Wikipedia’s decision to “blackout” its database for 24 hours in protest of SOPA last week had millions of its users uneasily drumming their fingers on their keyboard, contemplating an alternative means to the online resource.
Forums and social networks met the moratorium-induced concept of consulting an actual encyclopedia with cynical humor, seeing as how the muscles we once used to leaf through tangible reference books have been atrophied by the conveniences of the Internet.
But in the UK, Birmingham City Council is working on providing a research refuge that will rewrite the book for 21st century public libraries. Opening in 2013, the Library of Birmingham is developing an innovative new gaming experience to attract a new audience to its services, and the Council’s technology partner is enlisting the help of Preloaded to develop the concept.
The London-based, BAFTA award-winning creative studio will receive a fund to create a prototype that will engage the gaming generation by complementing a range of online services that allow users to discover the Library’s collections remotely. As the gaming experience will be designed for use online and on mobile and tablet hardware, Leader of Birmingham City Council, Mike Whitby, anticipates the first project of its kind will bring a different demographic to the facility:
[quote]”There are lots of connections between libraries and electronic gaming: they are both all about discovery, fun and learning. This gaming experience is just one of the ways that the Library of Birmingham hopes to be able to attract new visitors and reflects the library’s intention to be a library for the twenty-first century. We feel confident that Preloaded will create a concept that the public will love.”[/quote]
The idea for the gaming experience was chosen from more than twenty submissions called upon by Jason Hall, Head of Network and Partnerships of Games Central, and LAUNCH, the leading games industry-focused conference in the Midlands. It will be joined by other additions to the £188.8 million library including a new flexible studio theater, a recording studio, and dedicated spaces for children and teenagers.
Service Birmingham, a joint venture between Capita PLC and Birmingham City Council, will be celebrating the library’s opening with the project. As Preloaded specializes in interactive and educational products, the collaboration promises a state-of-the-art cultural destination for the expected three million annual visitors, and millions more online.
Source: Colman Getty
