Operation of Living Labs in Flanders: i-City and IBBT to merge into a powerful instrument at the start of 2009

In the last few years, two large-scale initiatives have been started up in the ICT sector in Flanders. IBBT was set up as a strategic research centre in order to reinforce the impact of our research world, and i-City was started up as an initial large-scale living lab in order to introduce new ICT technologies into the market.

In the first phase of i-City, the organisation´s challenge was to explore the model of a mobile internet operator, including promoting the use of PDAs and the development of a services platform. More recently, i-City has above all focused on attracting and managing "test users" and deploying them effectively. "Test users" here refers to those who can be deployed in a wide range of scenarios and who have specific fields of interest such as mobility, home care, etc. These test users can be deployed within these fields to help devise solutions, answer questions, give feedback on concepts and test those new solutions in practice. In this regard, i-City´s "product" has transitioned from mobile internet access and the technological platform towards processes and a process-supported portal for the management of "test users".

Both organisations now face the challenge of creating an environment in which new applications and business models can be validated. In order to create a real impact, a large support base and a large critical mass are both necessary. For these reasons, on 12 December 2008, the Flemish government decided to integrate the activities of i-City into IBBT. Subject to approval by the Board of Directors of IBBT in January 2009, this integration creates a number of possibilities:

• IBBT already coordinates a number of research groups around Living Lab operation, and the combination will further reduce the gap between the research world and the market;
• IBBT has been appointed by IWT as the coordinator of Living Lab projects in Flanders in order to avoid redundancy;
• IBBT already has all of Flanders within its geographical scope and can replicate the local successes of i-City.

Contacts with the various target groups have revealed much enthusiasm for the new direction. The facilitating role that the merged organisation can play by bringing together parties in specific projects, as well as its own added value that it generates via test users, is greatly appreciated.

IBBT sees the furthering of i-City´s activities and the expansion of Living Labs within Flanders as a strategic objective for supporting the ICT sector in Flanders. The initiative will, in its new form, continue to present major added value in the Flemish innovation landscape.