertheless need to be changed to better experience for students. In healthcare, a second Call for serve our needs going forward. This “creative destruction” is Collaboration was issued jointly by IDA, Ministry of Health challenging because it is human to be reluctant to stop doing and The Enterprise Challenge under Prime Minister’s Office, what may have worked well for a long time. Yet that is the to identify solutions to improve the quality of healthcare challenge of staying relevant and competitive in infocomm. delivery and efficiency in Singapore’s public and private We should also think across different platforms to see if we healthcare institutions. The Wireless-broadband-access for can more rapidly exploit opportunities. This is Singapore’s SeaPort (WISEPORT) project was rolled out in March 2008 competitive advantage in being small. We should be able to to provide ships operating in Singapore’s port with wireless implement initiatives faster than larger countries because it mobile broadband connectivity via a WiMAX network. The should be easier to bring the relevant parties in the eco-system pilot phase of the Digital Concierge was also completed together. IDA can make this happen in our catalyst role, if we last year, giving Singaporeans and tourists a personalised can actively “think across” – from applications in one sector concierge experience right from their mobile devices. The to applications in another; from development initiatives to development of Singapore as a Digital Cinema Hub was policy, to regulation and to international diplomacy. given a boost in December 2007 when Thomson, through its Technicolor Digital Cinema business, announced plans to For me personally, it is a great pleasure and honour to build an efficient and secure digital cinema hub and network assume the Chairmanship of the IDA Board, especially during operations centre in Singapore. this very exciting phase of Singapore’s infocomm journey. Having been the founding CEO of IDA some years ago, I am As infocomm becomes more and more embedded in businesses delighted to see what we have been able to achieve with our today, we are making a more concerted approach to help many partners and friends, and humbled and challenged by Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) use infocomm. Together the scale of the opportunities and the issues ahead of us. with the industry and other government agencies, IDA launched the Infocomm@SME programme with initiatives such as the SME Infocomm Resource Centre at Singapore A Word of Thanks Polytechnic and the SME Domain Name Reservation On behalf of the Board and members of IDA, I would like to programme to help SMEs improve their business operations record our appreciation for the invaluable contributions of my and competitiveness through infocomm. predecessor, Mr Lam Chuan Leong. His foresight and guidance as the first Chairman of IDA for eight years have been instrumental in shaping IDA through its formative years and Moving Towards Digital Inclusion launching various national policies and programmes to develop Similarly, to encourage various segments of our society to the infocomm sector. On many occasions, it was his judgement take advantage of infocomm technology, IDA has developed and insight that have guided Board and staff onto the right initiatives to help the less privileged, senior citizens and the path, and we will miss him. physically disabled. The iNSPIRE Fund was set up in November 2007 to complement the NEU PC Plus programme in ensuring I would also like to thank the Board of Directors, particularly that no household with school-going children are denied a those who have completed their term of appointment, for computer due to financial difficulties. To reach out to senior the time and effort that they have committed to guiding citizens, a three-year Silver Infocomm Initiative was launched and supporting IDA.
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