Telecommunications

Highlands and Islands Enterprise has harnessed its own and European funding to facilitate significant investment over the last decade and more from some of the UK’s biggest telecommunications providers. The infrastructure they have established has created completely new opportunities for the Highlands and Islands of Scotland and has enabled businesses to flourish.

Now we are working with a range of partners to ensure that the area enjoys maximum benefit from broadband telecommunications services.

Numerous ventures in biotechnology, industrial application software development, marketing and design, web authoring and many other forms of business have been introduced and have been able to noticeably expand their horizons through this investment.

Since the initial investments were made we have, for instance, seen the emergence of a call and contact centre industry which now employs circa 4,000 people throughout the Highlands and Islands.

The robust infrastructure has, importantly, also permitted the enactment of the University of the Highlands and Islands (UHI) Millennium Institute project, where 15 colleges and research institutions across the area are linked to deliver higher education to students. While degrees are currently validated by the Open University, UHI Millennium Institute is progressing well as it works to create a fully-fledged university with its own degree-awarding powers, with attendant education and economic benefits.

HIE's Stuart Robertson s.robertson@hient.co.uk is the initial point of contact for strategic telecommunication infrastructure issues.

On a related matter, if you are interested in finding our how to conduct business online, consult HIE’s dedicated e-business web pages using the link above right.