The five year Broadband Wales Programme began in July 2002 with high aspirations and a clear vision on where Wales needed to go in order to fully exploit the benefits that broadband can offer. It had ambitious targets, some of which have been achieved, over 2 years ahead of schedule.

Since the Programme launched many things have happened a new regulator has been created and mass market broadband is now available on a widespread basis. The telecommunications market has had its 'ups and downs' but is largely on an 'up' at present due to increased investor confidence and the prospect of emerging and exciting technologies coupled with fast growing demand for broadband from both the business and consumer sectors in Wales, and indeed, the UK.

This Strategy seeks to set further challenging targets to 2007 on both an incremental and aspirational basis. These will need to be achieved against an increasingly clearer policy position from the European Commission on state aid as it applies to broadband, Ofcom's Strategic Review of Telecommunications and the imminent approach of spectrum trading. These coupled with telecommunications market volatility make the Broadband Wales Programme exciting and yet challenging. Nevertheless, the Programme is something which is clearly an important component of Wales's national economic development strategy as well as its strategy for improving public service delivery in Wales.

BROADBAND EXPLAINED

What is Broadband?

All broadband is not equal investing for the future

The term "broadband" has existed in the telecommunications industry for at least the past 20 years, with different definitions being used by global organisations (suppliers and users). Today it is used to describe any speed of transmission from 256,000 bits per second (256 kbps) up to 1,000,000,000,000 bits per second (1 Tbps). All are valid, but with totally different applications, technologies and economics of deployment.

For the purposes of the Broadband Wales Strategy asymmetric speeds of 512kbps to 2Mbps downstream (ie. to the customer) and 256kbps to 512kbps upstream (ie. from the customer) are considered as first generation or mass market broadband.

Bandwidth between 2Mbps and 10Mbps is deemed to be second generation broadband. This includes asymmetrical speeds between 2Mbps and 10Mbps downstream and 512kbps and 1Mbps upstream as well as symmetrical speeds (where upstream and downstream speeds are equal).

For the purposes of this Strategy very high speed broadband (10Mbps and over symmetrical) is defined as fibre speed.

Broadband can be delivered through a variety of means. Further details are annexed to this Strategy.

Broadband Wales Programme Strategic Context

The following section sets out how the Broadband Wales Strategy fits into the Welsh Assembly Government's vision for Wales.

Wales A Better Country

'Wales A Better Country' is the strategic agenda for the Welsh Assembly Government. The Vision is for a sustainable future for Wales where actions on social, economic and environmental improvement work together to create positive change through:

promoting a diverse, competitive, high-added value economy, with high quality skills and education, that minimises demands on the environment;
action on social justice that tackles poverty and poor health, and provides people and their communities with the means to help themselves and break out of the poverty trap;
action in the built and natural environment that enhances pride in the community, supports bio-diversity, promotes local employment and helps to minimise waste generation, energy and transport demands;
strengthening Wales' cultural identity and helping to create a bilingual country;
ensuring all children and future generations enjoy better prospects in life, and are not landed with a legacy of problems bequeathed by former generations;
supporting people to live healthy and independent lives;
promoting openness, partnership and participation.

One of the specific actions set out in this strategic agenda is to "Deliver broadband access for 67,000 extra businesses". This target has already been achieved (see later).

In taking forward the Vision described above there are four key areas on which the Welsh Assembly focuses as it continues to develop policy:

helping more people into jobs;
improving health;
developing strong and safe communities and
creating better jobs and skills;

How the Broadband Wales Programme contributes to these four key areas:

Helping more people into jobs Access to broadband can help companies develop and grow there by creating more employment opportunities. Over the last four years South Korea has invested $9bn in Korean broadband infrastructure. It claims that this has generated $13.9bn in increased productivity, $4.7bn in value added services and 59,000 new jobs. (However, it is acknowledged that both the Korean economy and its telecommunications regulatory environment are different to Wales). Broadband technologies are becoming the base upon which people and ICT systems are enabled to communicate electronically ubiquitously, rapidly and cheaply resulting in a high level of innovation and a wide range of economic and social benefits.

Improving health Access to broadband can help remote electronic health monitoring. It can provide distance learning opportunities and improve the efficiency, availability and reach of public services such as healthcare. For Wales this is demonstrated through the DAWN 2 network described later.

