A Devon-based consultancy has been paid £40,000 to produce a "vision" for the Scottish Government on "how leading digital economies have delivered world-class infrastructure".
Broadband Access Strategies of Buckfastleigh undertook a six-week study, the results of which were presented on Friday to mid-level officials and industry players including Ofcom and trade group, ScotlandIS.
The brief was: "To set out the options for the Scottish vision – what could world-class 2020 look like for Scotland, how will people use technology and services, what digital infrastructure is required to support the vision and what impact does it have in terms of societal and economic benefit for Scotland."
However, some Scots IT experts have expressed surprise that such basic questions have not been addressed in the succession of "digital strategy" documents dating from October 2010 onwards.
One industry leader present at Friday's meeting at Glasgow's Atlantic Quay said: "They did a fine job, but there are questions about why, given that a lot of the information was publicly available, this was not placed in a Scottish context by several companies up here."
A Scottish Government spokesman said: "We have committed to developing a plan outlining the options for delivering the world-class vision by December 2012. This work will support the analysis of options and development of that plan."
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