Britain's Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport is funding a new wave of projects aimed at putting the UK at the forefront of 5G technology.
Among the research and development projects to secure funding are a remote music festival that will take place in the Brighton Dome, trials of autonomous lorries, and a traffic system controlled by artificial intelligence.
Six regional projects, based in Sunderland, Preston, Liverpool, Manchester, Brighton, and Suffolk, involving 17 UK SMEs will receive £30m of public and private funding to combine British industrial ingenuity with new technology. Funding was awarded as part of the government's recent 5G Create competition.
The £30m is part of the wider £200m 5G Testbeds and Trials program (5GTT) that has so far funded 24 5G testbeds across the UK in which almost 70 different 5G technologies, products, and applications have been trialed.
In Brighton, the 5G Festival project will demonstrate how greater connectivity can empower the music industry to bring live festivals and music events to audiences located all over the world.
Over the next year, the project will develop new ideas for integrating 5G technology into the city's venues, such as live streaming performances in high quality and real time. Audiences will be able to engage and interact with artists experimenting with new work enabled and delivered over 5G infrastructure.
The 5G network will initially be deployed in Brighton Dome’s Founder’s Room and Foyer, offering Brighton-based small businesses, community groups, and artists the opportunity to test and develop new 5G-enabled applications.
“Brighton Dome will be among the first arts venues in the country to explore the potential of 5G technology in the application of new artistic work and performance," commented Andrew Comben, chief executive of Brighton Dome & Brighton Festival.
"Not only will it offer artists the chance to create exciting new work but our audiences and visitors to Brighton will be able to enjoy and experience arts events in a completely different way. We’re excited by the endless possibilities this could bring.”
A second round of new projects to receive funding through 5G Create will be announced in the fall.