Press Release
Internet Videocommunications Wins Law Society's
2001 Award for Bloody Sunday Inquiry

22nd January 2001

This unique application of video distribution won the prestigious SCL IT Award for "the most outstanding application of information technology to the Law in the UK and the Republic of Ireland" for the application of technology and services in support of The Bloody Sunday Inquiry in Londonderry.

Pictured below is Internet Videocommunications’ Managing Director, David Rowe, receiving the Award from Mr David Lock MP, Parliamentary Secretary, and Steve Roberts, Commercial Director, being congratulated by Andrew Levinson, Chairman of the judging panel.

The full citation reads:

SCL IT Award 2001 Goes to Bloody Sunday Inquiry Consortium

Beyond its obvious judicial and political challenges, the Bloody Sunday Inquiry set exacting and seemingly intractable technical problems: how to make the detailed investigation of events in Londonderry nearly 30 years ago an effective and efficient inquiry tribunal? Add to that the problem of how to help make witnesses, whose recollection may have faded with time, give cogent testimony about the events. What's more, there was a need to make the proceedings intelligible to a demanding public and an absolute need for fairness. Cost was a factor too - the proceedings were bound to be long and ways had to be found to minimise that length.

It is the imaginative and organised answers that were found to these problems which made the SCL's distinguished panel of judges decide that Fujitsu and the consortium they put together should win the SCL Award 2001. The winner of the SCL Award was revealed by David Lock MP (Parliamentary Secretary at the Lord Chancellor's Department) at the SCL Award Ceremony and Exhibition at the Law Society on Monday 22 January.

On hearing the result Lord Saville, Chair of the Bloody Sunday Inquiry said: "I was delighted to hear that Fujitsu and its consortium have been awarded the prestigious SCL IT Award. The technology they are providing for the Inquiry is quite a remarkable demonstration of what can be done with IT and we are finding it of invaluable assistance."

The consortium, led by Fujitsu, consisted of leaders in their respective fields and their cutting-edge solutions are likely to have enormous impact on the development of courtroom technology. In this lies the exciting potential to alter and improve the administration of justice.

The range of technologies available to the Inquiry is wide. Not only are real-time transcription and database storage available but an integrated Exhibit Display System displays scanned documents, virtual reality and video evidence onto screens, and allows these images to be annotated onscreen. Witnesses are aided through the use of a 360-degree virtual reality recreation of 1972 Londonderry and are able to use a touch-screen panel on the screen to navigate through it. Lord Saville has said that he believes that the use of the technology has made the proceedings substantially quicker and more open.