From the information age to the intelligence age: Exploiting IT and convergence

Abstract

Our ability to generate information and transport it about the planet on super highways of optical fibre is changing the way inwhich we communicate, work and live. There is not a single aspect of our lives that has gone untouched by the communication and computing revolution that is now upon us. As the pace of change gathers it will become clear that it will overshadow the impact of the printed word, industrial revolution, and physical transport. The next major wave of IT development must focus on the delivery of information and experience on demand, in the right form, at the right time, at the right price to fixed or mobile terminals anywhere. Ultimately, bandwidth, distance and time will no longer be significant cost elements as service and access become the dominant features of the changing demands of an information and experience focused society. © 2008 Springer-Verlag London Limited.