A new Internet Exchange will be built in the heart of Cardiff’s Enterprise Zone creating a massive incentive for the financial and creative industries to set up their business in Cardiff and grants will be available to connect from July 18.
This follows the boost to Cardiff’s Enterprise Zone with the recent announcement by BBC Cymru Wales that they will relocate their headquarters to a landmark building proposed for Central Square which will act as a catalyst for investment in this area of the city.
The new infrastructure will improve the internet speed for service providers, which will allow the creative and the financial sectors based in the Welsh Capital to compete against London. Currently when accessing a Cardiff URL address the internet traffic travels from here to the London Exchange and then back to Cardiff. With the new Internet Exchange this is set to change, connecting directly to the Cardiff Exchange will increase online capability giving the Enterprise Zone a further boost in attracting media and financial companies to Cardiff.
City Council Leader, Phil Bale said: “This is the latest development of a £ 8.6 million pound investment to upgrade the city’s digital infrastructure and is the final piece of the jigsaw. This development will ensure that Cardiff becomes digitally connected with the rest of the world. I recently announced the new Internet Exchange at the launch of Cardiff Business Council and we will continue to work with our partners in the private sector to create incentives for business to set up in Cardiff.
“With this in mind, I am also pleased to announce today that the Council is offering additional grants of up to £20, 000 for Small and Medium Size Enterprises (SME’s) to connect to the new Internet Exchange from July 18. In total £600, 000 will be made available for this scheme, which is additional grant funding to the Connection Voucher Scheme which allows SME’ to apply for £3000 to install the capital infrastructure at their business to allow them to access superfast capability.
“These schemes have been masterminded by the Super Connected Team at the City Council, working closely with the Department for Culture, Media and Sport and will give Cardiff a competitive edge to potential investors. I encourage all those who are eligible to contact the Council so that companies can take full advantage of these initiatives
“The Super Connected Team has also delivered improvements for visitors to the city which includes free to access Wi-Fi in the city centre and Cardiff Bay, and are currently working to extend this provision in public buildings and on buses.”
