Leong Keng Thai, Acting Chief Executive/Director-General (Telecom), IDA Singapore - Speech Singapore, 9 April 2002
Leong Keng Thai, Acting Chief Executive/Director-General (Telecom), IDA Singapore - Speech
Singapore, 9 April 2002
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Web services are an important emerging technology. Globally, web services are expected to be a business worth US$34 billion by the year 2007. Through this project, Singapore will be at the leading edge of this new technology. This is a great opportunity for us to build local capabilities in web services, improve the quality of lives for Singaporeans and create new opportunities for our businesses.
With web services, electronic services can be delivered more conveniently to users through personalised portals, each tailored to the individual's needs and demands. Personalisation also allows families and communities to be linked more seamlessly through this technology. Web services are an important emerging technology, and we are keen to develop local capabilities in Web services. Providing Web services to users and consumers in Singapore is an important step towards leveraging on the extensive connectivity that Singapore possesses.
I am delighted on behalf of IDA, I am delighted to be signing this Memorandum Of Intent with Microsoft that will bring us closer to the vision I've described.
This memorandum MOI will covers four key areas:
- First - The Community.Net.sg - a pilot project showcasing users in intelligent homes and communities linked together by web services;
- Second - The creation of the Microsoft.NET Regional Training and Certification Centre that train and certify new web services professionals;
- Third - The Microsoft Overseas Development Programme; and
- Finally - Joint exploration of new technologies
Under this MOI, Microsoft will work with Singapore public and private organisations to develop capability and innovations in community-based Web services. Singapore infocomm enterprises can also gain better access to new Web services technologies developed by Microsoft in the States, giving them a head start and advantage in product development.
The close collaboration between Microsoft and the Singapore infocomm industry players will help Singapore on its way to become a global test bed and a living laboratory for the development of web services. It will also pave the way for our industry to gain competitiveness in the global web services market.
On this note, I wish the collaboration between Microsoft and IDA every success.
Thank you.
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