CANBERRA–AUSTRALIA’S QUIET E-VOLUTION

JUNE, 2001

AUSTRALIAN CAPITAL TERRITORY GOVERNMENT

E-MESSAGECANBERRA IS AN EXCITING LOCATION FOR INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY (IT) DEVELOPMENTS.CANBERRA HAS A NUMBER OF FEATURES:

• highly skilled knowledge based community• strong network of internationally competitive businesses• extensive research facilities• bush setting that is safe and promotes lifestyle pursuits• supportive government

CONTACT DETAILS FOR CANBERRA AS A BUSINESS LOCATION: www.business.act.gov.au

ISBN 0 642 60106 2

© Australian Capital Territory, Canberra 2001

This work is copyright. Apart from any use as permitted under

the Copyright Act 1968, no part may be reproduced by any process

without written permission from Information Planning and Services,

Department of Urban Services, ACT Government, GPO Box 158,

Canberra City ACT 2601.

Produced by Publishing Services for the Chief Minister’s Department.

GPO Box 158 Canberra City ACT 2601.

Email; www.act.gov.au/cmd/

Phone (02) 6205 0305

Publication No 01/1089

http://www.act.gov.au

Telephone: Canberra 13ACT1 or 132 281

CANBERRA–AUSTRALIA’S QUIET E-VOLUTION

AUSTRALIAN CAPITAL TERRITORY GOVERNMENT

SITE MAP

CANBERRA’S CAPITAL 5 STRENGTHS

Clever community 7 highest rate of IT penetration

smartest workforce

highest standard of living

concentrated intellectual capital

best schools

IT-savvy government 11 enabling infrastructure

key strategic partnerships

proactive IT strategies

attractive incentives for business

active support for tech-businesses

eliminating barriers to doing business

Mature and innovative IT economy 17 world-class local IT entrepreneurs

flourishing IT hub

E-commerce friendly

unique national network hubs

world-class R&D

effective incubators, venture capital

and mentoring

international investment attraction

4

CANBERRA’S HUMAN CAPITAL

5

The nature and role of Canberra as the National Capital has attracted a population that

is highly educated and computer literate when compared to the rest of Australia and the

world. Information Technology (IT) is the focus of this document, and the term implies

all activities that are information based - for example, information management, software

development, computing, communications, hardware manufacturing, recognition

technology and security systems.

In Canberra most people work in areas that support the gathering of information, its

manipulation into knowledge and its communication to the rest of Australia. Analysis of

the Australian IT industry reveals that Canberra can lay claim to the title of the “IT

Capital of Australia’.1 In Canberra, 1 in every 25 jobs is in the IT industry compared

with the national average of about 1 in 50 jobs. IT is the fastest growing industry in

Australia. The number of IT businesses and employment in IT is growing fastest in

Canberra. It is no surprise that the IT industry is core to the Australian Capital Territory’s

(ACT) economic development. The IT industry contributes 10.6% to the ACT’s annual

economic activity and directly generates $1.34 billion in income for the ACT.

The ACT Government has long recognised the economic and cultural significance of the

Information Age for Canberra’s prosperity. It has taken entrepreneurial decisions that

have successfully nurtured Canberra’s continued evolution into a knowledge-based

community. Canberra-Australia’s Quiet E-volution celebrates the effort and successes to

date, and acknowledges the participants. It briefly sketches the Government’s measured

approach to the growth of Canberra’s knowledge-based economy through:

• alliances with the local IT business community;

• active support for both public and private sector IT endeavours;

• disciplined strategic planning;

• focused tactical initiatives; and,

• targeted budget support.

Once a predominantly public service city, Canberra has been quietly reinventing itself

over the past decade. At the same time as achieving one of the country’s lowest

employment rate, 60 per cent of private workforce is now in the private sector, a statistic

1 Trends, St.George Bank Limited May 2001

that confirms the rich diversity of talent that abounds in Canberra. As a function of being

the National Capital, the city is dominated by service industries and it’s predicted these

industries will show the highest growth between 2000 and 2005.

This document, Canberra–Australia’s Quiet E-volution uses examples to tell the story

about how the Territory has been carefully positioned, over several years, to encourage

the development of our knowledge-based community - culturally, educationally,

economically, and commercially. An OECD working group recently described Canberra

as having the potential to become one of the world’s knowledge capitals. A knowledge

capital combines social, economic and urban structure in such a way that there is an

intense generation of ideas and innovation. Knowledge capitals are where smart

businesses cluster to benefit from the intense generation of ideas. The cities in turn

benefit from the rapid employment growth associated with the companies.2

The ACT Government extends a warm welcome to new businesses and organisations

that wish to become part of this unique community.

