THE chief executive of British telecoms giant BT, which is bidding to build Singapore's new cyber highways, says technology and active participation from service providers must work hand in hand to succeed.

For instance, a fast Internet link could let users consult a doctor at home, said Mr Ben Verwaayen.

But for this to take off, hospitals and doctors - an entire 'ecosystem' - have to be persuaded to use this new delivery platform.

Only then can ordinary people be won over by technological advances, said Mr Verwaayen, who was in Singapore last week to speak at an Infocomm Development Authority conference.

He declined to comment on BT's bid to build Singapore's Next Generation National Broadband Network. But he said the deployment of services - and not just the infrastructure - would be a key issue.

Professionals, he noted, expect to collaborate with colleagues on a secure Internet link not just in the office, but also on the go.

BT is one of 12 bidders aiming to build Singapore's new network that would let users go online at 1GB per second, or at least 10 times faster than now.

At that speed, users can download a movie in minutes, instead of the hours or days it takes now.

However, Mr Verwaayen, who also met Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong and top government officials last week, said bandwidth was not the issue - but what people did with it.

He asked: 'Are you willing to double your subscription just so that you can download a few minutes faster?

'People have to be willing to pay for the benefits they get.'

In Britain, users can surf the Web and watch TV with a broadband link - similar to what SingTel offers here.

BT is seen by market watchers as a forward-looking telco, for its ambitious bid to uproot a decades-old telephone system in Britain and build one based on Internet telephony technology.

The telco also serves global firms by providing corporate Internet links to multiple countries, including Singapore. These speedy links, said Mr Verwaayen, are spawning a new wave of globalisation - one that the Republic can tap on.

With firms serving global markets using e-commerce, Singapore's small market is no longer a hindrance, he added.

'Education, legislation...the ability to have an infrastructure to reach out to the world are far more important than the whole market itself.'

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