The emphasis on engagement at the outset has been to:

• develop an understanding of the key technology-related market drivers and challenges in the sector;
• drive awareness of the Technology Strategy Board itself; and
• put in place the infrastructure that will enable progress to be made both on the construction of a strategic approach and the mechanisms for delivering it.

Specific interventions to date include:

• Establishment of the Creative Industries Technology and Innovation Knowledge Transfer Network (KTN) [8]: A contract was awarded in May 2008 to a consortium led by the University of the Arts London and including Imperial College London, Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) and TIGA, the trade association for games developers. The KTN will form the primary route to market to implement knowledge sharing and exchange activities.
• £10m Collaborative R&D Call: Launched January 2008, this programme was designed to be broadly applicable across the sector. The funding was split into three streams with £7m dedicated to larger, collaborative projects focussed on exploiting digital technologies. £3M was allocated to two, technology neutral, six monthly pilots – Feasibility Studies and Fast-track projects designed to encourage application by micro and SME companies. In total, approaching 300 different UK based organisations have benefitted from this programme.
• Publication of Interim Strategic Assessment: Serving as an indicator of prevailing thoughts, this document was produced to stimulate discussion and engage sector practitioners in the development of the three-year strategy. The present document represents the outcome of this consultation.
• £5m Call for Accessing and Commercialising Digital Content in a networked environment: Opened in March 2009, the aim of this call was to help creative businesses develop technology based solutions to help digital content producers and rights holders realise and maximise the commercial returns from their IP. (Note, this call is now closed.)