Developing Strong & Safe Communities Access to broadband can help create sustainable and prosperous communities. It can help communities develop and help support common interests such as Welsh language. Broadband is of particular benefit to rural communities as it allows access to and sharing of information regardless of physical location. Broadband facilitates more flexible working patterns. Home working or secure corporate teleworking is proving to be a major driver of demand, reducing operating costs for public and private sector organisations and reducing the need for commuting into urban areas, leading to significant environmental benefits.

Creating better jobs and Skills Access to broadband helps in the creation of a knowledge-based economy, creating value added and better paid jobs.

Broadband is estimated to boost productivity in the UK by 2.5% or £22bn by 2015 and this is equivalent to each person working an extra hour a week.

A Winning Wales

A Winning Wales is the Welsh Assembly Government's National Economic Development Strategy for transforming the economy of Wales, while promoting sustainable development. It sets out a clear Vision, and provides the route map to delivering a prosperous Welsh economy that is dynamic, inclusive and sustainable and based on successful, innovative businesses supported by a highly skilled, well-motivated workforce.

The Assembly Government's aspiration is that, within a generation, the standard of living in Wales will match that of the UK as a whole. Wales will become more prosperous and that prosperity will be sustainable and more evenly spread.

The specific goal of A Winning Wales is to raise the mean GDP per person in Wales to 90 per cent of the UK average by 2010 and ultimately to achieve parity. To achieve this goal the Welsh Assembly has set aims to:

modernise the industrial structure of the Welsh economy to ensure that Wales has a higher share of employment in high-growth, high-skill and high value-adding industries and occupations, and moves up from the assembly line branch-factory economy;
ensure that more of our people have jobs and opportunities to benefit from the new industries.

How the Broadband Wales Programme contributes to this goal:

Broadband enables faster economic growth and research suggests that GDP in the UK will be £22bn higher by 2015 through effective use of broadband technologies. It is forecast that UK Government borrowing will be £13bn lower by 2015 through lower spending and extra tax revenues from the faster growing economy.

Broadband could have the same impact on the UK economy as the introduction of mains electricity did 80 years ago. It has been estimated that communications technologies have contributed one tenth of a percentage point per year to UK productivity growth in recent years. Under both a cautious and inclusive macro economic modelling approach broadband makes a large net contribution to UK annual GDP and boosts investment and consumer spending, with investment the most significant. Furthermore, empirical evidence is growing to the effect that ICT in general, and broadband in particular, have a significant impact on regional economies and their productivity. Unsurprisingly, more evidence is available regarding the impact of IT than broadband, as investment in IT started much earlier and is currently more significant than investment in broadband. For example:

The Bank of England has estimated that ICT has added 0.6% per annum to the overall UK productivity growth over recent years of around 2% per annum a significant contribution. The Bank also estimated that ICT drove 20% of GDP growth from 1989‑98.
Studies of the growth of the economy in the USA have shown that since 1995, ICT has added between 0.91.0% to GDP growth, equating to roughly 23% of that GDP growth.
It has been estimated that the economic benefits of ICT in South Korea ICT drove roughly 27% of GDP growth between 19982002, of which 17% (5% of GDP growth) is related to broadband.

Cymru Ar-lein - Online for a Better Wales

The Welsh Assembly Government has an on-going commitment to encourage citizens and communities to learn about the potential of Information and Communications Technology (ICT) and make use of it. Cymru Ar-lein: Online for a Better Wales (The Welsh Assembly Government's Information Age Strategic Framework) sets out the Assembly Government's Vision for the role ICT will play in transforming society and the economy in Wales;

"We want a Wales that exploits ICT to deliver sustainable improvements in social and economic and health prosperity to achieve a better quality of life for all its citizens".

There are five interrelated themes in the Strategic Framework in which the Welsh Assembly Government co-ordinates activities across the whole of Wales. These are:

Enhancing Our Communities - e-citizens, e-inclusion and e-communities. People having the ability to access and use bilingual information and services to develop and enhance themselves and their communities. We need to use ICT to combat social exclusion, not contribute to it.

Building Successful Businesses - e-business. All businesses, wherever they are located in Wales, need to be able to exploit information and communication technologies fully in order to retain their competitiveness, innovate and grow.

Improving Public Services - e-government and public services. Citizens increasingly, and rightly, expect their public services to be organised and delivered to suit them, not the organisations delivering them. Service providers need to use ICT effectively to provide joined up, customer focused services. The public sector also has a major role in stimulating other sectors, which we must address much more strategically and coherently.

