ENG-2006 — Page 421

Communications, the Media and Information Technology 353

5 300 computers with Internet connections are available across Hong Kong free of charge. All government websites comply with internationally recognised guidelines to facilitate access and navigation by people with disabilities.

IT Cooperation

As at 2006, Hong Kong had cooperative arrangements such as Memoranda of Understanding (MOU) on information and communications technology with nine countries: Canada, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom.

The MOU with Canada was amended in December to extend the effective term for another five years. The MOU with Israel and the Republic of Korea expired at the end of 2006, and arrangements will be made to renew them in early 2007. The Government has organised reciprocal visits, information exchanges and cooperation programmes with these countries to promote and support inter-governmental exchanges, business partnerships and investment cooperation in the areas of IT and

telecommunications.

Cyberport

Located at Telegraph Bay in the southern district of Hong Kong Island, Cyberport aims to set up a strategic centre there for quality IT and IT-related companies and professionals. Cyberport is wholly owned by the Government through three private companies established under the Financial Secretary Incorporated.

Cyberport is a comprehensive commercial development with about 95 000 square metres of Grade A office space, a shopping arcade and a five-star hotel. The commercial portion was completed in June 2004. The final phase of the ancillary residential development is due to be completed by 2008.

Companies are admitted as tenants of Cyberport on the advice of a committee of local and international experts. By the end of 2006, 65 tenants had signed leases, taking up 73 per cent of the project's available office space. The tenants include local, Mainland and overseas companies specialising in IT applications, information services and multimedia content creation.

Cyberport is becoming one of the major venues for IT and digital entertainment- related conferences in Hong Kong and Asia. By year end, over 651 IT-related events had been held at Cyberport, with more than 97 200 participants taking part. These included 387 regional and local conferences, 112 product launching ceremonies, exhibitions and entertainment events. The third Digital Entertainment Leadership Forum, the third Cyberport Venture Capital Forum and the first Cyberport Animation Camp were among the more prominent events held in 2006.

Cyberport also contributes to technological development in Hong Kong and provides the necessary infrastructure and technical support for SMEs. The facilities at Cyberport include Hong Kong Wireless Development Centre, Digital Media Centre, the iResource Centre, the Digital Entertainment Industry Support Centre and the Digital Entertainment Incubation and Training Centre. They provide vital support for the continuous development of Hong Kong's ICT industries, which include the digital