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The "Hong Kong - Prime Location for Data Centres" seminar organised by the Office of the Government Chief Information Officer (OGCIO) was held today (July 13) to update stakeholders on measures to facilitate data centre development in Hong Kong and to provide a platform for industry players to exchange information and share experience.
Over 150 stakeholders attended the seminar, including data centre operators and end users, data centre and property consultants, data centre infrastructure and service integrators, information and communications technology (ICT) trade associations, data centre related professional bodies and chambers of commerce.
Addressing the seminar, the Permanent Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development (Communications and Technology), Ms Elizabeth Tse, said, "Data centres are indispensible infrastructure for a knowledge-based economy. They underpin all economic sectors, and are particularly critical for Hong Kong's economic pillars including financial services, trading and logistics, as well as emerging sectors such as cloud computing and creative industries.
"The Government spares no effort in promoting and facilitating data centre development in Hong Kong. We have been providing land to meet rising market demands, and we have introduced various measures to encourage the trade to make use of industrial buildings and industrial land for data centre development. In addition, the Data Centre Facilitation Unit of OGCIO liaises closely with other departments to cater for the unique and demanding operational requirements of data centres," Ms Tse said.
Also speaking at the seminar were Government Chief Information Officer, Mr Daniel Lai; Associate Director-General of Investment Promotion, Mr Charles Ng; and representatives from the industry. They spoke on various aspects of Hong Kong as a prime location for setting up data centres.
There were also sharing sessions where successful data centre operators related their experience in converting industrial buildings into high-tier data centres, setting up green data centres and implementing best practices for the data centre business through energy efficiency management.
For more information on the government's facilitation measures, please visit the data centre portal (www.datacentre.gov.hk).
Ends/Friday, July 13, 2012
Issued at HKT 15:45
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