Developing ICT Skills - e-education & training. We need to make sure that everyone in Wales has the opportunity to acquire the necessary skills, understanding and trust to make best use of the information age. Critically, this needs to be sustained throughout future generations. People really are key.

All of the four themes above are underpinned by access to first-class Infrastructure, including affordable broadband network facilities for individuals, communities, homes, businesses and public services. The majority of this theme is being delivered through the Broadband Wales Programme.

Cymru Ar-lein

The Welsh Assembly Government invites all citizens to access Wales on the Web (www.walesontheweb.org) and give it your views on public services in Wales.

The Welsh Assembly Government invites all public sector bodies operating in Wales to support Cymru Ar-lein by agreeing appropriate ICT targets. This can be done by:

Logging onto www.cymruarlein.wales.gov.uk
E mailing info.age@wales.gsi.gov.uk
Writing to Cymru Ar-lein, 4^th Floor, Welsh Assembly Government, Cathays Park, Cardiff, CF10 3NQ.

Making Better Connections: Delivering Better Services for Wales

This is the Welsh Assembly Government's strategy for more effective co-operation and co-ordination between the whole Welsh public sector. Co-ordination and a common vision across the ICT agenda is fundamental to the realisation of benefits which could be derived from Making Better Connections. Interoperable systems and common network standards enable organisations to work together better, help lower cost and drive up service delivery standards.

Wales for Innovation

This is the Welsh Assembly Government's Action Plan for Innovation in Wales which discusses the benefits and improvements that ICT can bring to all sectors of the Welsh economy. ICT capabilities are generally enhanced through the medium of broadband.

The Wales Spatial Plan People, Places, Futures

In November 2004 the Welsh Assembly Government set out its national spatial framework. Spatial planning is the consideration of what should happen where, investigating the interaction of different policies in particular places. The Plan helps to move forward the spatial understanding of Wales and as such it will:

Help integrate the policies and actions of the Assembly and others to achieve the vision of a sustainable Wales
Establish an integrated framework for the social, economic and environmental development of Wales
Provide a context for guiding public and private investment decisions
Promote debate on the future role of places and regions within Wales

The Broadband Wales Programme helps to inform the ongoing development of the Spatial Plan through its research programme and takes the Spatial Plan into consideration in its delivery of broadband policies in Wales.

The Broadband Wales Programme Targets - 2002

The Programme (www.broadband.wales.gov.uk) was launched in July 2002 and was based on the 'Ubiquitous Broadband Infrastructure for Wales' a policy report (www.wda.co.uk/broadband) commissioned from Analysys Consulting in 2001, and a subsequent proposed Implementation Plan.

The Programme was designed to address market failure and facilitate the roll out and take up of broadband throughout Wales rural and urban areas. A Broadband Wales Unit was established within the Welsh Assembly Government (with joint working with the WDA broadband team) to deliver the following Programme targets by March 2007:

Target 1 - The availability of affordable terrestrial broadband services in Wales will be increased by approximately 30%, with 310,000 extra homes and 67,000 extra business lines potentially being able to access broadband.

Target 2 - Broadband will be widely available throughout Wales at near DSL prices.

Target 3 - 50-100 local or regional initiatives will be developed, harnessing the creativity of communities and businesses to deliver broadband solutions optimally aligned with their particular circumstances.

Target 4 - Fibre and/or other broadband connectivity will be available at most business parks.

Target 5 - Approximately 1200 additional public sector sites will be broadband enabled.

Target 6 - Cost orientated high-speed connectivity will be made available between Wales and an international Internet hub.

Target 7 - Increased awareness of broadband and its benefits, which will stimulate creativity and entrepreneurship across Wales.

Target 8 - Increased international awareness of the Broadband Wales Programme, which will enhance Wales's reputation as a place for businesses to locate and grow.

Four of these eight targets have already been achieved, some are on course to be delivered and others are now deemed to be less relevant as the telecommunications market evolves. More details are outlined and revised targets up to 2007 are detailed in the following pages.

Broadband Wales Programme Achievements

When the Broadband Wales Programme was launched it was recognised there was a need for independent evaluation of the Programme targets and other complementary work. To fulfil this function requirement a contract was awarded via an open procurement process to the eCommerce Innovation Centre (eCIC) at Cardiff University (www.broadbandwalesobservatory.org.uk and www.arsyllfabandeangcymru.org.uk ). Going forward the Observatory will perform a fundamental role in identifying sites in Wales who cannot access broadband. It will do this through a Broadband Brokerage site and further details on this are outlined later in this document.

