Sherwood Forest to Become World's First 5G-Connected Forest The home of Robin Hood is set to feature 3D and 4D virtual reality experiences, semi-autonomous vehicles, and drones and robots to help 'survey and monitor the health of the forest.'
By Adam Smith
This story originally appeared on PC Mag
Robin Hood's famed Sherwood Forest in Nottingham will be the world's first forest to get 5G, so it can host new virtual and augmented reality content expected to launch in March 2021.
Following a £10 million ($13 million) investment from the UK government under its "5G Create" program and Nottingham City Council, Sherwood Forest will be updated with a number of new attractions over time, including 3D and 4D virtual reality experiences, semi-autonomous vehicles, and drones and robots to help "survey and monitor the health of the forest."
In a statement, Nottinghamshire County Council leader Councillor Kay Cutts MBE said: "Nottinghamshire is once again at the forefront of [the] latest technology, bringing together some of the best academic minds, 3D creators and experts in 5G. This will be the world's first testing, of 5G, in a forest. It will bring the stories associated with Robin Hood and our ancient woodland to life in a new way."
"Together with our partners, we will create a virtual reality experience for visitors to Sherwood Forest to attract even more families and visitors to Nottinghamshire from across the UK and overseas, bringing benefits to local businesses and our economy."
While the UK has been struggling with its 5G network, due to conflicts between the British government and the Trump Administration over Huawei equipment, the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport has said that "none of the...projects, or future projects from 5G Create, will use equipment from high risk vendors."
As The Register points out, this seems to go against the advice of GCHQ's National Cyber Security Centre, which says a balance needs to be struck between the security risk of equipment from high risk vendors and the need for diversity of supply. It's unlikely that a Robin Hood experience constitutes a high security risk, but it's better to be safe than sorry.