6

2 OECD working group led by Dr Josef Konvitz, Head of Division, Territorial Reviews and Sustainable Development, OECD (Future Canberra Conference, May

2001) looking at sustainable urban renewal in the six cities, Canberra, Belfast, Glasgow, Krakow and two other cities.

Public and Private share of ACT total employment

ABS Labour Force Australia cat no 6202.0 & Wage and Salary Earners Cat No 6248.0

Private Public

Perc

ent

Nov-93 Nov-94 Nov-95 Nov-96 Nov-98Nov-97 Nov-990.0

10.0

20.0

30.0

40.0

50.0

60.0

70.0

Share of Total employment by Industry

ABS Labour Force Selected Summary tables Cat No 6291.0.40.001

0.0% 5.0% 10.0% 15.0% 20.0%

Government administration and defenceProperty and business services

Construction

Retail tradeEducation

Health and community servicesAccommodation, cafes and restaurants

Cultural and recreational servicesPersonal and other services

Finance and insuranceCommunication services

Agriculture, forestry and fishing

ManufacturingWholesale trade

Transport and storage

Electricity, gas and waterMining

ACTNational

CLEVER COMMUNITY

7

Canberra has a highly educated, information-rich population.It has a ‘culture’ of life-long learning embedded in theoccupations and lifestyles of its citizens. Not surprisingly,Canberrans lead their counterparts in other parts of Australiaon all technology take-up indices and have the mostcomputer literate population in Australia. The talent bank ingeneral, and the IT talent bank in particular, is vast, andmakes Canberra a prime location for IT business development.

HIGHEST USAGE OF COMPUTING ANDTELECOMMUNICATIONS IN AUSTRALIA

Canberra leads Australia in its take-up of computing and telecommunications, in the home

and in the workplace. It ranks as one of the most IT-connected communities in the world. The

vast majority of people in the ACT are employed as knowledge workers where the computer

and email are part of the standard toolkit. The ACT community has a high level of computer

literacy, with 4 in 5 adult Canberrans reporting using a computer regularly3.

In 19994: • 68% Canberra homes had computers; national average 48%;

• 35% Canberra households had Internet access; national average 22%; and,

• 62% Canberra adults use the internet as a source of communication,business, recreation and education; national average 41%.

SMARTEST WORKFORCEThe ACT has a knowledge-based economy supported by a knowledge-based community.

3 State of the Territory Report, 1999

4 Household Use of Technology Survey, 1999. Australian Bureau of Statistics

Proportion of people aged 15-64 with post school educational qualification, 2000

ABS Australian Social Trends 2001 Cat No 4102.0

0.0

10.0

20.0

30.0

40.0

50.0

60.0

Perc

ent

bachelor degree or higher

undergraduate orassociated diploma

skilled or basic vocational

qualification

total post school educational

qualification

ACT

National

• 28% Canberra workers have a bachelor or higher degree;

• 53% Canberrans have post-school qualifications;

• post school education participation levels are the highest in the country;

• more than 90% of ACT students stay at school till Year 12, well above the

Australian average; and,

• International studies show that ACT students regularly outperform their Australian

counterparts in maths and science5.

HIGHEST STANDARD OF LIVING

Territorians enjoy a high quality of life, partly because of the professionalised community

and its expectations for service delivery, and partly because of environmental factors such

as the design of the city and its rural location.

Economically, Canberra outperforms the rest of Australia6, with:

• strongest economic growth of 8.4% compared with 3.2% growth in State Final

Demand (SFD) nationally;

• smallest gap between rich and poor, with average annual income spanning

$34,000 - $52,000;

• highest average weekly earnings at $766.10 compared with $650.00 nationally;

• second lowest unemployment rate of 6.1% compared with 6.9% nationally;

• highest per capita disposable income at $29,364 compared with $21,904 nationally;

8

5 ACER Research - eg Williams, Numeracy & Literacy

6 ABS various at December, 2000

Annual growth in State Final Demand 1995-96 to 1999-00

14%

10%

12%

8%

6%

4%

2%

0%1995-1996 1996-1997 1997-1998 1998-1999 1999-2000

Source: ABS, Australian National Accounts, State Accounts, 1999-00 Cat No 5220.0

NationalACT

9

• highest level of personal investment per capital; and,

• high level of home ownership.

Canberra is healthy, safe, and green,7 demonstrated by:

• highest participation rate in sports and physical activities;

• low incident rate of crimes against persons and property; and,

• highest recycling rates.

