No.3 London Tech Hotspots 2008

London, UK

Why? Leading centre for Euro tech investment

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What's so special about London?
Home to 183,000 IT and telecoms workers, London is an increasingly important location for technology companies. Its infrastructure and bedrock of expertise support everything from globe-spanning behemoths such as BT, to Soho and Clerkenwell's creative industries and the myriad software development start-ups in the East End's Brick Lane.

London's status as a financial and foreign exchange capital supports a booming telecoms industry that looks after international links for some of the world's biggest banks including Barclays, Deutsche Bank and HSBC.

From their global and European HQs in the city, international news agency Reuters, financial agency Bloomberg, global media and ad network MindShare and national institution the BBC, rely on the capital's infrastructure and tech talent to guarantee their global reach.

It is a hub for online traffic, housing Linx, one of the world's largest internet exchange points handling more than 256Gbps of peak traffic. Rich in data centres, international companies choose the capital for the low latency that comes with co-location with HQs and major offices.

Transport links are equally attractive, with fast train links to Europe and four large airports offering regular flights to every major city in the world.

International heavyweights regularly snap up the wealth of emerging tech companies scattered throughout the city, such as broadband and networks provider Easynet, swallowed by broadcaster BSkyB in 2005 and online mapping site Multimap, started in Fleet Street in 1996, bought by Microsoft for $50m in 2007.

Hotspots judge Mark Kobayashi-Hillary says London is a "leading centre for investment into European IT, everyone wants to be seen in London".

Judge Peter Cochrane agrees, saying London has the most new start-ups per capita per year.

The London Technology Network, which links more than 6,000 tech graduates and academics with business, says London has a "highly developed and cost-effective infrastructure and a pool of talent and expertise unrivalled by any of the major international business centres".

Key tech companies Telecoms giant BT and broadcaster BSkyB have their HQs in London while major European data centre provider TelecityGroup has seven of its 18 centres in London.

Key institutions Feeding this hunger for tech talent are London's 40 educational institutions, in particular Imperial College, University College London and King's College whose research income is greater than that of Oxford and Cambridge universities combined. This research is driving forward new technologies such as King's involvement in the PaperWorks project to develop digital paper and Imperial's in developing The Acrobot Company's award-winning robotic arm for orthopaedic surgeons.

Local salaries Graduate software engineer: $53,000.

Famous faces Seasoned entrepreneur Alan Sugar and Virgin boss Richard Branson.

Population 7.5 million.

iPod cost $202 Source: CommSec, Apple.

Time zone GMT.

Voltage and plugs 230V three-pin plug.

How to get there All the major international carriers fly to London Heathrow and Gatwick, which both enjoy good rail and bus links into the city centre. The smaller London City Airport is only 22 minutes from the centre by rail.

Watch out for The despised bendy buses that have usurped London's much-loved red Routemaster double-deckers.

Places to stay, eat or drink London is expensive but relatively reasonably priced hotels can be found in Bloomsbury, Earl's Court and Paddington. High-end hotels include The Ritz, The Savoy and The Dorchester. A good choice for eating is Gordon Ramsey's Petrus, or head over to the up-and-coming Hoxton area to find out what the trendies are munching on.

What you might not know A survey of 80,000 global wi-fi hotspots last year found that London is the world capital for wi-fi hotspot use, racking up four times as many wi-fi sessions as New York and Chicago, the number two and three cities for worldwide wi-fi use.