Acorn News - BETT 95 Press Briefing (PR??/??.??.??)

BETT 95 Press Briefing - Acorn Computers Limited

Sam Wauchope, Managing Director

A Welcome Speech - Highlights

Looking Back to 1994

Welcome. Last year at BETT, Acorn promised for 1994 great steps forward in the technologies developed and advances in IT in education. No one could have imagined just how far things would move forward in 1994, both for Acorn and the market in general.

IT has become a subject in its own right in the English and Welsh National Curriculum and is seen as a core skill in the increasingly important GNVQ qualifications. Acorn has pursued the New Literacy debate we announced at BETT 94; holding a series of round table debates which involved many influential people, some of whom we are pleased to see here today. In 1995, Acorn will continue to raise the New Literacy issue of how we, as a country, should be preparing our children for life in the technologically-rich future and involving more high-level supporters.

For Acorn, 1994 was the year of the launch of the Risc PC, a computer offering both Acorn RISC OS and IBM-compatible environments and the launch of Pocket Book II, our personal IT solution for education. 1994 also saw the creation of Acorn Computer Group's latest division, Online Media, to provide online, interactive television services via their set-top box technology.

These world class products will become even more important to education in the future. As the development of the information superhighway brings schools into the centre of the educational IT community, there will be an increased need for computers like the Risc PC with enhanced multimedia capability and inter-operability and Acorn networking to bring coherence to widespread use of IT in the community.

Pocket Book II will be at the heart of the personal IT revolution, with teachers, parents, educationalists and pupils seeing the need for truly personal access to IT; having with computing power always to hand.

Looking Forward to 1995

1995 looks set to be an extremely significant year for both technology and education as well. Although we had some delays (not surprising when you consider the complexity of the task) the IBM 486 card is finally here - and on show on the Acorn stand. It has been tested vigorously with many major PC packages such as Microsoft Office, Claris Works, Encarta and Windows '95 and it has a clean bill of health - you can expect to see it shipping next month.

Here at BETT 95, you can see some of our innovative, new networking solutions in action. OmniClient, our software solution enabling Acorn RISC OS computers to co-exist seamlessly with previously non-Acorn networks, and the Access family of products, will be connecting the Acorn stand to those of Microsoft, SIR and Apple. This demonstrates our ability to link to and manage PC and Mac networks and for Acorn to 'talk to' an environment of mixed platforms and operating systems. Go and see it for yourself!

World Class

In 1995 we can expect to see a new wave of activity building around IT, involving not just computer companies, but also involving telecommunications companies, publishers, the media and consumer electronics companies - as witnessed by the many international companies who have approached us about the Online Media interactive television trials in Cambridge.

The high-level of interest in developments like interactive TV is seen by the major national conferences that have taken place recently, such as Windows on the Future and the FEI multimedia conference. There is a DTI task force looking at a national information infra-structure and increasing speculation in the media about how new technologies will affect our lives.

There is one belief which surfaces again and again - the belief that the UK is in a strong position to seize the initiative and take the lead in what is predicted to be the major growth sector of the economy in the next century - Education. Why is the UK in this strong position? The UK has a world class educational system and world class media and publishing industries. Acorn's educational and technological heritage puts it in an ideal position to help the UK and the educational system to achieve this challenge.

As more and more of the creative work produced by pupils and adults is multimedia-based, even more of the UK's strengths come to the fore. We are listening to the Royal Academy of Music today not just because it so enjoyable but because we were struck by the fact that an indisputably world class music academy has decided to use a UK-produced, world class software solution from Sibelius, running on world class Acorn computers.

Acorn is extremely proud to be at the centre of a community designing and developing world class technology and helping UK education to remain the world leader in terms of the creative uses to which it is putting technology. The world class status of Acorn Group's technologies and products is being increasingly recognised globally with the international success of ARM, Online Media leading Olivetti's work in interactive TV, and of course with education in the UK and elsewhere continuing to make world class use of Acorn Risc PCs, networks, Pocket Books and all the other Acorn computers they have.

1995 must be the year when the UK re-asserts its world class status - and education will be in the front line. At Acorn we are looking forward to working with you on the exciting developments ahead. I wish you an exciting and profitable year.

Ends