The Broadband Wales Observatory has conducted independent research into the market and evaluated progress against Programme targets. Summary findings are outlined below:

Target 1 Availability & Affordability

"The availability of affordable terrestrial broadband services in Wales will be increased by approximately 30%, with 310,000 extra homes and 67,000 extra business lines potentially being able to access broadband"

The Broadband Wales Observatory calculates that this target has been met (in September 2004).

Since the launch of the programme, broadband coverage has grown significantly: from 36% in July 2002 (24% cable broadband and 29% ADSL broadband), through 53% ADSL coverage in July 2003 and 75% ADSL coverage in July 2004. In October 2004, coverage of 512kbps ADSL broadband was 89%, Satellite broadband services (mainly targeted at small business) were available to 99% of sites and less than 10% of the population can access a wireless broadband service. Based on these figures the Broadband Wales Observatory estimates that broadband availability has increased by 46% or 540,000 sites (ie. coverage extends to 972,000 out of the 1.2m sites in Wales). As, there are 150,000 businesses, it is calculated that this 46% growth in coverage represents an extra 67,500 businesses and 472,500 homes. By the summer of 2005, broadband coverage will improve even further, with standard 512kbps ADSL broadband coverage forecast to peak at between 95.5% and 98% of Wales. These figures were compared with a forecast in 2002 that only 67% of Wales (compared with a UK average of 80%) would ever be able to access a commercial broadband offering.

Target 2 Market Price

"Broadband will be widely available throughout Wales at near DSL prices [the definition being first generation broadband services]"

The Broadband Wales Observatory calculates that the target has been met. The Observatory believes that the Welsh Assembly Government has achieved both the affordability and DSL pricing targets with 512kbps ADSL broadband available to 89% of households in Wales in October 2004. The achievement of this target was facilitated by the Programme introducing the following schemes:

Satellite Subsidy Scheme

In September 2002 a Satellite Subsidy Scheme was launched which provided up to £1500 for small businesses with less than 250 employees. During the life of this scheme there were 250 approved satellite subsidy grants valued at £302,100 covering both rural and urban areas of Wales.

Broadband Support Scheme

In March 2004 the successful satellite subsidy scheme was extended in terms of both scope and value. It is currently available to small businesses with less than 250 employees and also to voluntary sector organisations. Funding of up to £3,000 is available for any type of broadband technology. This scheme has proved even more successful than the satellite scheme and £435,000 of funding has been paid to SMEs and a further £35,000 to the Voluntary Sector through 512 approved applications (to end of November 2004) in urban and rural areas of Wales.

Try Before You Buy

There are over 20 ICT Support Centres operating on a pan Wales basis, which are managed by the WDA on behalf of the Welsh Assembly Government. The Try Before You Buy Scheme has operated from these Centres since 2002. All Centres have forms of broadband connectivity and have formally demonstrated broadband benefits to over 1300 businesses and offered informal advice to hundreds more. Centres are located in Blaenau Gwent, Bridgend, Caerphilly, Cardiff, Merthyr Tydfil, Monmouthshire (2), Newport, Tonypandy, Pontypool, Llanelli, Llandarcy, Milford Haven, Swansea, Aberystwyth, Welshpool, Builth Wells, Llandudno Junction, Denbigh, Wrexham, Llangefni and Mold.

The reason for broadband has been proven beyond reasonable doubt according to Barrister and Circuit Judge Alun Jenkins QC. As a specialist in complex fraud cases (on behalf on HM Custom & Excise) Alun often has to deal with mountains of paperwork. Without a high speed connection over wireless he would have to spend less time working from his beloved "old farmhouse in a field" at Wolvesnewton and much more energy commuting to his legal chambers in Bristol and London.

"Legal cases, particularly those related to fraud, increasingly involve information communication technologies. It is only natural that lawyers should use the latest communications to work on such cases" said Alun Jenkins QC.

Target 3 Regional & Community Initiatives

"50-100 local or regional initiatives will be developed, harnessing the creativity of communities and businesses to deliver broadband solutions optimally aligned with their particular circumstances"

The project intended to deliver this target (Regional Innovative Broadband Support (RIBS))was not launched during the first phase of the Broadband Wales Programme and, as such, was reviewed as part of the Strategic Review in the Summer of 2004. Phase 1 of the RIBS project will now address first generation broadband not-spots. Phase 2 will support innovative local projects and be aligned with market conditions at the time.