Culturally, Canberra is rich in its diversity with:

• about 80 international embassies;

• 22% of the population born outside Australia;

• 15% of the population speak a second language;

• approximately 4000 international students attend Canberra’s schools, universities and

other tertiary institutions; and,

• the annual National Multicultural Festival.

CONCENTRATED INTELLECTUAL CAPITAL

Canberra is home to a high number of individuals and organisations with a national and

international reputation. A challenge for the ACT Government is how to get the best

out of its unique, and valuable community resource – its human/intellectual capital.

Specifically:

• Canberra scientists recently won 11 of the 33 “citation Laureate” national awards,

including the top 3 spots;

• 30% elected Fellows of the Australian Academy of Science are Canberra residents

of Medical Research;

• three Nobel Prize Winners have been associated with the John Curtin School at the

Australian National University (ANU);

• the ANU houses the largest concentration of research activity of any Australian

university with research schools and centres covering humanities and social sciences,

7 State of the Territory Report, 1999

Asian and Pacific Studies, medical, earth, biological, physical and environmental

sciences, astronomy, engineering and information technology; and,

• The University of Canberra Innovation Centre is a high technology centre providing an

intellectual environment dedicated to university-industry interaction for advanced technologies,

to facilitate new technologies, products and ideas for communities and industries.

BEST SCHOOLS

The ACT education system has a long tradition of innovation and responsiveness. The

ACT Government recognises the fundamental importance of having students and

teachers as key contributors to, and participants in, a flourishing knowledge-based

culture and has invested accordingly:

Educational Outputs

• 92% ACT students complete Year 12, national average 72%;

• highest acceptance rate of ACT students into Australian universities;

• from 2001, 95% of Year 10 students will enter Year 11 with a Certificate in IT

Competencies; and,

• 36% of Year 12 students in 2000 completed an IT related course.

Enabling Infrastructure

• In 1995, 100% of schools were connected to the Internet, the first school system in

Australia to do so;

• All Government schools will be connected to the TransACT broadband network over

the next three years offering a range of services including high speed access and

internet connection. This whole of system network will provide opportunities for

video conferencing, lectures and speeches by eminent persons, interactive classes and

access to resources provided by Screen Sound Australia, the National Museum of

Australia and others;

• By the end of 2001, there will be one computer terminal for every two students in

government schools and every teacher in the government school system will have

access to a PC; and,

• Four colleges are IT and Multi-media Skills Training Centres, providing industry-based

courses to an advanced level.

10

IT-SAVVY GOVERNMENT

11

The ACT Government has always been a strategic andinnovative user of IT. It has a long history of effectivelyharnessing technologies to improve its services, and to worksmarter. The ACT Government recognises that IT isfundamental to Canberra’s economic future and to thequality of life enjoyed by all Canberrans. An array of strategicand tactical initiatives has been implemented specifically tofoster IT as both an economic cornerstone and a work tool inthe ACT. For information: www.innovation.act.gov.au

ENABLING INFRASTRUCTURE

Commitment to service delivery has been a long-standing priority of the ACT

Government. To this end, key IT infrastructure decisions have been taken to support

improved service delivery, and the smarter working of staff.

WHOLE-OF-GOVERNMENT APPROACHES

• ACTNet was the first government-wide Virtual Private Network created by an

Australian government and is fundamental to the ongoing single point-of-contact

strategy to enhance community service;

• Electronic Transactions Act (2000) was enacted by the ACT Government to

underpin expansion of government electronic service delivery and secure electronic

transactions;

• Canberra Connect is a new ACT Government initiative that enhances existing

facilities whereby people may access government services through shopfronts, one

convenient phone number and one web address. The online services include bus

timetables and tickets, vehicle registrations and renewals, rates and land tax, building

conveyancing enquiries and parking permits. Subsequent phases will tackle making

the more complex government services available online;

• Health First is a “one-stop-shop” for ACT health consumers, integrating telephone

and internet-based services into a single access point. It was introduced in 2001 to

support triage decisions by people concerned about symptoms of illness, as well as

search facilities for a comprehensive range of health information services;

• Electronic Voting and Vote Counting For the first time at an Australian

parliamentary election, some voters at the October 2001 ACT Legislative Assembly

election will vote electronically, through secure local networks at four pre-poll centres

and a number of polling places around the ACT; and,

• ACT Government E-learning Hub is a professional development, online

management and brokerage system that offers online, classroom, seminar and

customised courses developed through an initiative with Raytheon Australia.

