What came first the demand for broadband or broadband?

For BT if there's no demand there's no broadband and even if there is broadband it don't make no business sense if no one's taking it up.

In fact in Swindon alone three out of the four exchanges are already broadband enabled yet few local businesses are taking-up the offer.

Cue: Smartplace and the eWiltshire and eSwindon campaigns, launched this week, to stir up some awareness.

The launch of eSwindon and eWiltshire

For the eWiltshire and eSwindon campaigns getting on to the broadband wagon is the way Wiltshire will get a head start in the new technology revolution.

And they're putting their money where their mouth is with a massive £7m investment in an initiative drive to get every one turned on to the high-speed, continuous world of broadband.

But what exactly is broadband?

Well as anyone who has surfed the internet will know a straight forward dial up connection can be a tad slow.

Endless cups of tea can be brewed whilst waiting for pictures to pop up on screen and as for video clips and on-line games don't even let your cursor go there... you'll be waiting forever.

For broadband users, these are the problems of the past. Broadband is always on, high-speed and instantaneous... and once you've tried it you'll never want to go back.

And that's what Smartplace, Wiltshire's largest public-private sector partnership, is banking on.

Two new experience centres have already opened in Swindon and Salisbury to demo the power of the new technology, and give locals some hands-on experience, and another in Trowbridge is on the way.

Along with the experience centres are two new websites and a telephone hotline offering up loads of practical advice on getting connected, helping to grow your business using broadband and the overall benefits of broadband.

For local businesses, which have already made the jump, the advantages can be significant. Richard Bridge, managing director of Malmesbury based Wentworth Jigsaws, even campaigned to make sure it was available in his area:

"Our business is all about imagery, broadband gives us quick and easy access to those images. Files that used to take one and half hours to download, even using ISDN, are now available in a matter of minutes, freeing time for us to focus on other aspects of our production process."

And it's not just businesses, community organisations are also coming forward offering up testimonials. Toni Robinson from the Community arts company, No Added Sugar, has also benefited from her local village of Purton being connected to broadband:

Toni Robinson from No Added Sugar

"Time is the key saving that has resulted from connection. As artists, our visual files used to takes ages to send or receive - now it's done in minutes."

For the Smartplace programme the initiative is already working and has already brought forward the upgrading of 11 Wiltshire exchanges including: Chiseldon, Keevil, Bromham, Pewsey, Westbury, Wilton, Purton, Cricklade, Seend, Amesbury and Hawthorn.

And if demand continues to increase Wiltshire should be well and truly on-line for the future.

For more information on the campaign and what broadband can do, visit www.ewiltshire.com or www.eswindon.co.uk or call the hotline on 0845 600 3331.