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Digital Content Knowledge Network

The combination of content, software and enabling technologies delivers the communication of knowledge between people. The Digital Content Knowledge Network aims to take an important strategic role in developing the 21st Century Knowledge Economy that needs to be built both in the South East region and across the UK.

Digital communications is different to other hi-tech sectors e.g. nano, bio and electronics in 3 main ways:

• It typically requires a balance of disciplines to create a new value proposition e.g. software development and video production are both essential for the games industry.
• Intellectual Property (IP) protection is often based on copyright rather than patent
• The typical window of opportunity is short because:-
  • no significant capital equipment investment is needed
  • there are few significant regulatory processes involved
  • the global distribution mechanism is the Internet

The practical upshot of this is that the standard methods to commercialise research, licensing and spin-outs, do not work as well with digital communications as they do with nano, bio and electronics. What are needed are new collaborative models of commercialisation and this is a key focus of the Network’s activities.

The key objectives of the Digital Content Knowledge Network are to:

• Be a facilitator, information exchange and focal point for research commercialisation in the core technologies
• Identify and define market opportunities where the combination of the SE’s content, software and telecoms expertise, both research and commercial can develop new products and services to generate new revenue streams
• Develop new models for commercialisation particularly legal frameworks and business models
• Identify any inhibitors to commercialisation and develop plans to minimise or remove them. Examples include motivations for academics, availability of skills and the different mindsets of academia and industry.
• Help secure funding for research, development and commercialisation activity. This could be from the EU, UK Government or Industry
• Ensure the digital content industry is recognised and supported by SEEDA and the DTI as a key sector.

For more information please contact Info@semn.org.uk or visit the SEMN Website