Press Release

Date: Friday 23 February 2001

"Northern Ireland e-Learning Developer Wins 'Multimedia Oscar' at European Awards"

NICLR swept the board at the Europrix Awards in Sweden with its "Bloody Sunday Virtual Reality Assistant" winning the overall prize for "Empowering Citizens And Improving Democracy With Multimedia". This application is used on a daily basis by the Bloody Sunday Inquiry at the Guildhall in L'Derry.

Europrix, the "Oscars of Multimedia" is the Europe-wide contest for best practice in multimedia products and applications. The award ceremony was held at the Internet Bay Conference and was also the venue for the meeting of EU Ministers for Technology and Employment. The Awards attracted more than 500 companies from over 30 European countries and was judged by a panel of 25 independent international judges. NICLR was the only UK entrant to receive a nomination and a place in the finals.

Speaking at the Awards Derek Kinnen, Director of NICLR (www.niclr.com), said:

"This is a most significant achievement for a small organisation and is without doubt the most prestigious of all the awards we have won over the last decade. Our success has made a considerable impression not just in Europe but around the world and it has allowed us to present not only ourselves but also Northern Ireland as a high technology country, capable of playing a major role in these new emergent technology-based economies".

The system uses the metaphor of "stepping stones" enabling anyone to use their fingers on the touch screen and literally walk around the areas of the Bogside. To provide alternative ways of "seeing" the environment, the users can flick between the scenes showing, as it is today, an artist's representation and the computer model. As they do so, the system remembers which way they were looking from one scene to the next to enable immediate comparison and ensure that no one becomes disorientated.

It is the first time that Virtual Reality has been used in any courtroom to allow witnesses to present their version of events more clearly. Just last week Bishop Edward Daly re-enacted his memory of Bloody Sunday by using the Virtual Reality Assistant.

The application has given the world an ingenious and critical reconstruction of the events of Bloody Sunday and is now an integral part of the Inquiry.

It points to a future when all courtrooms will be equipped in this way to allow anyone, from those explaining what they saw in a minor traffic accident to the most complex law suits, to illustrate and record their views.

This is just one of a number of awards presented to NICLR. Earlier this year the UK Law Society honoured NICLR and its consortium partners with an award from the "Society for Computers in Law" for the overall consortium development work in this field. On hearing of this award, Lord Saville, Chair of the Bloody Sunday Inquiry, commented:

". . . the technology they are providing for the Inquiry is quite a remarkable demonstration of what can be done with IT and we are finding it of invaluable assistance."

The British Interactive Multimedia Association also awarded NICLR for the Virtual Reality Assistant in July 2000.

Commenting on the Europrix Award Derek Kinnen said:

"It was the depth of understanding that the NICLR team possess in areas such as human perception and how people communicate with technology which contributed significantly to the system's success. The fact that it has been developed here in Northern Ireland, flies a great flag for our technical and educational capability with not only a European but world-wide audience".

NICLR are working on several potential award-winning projects at present. One major project, an online interactive programme, enables UK secondary school students to assess their personal physical attributes and identify a sport that matches their abilities and interests.

 

  • Please contact Karen Sloane, Marketing Manager, on Belfast (028) 9068 0700 for further information. Please be advised that Derek Kinnen is available for interview if required.
  • CD-ROM of the Europrix Awards is available if required.
  • Web: www.europrix.org or www.niclr.com
  • E-mail: karen.sloane@niclr.com
  • The EuroPrix MultiMediaArt (www.europrix.org) is a Europe-wide contest in best practice multimedia products and applications combined with a sustained showcase of nominees and winners around Europe. The contest focuses on high quality content demonstrating added value for users, outstanding interfaces, exemplary concept realisation, overall aesthetic value and clarity of target groups.

 

Media enquiries to Ruth Maguire on (028) 9026 1216, Mobile 07796947993. E mail rhmaguire@ccea.org.uk

ENDS

 

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CCEA places learners and those who have a concern for their educational and personal development at the forefront of its thinking. CCEA's mission is:
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