(SINGAPORE) From cheap advice to discounted Web addresses, the authorities are dangling millions of dollars of incentives to jumpstart technology adoption among less IT-savvy SMEs.
Infocomm@SME initiative: By the end of 2007, business registration will seamlessly be integrated with simultaneous domain name registration, said Dr Lee
Under a new programme launched by the Infocomm Development Authority of Singapore (IDA), small companies will have access to a one-stop resource centre to learn how to set up basic technology operations.
Located at the Singapore Polytechnic, this facility will provide SMEs with guidance on topics like e-mail systems, Internet telephony services and security software tools.
'A recent IDA survey shows more could be done to help Singapore's SMEs tap the power of infocomm technology,' said Lee Boon Yang, Minister for Information, Communication and the Arts, in his opening address at the Infocomm Media Business Exchange (imbX) 2007 yesterday.
imbX is widely viewed as Asia's largest infocomm event and is made up of a week-long series of trade exhibitions, conferences and ministerial meetings in Singapore.
Companies can approach experts at the centre for help by paying as little as $5, according to IDA's assistant chief executive Tham Ai Chyn.
As further incentive to encourage companies to think out of the box, IDA and Spring Singapore have even set aside $5 million to fund innovative technology projects under this newly-minted Infocomm@SME initiative. As part of this programme, authorities are also trying to make it easier for companies to start their own websites.
'By the end of 2007, business registration will seamlessly be integrated with simultaneous domain name registration,' Dr Lee said.
At present, entrepreneurs will have to apply for local Internet addresses separately and pay $39 to $84. With the new move, company owners can claim their Web presence with discounts of up to $30 when they register their businesses with the Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority.
With such programmes, the IDA hopes that 80 per cent of local SMEs will get on the broadband bandwagon and have their own websites by 2010.
The small and mid-size business segment is the latest addition to the regulator's Intelligent Nation 2015 (iN2015) masterplan which was unveiled at imbX last year.
Beyond improving the country's wired and wireless broadband infrastructure, the ambitious plan seeks to enhance the competitiveness of local vertical sectors through better technology utilisation.
On this front, Dr Lee also announced that the IDA and the Singapore Tourism Board have joined hands to test a new service called 'Digital Concierge'.
With this nine-month trial, which aims to attract 5,000 participants, the mobile phone could replace the need for tour guides as a visitor roams the streets of Singapore.
Upon registering at a designated website (www.digitalconcierge.sg), a tourist can download an application to the handset and use it to customise his itinerary in Singapore.
'Users can obtain a variety of information such as recommendations of interesting places to visit, where to eat and what to do,' Dr Lee explained.
The information is updated in real time when the application is connected to a wireless or mobile network and authorities will use this feature to introduce location-based services in future.
For example, a tourist could be alerted via the Digital Concierge of an ongoing sale at Takashimaya department store as he is strolling down Orchard Road.
'It (Digital Concierge) will also create new channels for marketing and service for the tourism, hospitality and retail businesses,' said Chan Yeng Kit, IDA's CEO.