To date, over 30 broadband projects have been supported/helped on a direct and indirect basis by the Programme in urban and non urban areas. All the projects have beentargeted at either business, the public sector or the wider community, and are designed to address the broadband needs of a target group. The projects have been funded from a variety of sources (public, private and voluntary sectors) and have been implemented, on the whole, through partnerships. Where there is evidence of measured outputs against the stated objectives and targets, the projects appear to have succeeded. However, the Observatory believes that there will be a significant time lag before outputs can be fully identified and measured.

Target4 Strategic Business Locations

"Fibre and/or other broadband connectivity will be available at most business parks/strategic locations"

The Broadband Wales Observatory believes that this target will be achieved during the life of the Programme (subject to a (i) successful European Commission approval process and (ii) an effective procurement process compliant with European Commission guidelines as they relate to open access infrastructure.

During 2002-03, the Welsh Development Agency worked with relevant partners to define and select potential sites which were, and still are, of strategic importance to the economy of Wales. Specifically, locations selected needed to:

Be of regional importance
Have the capacity for major business growth
Already be a consumer/planned consumer of high bandwidth broadband services
Be recognised as part of a regeneration programme.

The project has two overriding objectives. These are: to ensure that very high bandwidth services are available at an affordable price and to seek to level the playing field between Wales and the most competitive market place in the UK (currently London and the South East of England) for the supply of such services.

Following selection, a comprehensive review of the broadband needs of individual businesses located at each location was undertaken. Demand for fibre-speed broadband services was 'mapped' and, by the end of 2003, demand had been identified as well as the potential growth in second generation requirements in the mid to longer term.

When the Programme was launched in July 2002 there was a belief that the target would be delivered through a retail service procurement. This option has sustainability constraints, which were recognised by the European Commission when it published its open access infrastructure guidelines in July 2003. As a result a flexible and scaleable solution is being developed, with the support of Analysys Consulting and Price Waterhouse Coopers, to address both current and future needs of businesses at the identified locations. More details of how the project will be implemented are outlined later in this document.

An added benefit of this target was the need for a broadband component to Wales's Property Strategy/Asset Implementation. Consequently all new build projects, for which the WDA is the developer, have alternative, supplier neutral, broadband ducting installed to both the site and the building. Thus, helping to ensure the businesses located at the site have access to alternative and competitive broadband infrastructure.

Target 5 Public Sector Access

"Approximately 1200 additional public sector sites will be broadband enabled"

The Broadband Wales Observatory believes that this target was achieved in the Summer of 2004.

In 2002 the Welsh Assembly Government has procured and paid for a managed high speed core fibre ring (622Mbps) around Wales with 100Mbps links to all 22 Local Authorities together. It has provided between £50,000 and £250,000 grant funding each year to each Local Authority in Wales to help fund the cost of connecting its schools, libraries and learning centres to the core network and funded 2 posts in each Authority to help that particular Authority actively realise the benefits of broadband. Finally, in order for people living in each Local Authority area to reap the full benefit of what broadband can do for them the Welsh Assembly Government also invested just under £10m in placing electronic learning equipment in schools to facilitate and speed up electronic learning.

The table below shows a total of 1587 (of an available 2282) public sector sites are currently connected to the Lifelong Learning Network (LLN) at second generation broadband speeds (2Mbps for primary schools and 8Mbps or more for secondary schools, ICT Learning Centres and libraries (symmetrical)).

Pan Wales Public Sector Sites	March 2002	July 2003	Nov 2004
Secondary Schools (229)	9	82	203
Primary Schools (1658)	98	276	1119
ICT Learning Centres (129)	11	32	97
Libraries (266)	38	64	168
Total Broadband Connections (at benchmark 2MB and 8MB)	156	454	1587
% Broadband Enabled at Benchmark	7.2%	19.8%	70%

The next table below shows a total of 2069 (of an available 2282) public sector sites are currently connected to the Lifelong Learning Network at either first or second generation broadband speeds:

Pan Wales Public Sector Sites	Nov 2004
Secondary Schools (229)	229
Primary Schools (1658)	1470
ICT Learning Centres (129)	120
Libraries (266)	250
Total with broadband connection	2069
% Broadband Enabled	91%

The core fibre ring of the Life Long Learning Network has become a multifunctional platform facilitating improved interconnectivity between all Local Authorities. It allows them to benefit from economies of scale in their ICT systems, make service delivery improvements eg disaster recovery and e mail filtering. It also helps them meet their eGovernment commitments.

