BY PRIYA MENON
THE setting up of a new digital centre in i-City will pave the way for the Multimedia Super Corridor (MSC) hub in Shah Alam to flourish by providing opportunities to new start-ups.
The Selangor Digital Creative Centre (SDCC) launched by Selangor Mentri Besar Azmin Ali is a one-stop resource centre to help entrepreneurs and start-ups to venture into e-commerce.
i-City is touted as Selangor’s MSC gateway and the SDCC’s strategic location is also expected to help the township reach greater heights.
I-Berhad deputy chairman Datuk Eu Hong Chew said the vision of i-City was to be both a knowledge hub and a tourism destination and SDCC is in line with that vision.
The co-working space will enable SMEs and entrepreneurs to network and find new ideas together. -Photos: S.S KANESAN/The Star
“i-City today is a virtual city where a number of rides are IT-based.
“We believe we can be a significant purchaser for start-up companies that want to develop digital solutions or multimedia projects that can be used in the theme park,” he said.
Eu added currently the knowledge community were from established companies while SDCC would bring in start-ups.
He expressed hope these startups would choose i-City to set up their businesses once they become established.
An estimated 25,000 knowledge workers are expected to be based in i-City and Eu believes that some of them would be from the SDCC.
He said although i-City began as an alternative MSC site, it has evolved to provide a number of facilities for SMEs and start-ups.
“We have some SoHo units that have been purchased by MSC companies based here.
“We have also launched residential incubators that SMEs can buy as well,” he added.
Eu added that they were coming up with a number of property-related products for companies based in their township including hotels and a shopping mall.
The centre is an initiative by the state government through the Selangor Information Technology and E-Commerce Center (Sitec) and Invest Selangor, the state’s investment arm.
SDCC will also have a Makers Studio to encourage maker movement in Selangor.
Headed by the Selangor Investment, Industry (SME) & Commerce and Transportation committee chairman Datuk Teng Chang Khim, Sitec hopes to draw more investors through SDCC.
“We want to ensure Selangor is a centre for world trade and a global trading hub,” said Teng.
SDCC features some 40 co-working spaces in a three-storey office lot with 10 for Universiti Industri Selangor (Unisel) students.
There are also individual office rooms with an 80% occupancy rate with nine start-ups, including three foreign companies.
There will also be training modules as well as a dedicated studio that hopes to encourage the maker-movement in Selangor.
The maker movement is a technology-based extension of the DIY culture that is fast gaining popularity around the world.
Teng added future development projects in i-City would make it the central business district (CBD) of Shah Alam.
“The wired and highly-educated population will help SDCC to grow and this will benefit i-City too,” he added.
Multimedia Development Corporation Sdn Bhd e-Commerce division director Wee Huay Neo who is a Sitec council member, said to be a hub, a smart environment was needed together with all the infrastructure. “I hope that i-City will become a nerve centre for e-commerce trading,” she said.
