Cambridge, UK-based Dot Matrix Ltd, the company working on what it calls network oriented computers, has been selected as the delivery system for Broadnet, an initiative led by the University of Wolverhampton to deliver distance learning in the English Midlands. The trial aims to connect 1,000 businesses, libraries, students and local authority sites to Broadnet by the end of 1998. Once the trial is completed, the further plan is to connect up 165,000 cabled sites in the Midlands. Other partners in the initiative include Telewest Communications Inc, Fujitsu-ICL Ltd and IBM Corp. The DOT terminals will connect with the asynchronous transfer mode networks already established in the Midlands, and include a Smart Card reader for user identification. It will plug into televisions or video systems, and can connect via ATM, ISDN or dial-up modem. DOT Matrix was formed earlier this year (CI No 3,173).