The Programme's value has been supported by the eleven Higher Education Institutions and eleven Further Education Colleges in South Wales being connected to broadband through the South Wales Metropolitan Area Network (MAN). Similarly, two Higher Education Institutions and nine Further Education Colleges in North Wales are connected to broadband through the North Wales MAN. Indeed the Lifelong Learning Network offers resilience to the North Wales and South Wales Metropolitan area Networks

NHS Wales has its own broadband network, commonly known as Dawn2. It makes full use of first generation, second generation and fibre speed broadband with around 750 broadband connections. Its core backbone operates at between 8Mbps and 34Mbps and all NHS Wales organisations across Wales are connected. Consequently, Dawn2 provides NHS Wales with its operational infrastructure for all its ICT activities, to common standards, and offers a true Class of Service facility to prioritise different services and systems. This is particularly relevant for Telehealth applications. Dawn2 supports online health services, access to knowledge bases, e mail and secure Internet access, including facilities for remote clinical care and videoconferencing making it easier for clinicians to gain access to and share information.

Thousands of Welsh Assembly Government and National Assembly staff across Wales are connected to broadband and many Assembly Sponsored Public Bodies (ASPBs) have their own broadband networks.

Target 6 International Connectivity

"Cost orientated high-speed connectivity will be made available between Wales and an international Internet hub"

The Broadband Wales Observatory recommends that this target be re-evaluated during the second phase of the Broadband Wales Programme in the light of changing market conditions.

Work on determining a viable business case for this target began in 2003 with independent research being commissioned. Research findings, together with further investigation, confirmed that the project did not deliver a viable business case for private or public sector investment largely due to the low level of demand that existed in Wales (at the time) for the type of broadband products that such services could offer. Further details on the next steps to be taken are outlined later in this document.

Target 7 Creativity & Entrepreneurship

"Increased awareness of broadband and its benefits, which will stimulate creativity and entrepreneurship across Wales"

The Broadband Wales Observatory believes this target is difficult to directly correlate to the Broadband Wales Programme. However, it does believe there has been an improvement in the levels of entrepreneurship in Wales since July 2002 which may have been stimulated by the availability of affordable broadband services. The Observatory notes that evidence of a correlation between increased awareness / take-up of broadband and increased levels of entrepreneurship is limited but also that it may just be too soon to draw definitive conclusions.

The Observatory therefore suggest that this target be decoupled and the awareness of broadband and its benefits be carried forward for the life of the Programme whilst entrepreneurship is better measured through existing work such as the Entrepreneurship Action Plan (EAP), Annual Report.

"Dealing with broadband is our lifeline" said Jonathan Tate of the Spaceguard Centre in Knighton, Powys. The Centre supplies information on the behaviour of space objects to clients in Government and the media. The Centre uses broadband to control telescopes in Knighton, Hawaii and soon one in Australia, directing their searches into space and collecting images at high speed.

"Dealing with near earth objects requires us to communicate in a time critical manner with researchers and observers across the world. Without broadband, we would not be able to participate in high profile projects such as the Faulkes Telescope Project and the associated Asteroid Tracking Project " said Jonathan Tate.

In respect of the element of this target which relates to increased awareness of broadband and its benefits the following has been achieved:

General Awareness of Broadband

The Broadband Wales Observatory believes that over a hundred press articles have appeared relating to the Programme and/or the potential benefits of broadband. Successes include the Financial Times, the Western Mail, the Daily Post, IT Wales, Marketing Week and various Welsh Language magazines. Radio successes include Red Dragon, BBC Wales and Real Radio. There has also been large scale, Wales wide, bus advertising. A comprehensive set of marketing materials have been produced by the Broadband Wales Programme including branded brochures, stationery, business cards and exhibition banners. The Broadband Wales Programme has developed a video called "Broadband For Life" which provides details of how broadband could help in four distinctly different scenarios. The video has been recognised as a fore runner in its field by the global company Macromedia Software who deemed it 'Site of the Day' in August 2004.

A Key Influencer Group (called ForwardBroadband) has been established as part of the Broadband Wales Programme. The Group was launched in June 2003 at the Rhondda Heritage Centre and is made up of public, private and voluntary sector representatives from across Wales who have specific interest, and expertise, in rural and urban issues. The Group has facilitated the placing of numerous sector specific articles in industry publications and have also undertaken research on broadband uptake and applications within their own specific areas.

