The UK’s premier showcase for digital infrastructure – NextGen 11 – arrives in Bristol next month (15 to 16 November), where industry leaders from across Europe are set to share and discuss the latest issues and developments around next generation broadband deployment.

In an investment market worth more than £2bn a year for at least the next five years, the digital infrastructure industry is gearing up for rapid growth.  Recent research[1]  shows that investment in high quality digital infrastructure is one of the keys to generating new economic growth.

NextGen 11, now in its fourth year, is a two-day conference and event bringing together the best of the UK and European digital industry plus service providers, network designers, operators, regulators and local policy makers. Sponsors and exhibitors will include Fujitsu, Draka/Prysmian, Arqiva and Thales.

The event attendees will be able to absorb a complete picture of digital UK - from the new road diggers and duct layers through to the latest services and applications for businesses and home consumers.

NextGen Director Marit Hendriks said: “Policy makers are now focusing more on the economic impacts of investment in Next Generation Access Networks but deployment issues are still a high priority. This year’s NextGen has a stronger global input with high-profile speakers from the European Commission, the UN Broadband Commission and FTTH Council Europe, but we also provide a platform for the deployment industry and the local leaders who are driving action on the ground.”

Confirmed speakers include Vice President of the European Commission, Neelie Kroes; Fibre to the Home Council Europe President, Chris Holden; former Minister of Communications Finland and Commissioner United Nations Broadband Commission for Digital Development, Suvi Linden and Global futurist and CEO of Fast Future Research, Rohit Talwar.

The event will have more exhibitors than previous years, with many UK enterprises finding a ready market overseas for the latest in digital deployments, and a strong presence from local government, highlighting their critical leadership role in accelerating the UK’s digital agenda.

NextGen 11 will also include a strong focus on creative media and a special tour of Bristol’s new Enterprise Zone targeted at planners and urban property developers.

Other new additions to the conference include:

Education Zone – examples of future learning through advanced digital tools
Creative Media Zone – highlights from Bristol’s flagship sector
Broadband for economic growth – how ‘dark fibre’ is cutting enterprise costs and future-proofing the way business is conducted
Funding for broadband – how investors see opportunities to support local initiatives and the impact of investment on economic growth
Rural benefits – how to resolve access challenges so rural areas benefit more from digital investment
The mobile dimension – 4G mobile deployments will need vastly more base stations (70,000 in London alone) and they will all need fast fibre network connectivity to handle cloud-based applications
To view the full agenda visit NextGen 11 and to register please go to the registration page.

[1]  http://www.ericsson.com/news/1550083