To embrace the next-generation telecom technology, the UK is all set to invest £70 million to push forward the communication network resilience under the UKRI Technology Missions Fund. This global coalition for telecom innovation includes leading countries like the United States of America, Canada, Australia, and Japan.
The move aims to strengthen resiliency, innovation, and coordination on telecom security and explore immense potential through international outreach, information sharing, and coordination in research and development.
The global coalition ensures that the telecommunication network remains resilient and adaptable while encountering challenges in supply chain management and remaining connected in testing times.
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About Global Coalition on Telecommunications
The Global Coalition on Telecommunication or GCOT is a multilateral alliance of international partners like Canada, the United Kingdom, The United States of America, Japan, and Australia. The alliance has a common objective of facilitating communication collectively through stringent telecommunication policies to initiate a global dialogue towards innovation in the telecommunication industry.
Global Coalition on Telecommunications (GCOT) – New Perspective
Throwing light on the coalition, the Global Coalition on Telecommunications (GCOT) charted out its aim of extensive engagement and close coordination in the area of research and development, sharing information, and global outreach. By working towards shared goals, GCOT strives to take its objectives to promote growth opportunities and initiate a dialogue between policymakers, academicians, and businesses to the next stage.
As of now, the UK telecommunication networks are of paramount importance to the economy. By promoting adaptability and resilience in the rapidly changing environment, the UK telecom industry can retain its position and stay at the forefront by working in coalition with the global leaders in the telecom industry.
The collective objective is to achieve the diversification of supply chains, strengthen social security, and develop industry skills and expertise to sustain and overcome potential risks.
What Industry Experts Have to Say?
According to Michelle Donelan, Secretary of State for Science, Innovation, and Technology, “This move of joining hands is historic as it represents the shared commitment to foster the strength of telecommunications for the benefit of nations across the globe.”
Adding further, Donelan said, “If we think about the lifeline of the global economy, telecommunication network comes as the perfect answer. That’s why promoting and protecting its resilience and safety in an ever-evolving world is high on priority.”
Concluding the discussion Michelle Donelan added, “By coming together, the UK and other nations can lead the bandwagon to broaden the horizons of supply chains, promoting industry knowledge through research and development, and strengthening the security in challenging times.”
Reiterating the thought process, Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Communications and Information and NTIA Administrator, Alan Davidson added, “Issues pertaining to telecommunication networks are critical in today’s world! This revolutionary coalition between nations can turn tables as they can work collectively to respond to the cross-border opportunities and challenges.”
“By joining hands and working more closely, the members can make a drastic change in securing, diversifying, and innovating the telecommunication technologies across the globe.”
UK Invests £70 Million
To bring this vision into reality, the UK is investing a huge sum of £70 million to nurture telecommunication technology to fulfill the domestic and international agenda through the Future Telecoms Technology Missions Fund (TMF) Programme.
- The investment will open new horizons in the UK for 6G technologies and beyond to strike a smooth connection with space-based terrestrial networks.
- Changes in terms of capacity or speeds in data transfer.
- Improving the energy efficiency of the networks through cloudification.
- The leading enterprises and universities are open to out-of-the-box ideas, for instance self-driving cars across the world, which not only contribute to energy conservation and digitization.
About Future Telecoms Technology Missions Fund
Future Telecom is one vertical under the DSIT’s technologies for science and technology framework. With the investment of £70 million through the UKRI Technology Missions Fund until April 2025, the Future Telecoms Mission is moving towards its aim to support and promote telecommunication technologies.
UKRI’s Take on The Investment
Talking about the investment, Executive Director, Cross-Council Programmes at UKRI, Dr Kedar Pandya said, “The huge £70 million investment will contribute significantly to the UK’s international cooperation in the domain of telecommunication technology which in turn ensure tangible benefits to the economy.”
He added, “The UKRI is investing £250 million through its UKRI Technology Missions Fund, which is designed to step up the UK’s global positioning in transformative technologies to a long-term leading position.” He concluded, “The investment will enable new capabilities in engineering biology, artificial intelligence, and quantum technologies between 2023-2025.”
Way Forward
Future Telecom research will play a crucial role in facilitating the research and development in the domain of telecom technologies to enable the scope of 6G technologies. The focus would be on application-centered challenges, promoting innovative solutions, and fostering cooperation among telecom networks across the UK.
