Brighton Dome amongst UK tech innovators receiving major funding boost
Brighton Dome’s 5G testbed has received a significant financial boost from the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport (DCMS) as one of six winners in the 5G Create awards announced recently.
The venue is part of a consortium of international organisations delivering a 5G Festival concept which has received £2,238,692 from DCMS as part of their commitment to putting Britain at the forefront of 5G technology.
Brighton Dome is working with industry leaders Sennheiser, Warner Music, O2 (Telefonica UK), Digital Catapult, Mativision, Metropolis and Sonosphere on the project. The initiative will enable artists to collaborate creatively and audiences to engage and connect both remotely and live in person using cutting edge technology.
The venue is working with Wired Sussex to engage with the music and events industry and invest in talent and idea development so that Brighton can continue to be at the cutting edge of art and technology, combining to create new cultural experiences. The 5G test network is expected to play a key role in unlocking economic benefits for the region by allowing emerging and established artists and companies to develop and deliver outstanding work using 5G technology.
Andrew Comben, Chief Executive, Brighton Dome & Brighton Festival said: “We are delighted that Brighton Dome & Brighton Festival are part of the successful 5G Create project, through Digital Catapult’s 5G Powered Festival. We will be working with international artists and music industry partners to explore new opportunities for 'blended' live and digital performances and experiences that 5G might afford, using our expertise as the first testbed in a cultural venue.”
Jeremy Silver, CEO, Digital Catapult added: “As live performers have been totally prevented from working because of the Coronavirus, a lot of bright minds have been focused on how to create exciting alternative experiences for a virtual world. The result of this work was an exciting bid into the 5G Create competition to produce a virtual festival that could offer 5G enabled experiences in which performers could reach audiences in an entirely new way. We’re thrilled now to be able to bring the 5G Festival to life, working with world leading venues, organisations and artists to push forward with the next evolution of entertainment.”