Broadband Wales Programme staff have attended hundreds of events/meetings since July 2002 to raise the profile of the Programme and the benefits of broadband. Furthermore, the Programme Director has represented the all Wales Programme internationally in Europe, the USA, Republic of Ireland and all over the UK.

In order for the Programme to be fully informed of local broadband issues (as well as regional and strategic issues) a Broadband Wales Taskforce have been appointed. The Taskforce are a team of people based in South East Wales, South West Wales, Mid Wales and North Wales representing the Programme and what it might mean for individual areas and sectors recognising that some areas eg. Mid Wales is likely to be have different set of issues to others eg. South East Wales. The Taskforce have initiated contacts and projects with a broad audience within Wales. They have established relationships with other key field representatives including WDA, Opportunity Wales and Business Eye in order to ensure a cohesive and connected messaging as to the benefits and availability of broadband. Additionally, they have been involved with Local Authorities and Regional Economic Forum to establish principles, practices and relationships. The Taskforce have been directly involved in generating broadband case studies for business, residential and the education sector. They have also built constructive relationships with key influencers at sub regional levels.

To date the Broadband Wales Programme has generated in excess of 30 case studies covering a variety of sectors. It has also established partnership-marketing relationships with 30 companies including Local Authorities, infrastructure suppliers and service providers. In December 2004 a large scale marketing campaign began covering 650,000 addresses across Wales and the Christmas campaign included an innovative and humorous e-Christmas card.

Without broadband Clunk Click could not be based in Conwy. It believes it would not have created 9 full time jobs, together with work for around 30 suppliers. And it would not be creating a further 20 jobs by the end of 2005. Clunk Click provides online storage and backup of important data for businesses all over the world. The system is highly automated to make it easier for users to perform regular backups. If anything happens to a customer's computer from fire to theft to virus attacks all data can be restored from Clunk Click's servers.

"We absolutely need broadband to run this business in Wales simple as that. Without it, we could hardly operate and certainly not expand" said Clunk Click Managing Director Paul Roberts.

Target 8 Inward Investment

"Increased international awareness of the Broadband Wales Programme, which will enhance Wales's reputation as a place for businesses to locate and grow"

The Broadband Wales Observatory believes that this target has been met to date and is ongoing. Indeed the WDA has had continued success in attracting overseas investment to Wales during a period when overall investment has declined.

INet Experts world headquarters is in a portakabin in the tiny hamlet of Cwmmawr, near Llanelli. Yet it has a global reputation for the websites it designs and builds, with clients away as far as Australia and the USA. "We couldn't be here without broadband" said Andrea Jones who has spent much of her career travelling the world as a top flight IT trainer and consultants working for companies such as Microsoft and HP. Fed up with living out of a suitcase, she decided to bring her skills home to Wales and work from the farmhouse she is renovating. All she needed to set up business was a place to put a computer and a way to connect to the world but in 2003 her mountain home didn't even have a phone line. The answer was broadband over satellite.

"One of the greatest benefits of broadband is how it has enhanced my work/life balance, allowing me to live in a beautiful area of rural Wales and run a business in one place" said Andrea Jones, INet Experts.

2002 Targets Summary Table

The table below provides a summary of the programme objectives and the degree to which they have been achieved:

Target	Programme Objective	Progress to date
1	The availability of affordable terrestrial broadband services in Wales will be increased by approximately 30%, with 310,000 extra homes and 67,000 extra business lines potentially being able to access broadband.	Achieved
2	Broadband will be widely available throughout Wales at near DSL prices.	Achieved
3	50-100 local or regional initiatives will be developed, harnessing the creativity of communities and businesses to deliver broadband solutions optimally aligned with their particular circumstances.	On target
4	Fibre and/or other broadband connectivity will be available at relevant business parks/locations.	On target
5	Approximately 1200 additional public sector sites will be broadband enabled.	Achieved
6	Cost orientated high-speed connectivity will be made available between Wales and an international Internet hub.	Further research on target viability planned
7	(A) Increased awareness of broadband and its benefits, which will (B) stimulate creativity and entrepreneurship across Wales.	Target 7A achieved and ongoing. Target 7B not measured.
8	Increased international awareness of the Broadband Wales Programme, which will enhance Wales's reputation as a place for businesses to locate and grow.	On target

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