PROACTIVE IT STRATEGIES

Innovation is at the heart of economic prosperity, job creation and thus community

wellbeing. The ACT Government has set in place a range of initiatives that will promote

innovation and the growth of IT usage and business development. These include:

• ACTsmart: The Australian Capital Information Industries Direction

Statement was formulated in 1999 by the ACT Government, in conjunction with

the Territory’s dynamic IT sector. It articulates the government’s commitment to

fostering the ACT’s potential in the information industries. One of the first tactical

initiatives to come from ACTsmart was a focus on Call Centres, designed to create

1,200 new jobs in the region. It was very effective, with several significant installations

in Canberra almost immediately;

• Telstra Managed Business Centre comprises a demonstration call centre

showcasing state-of-the-art telecommunications facilities, and employed 120

people initially, with projected growth to 500 positions over four years;

• Ansett Airlines Reservation Call Centre is a new, purpose-built facility, initially

accommodating 170 staff with capacity to expand to 390 staff;

• AGL Customer Contact Centre is a 24 hour service with the latest telephony

systems currently employing 34 operators with capacity to grow to 54;

• EDS Call Centre services the IT requirements of a number of Commonwealth

Government agencies;

12

13

• The Innovation Framework identifies education, community based arts and

science, communication, business and government services as the sectors that are

critical to Canberra’s sustainable success as an innovative community. This document

outlines the programs and strategies in place to promote innovation

www.innovation.act.gov.au

• The ACT Photonics Industry Strategy outlines the steps that will be taken by the

ACT Government and strategic partners to encourage the development of a world

competitive photonics cluster in Canberra.

ATTRACTIVE INCENTIVES FOR BUSINESS

The ACT Government has introduced many initiatives that are designed to build on the

Region’s natural advantages and encourage businesses to establish, expand or relocate

to Canberra.

• ACT Business Incentive Scheme (ACTBIS) assists in the development of

significant new business investment and employment in the ACT through a package

of offerings including tax concessions and land grants. Sixty applications have so far

been approved, resulting in over 1,700 full time equivalent jobs. These same

businesses are expected to offer an additional 3,000 jobs over the next decade.

Recent recipients include:

• ADC Australia, to assist with the development of an internationally competitive

fibre optic component manufacturing facility;

• Acton Semiconductors, to assist with the development of a fabrication facility

at Amtech Estate, for the manufacture of opto-electronic devices for use in fibre

optic networks;

• BlueLab R&D Centre is a joint venture between the Australian National

University and Taiwan’s Yuh Chen Group. Their current initiative is to develop

Light Emitting Diodes capable of replacing conventional light sources and

reducing electricity usage around the world. They are also developing

next-generation applications for high-capacity data storage; and,

• Prime Television, to locate its Digital Broadcast Centre to Canberra. This will

service Prime’s regional television network throughout Australia from 2002.

www.primetv.com.au;

• ACT Research and Development Grants Scheme has been allocated $11M over

2000-2003, and was set up expressly to commercialise research and development in

knowledge-based industries. In seven months of operations, the R&D Panel has

approved 29 applications for $3.4M funding. Some of the recipients have been:

• Intology Ltd, developing Klarity software which analyses text to provide an

understanding and summary of the textual content www.intology.com.au ;

• The Distillery Pty Ltd, applying advanced computer intelligence techniques to

improve the usefulness of available computer information by presenting it to users

in various visualised formats including data relationship diagrams, spatial and

temporal representations www.thedistillery.com.au;

• NR Pty Ltd, developing a range of leading edge remote ground sensor scalable

systems which operate in various formats nr@nronline.com;

• Seeing Machines, commercialising computer vision technology for human

machine interaction that can pinpoint where a person is looking. The

objective of the company is to be a world leader in computer vision products,

particularly in the automotive, multi-media and entertainment industries.

www.seeingmachines.com.au.

Acknowledging the growing Australia-wide shortage of IT skills, the ACT Government has

deliberately implemented strategies in support of IT-related skill acquisition:

• IT Cadetships, where $450,000 has been provided to place successful applicants

with public and private sector organisations, to receive training in software

development, network engineering, and multi-media integration;

• Year 12 NetWORK scholarships, to fund selected Year 12 students in a career

transition program designed to provide IT skills training and guaranteed job

placement.

14

15

ACTIVE SUPPORT FOR TECH-BUSINESSES

The ACT Government is keen to support further growth in the IT industry and has

established BusinessACT to assist companies grow in the ACT by:

• stimulating private sector diversification;

• developing an internationally competitive business environment;

• attracting national and international companies;

• promoting business networking and export activities; and

• delivering business support and development programs.

The following is a summary of some of the business support programs offered by Business ACT.

Further details can be obtained at www.business.act.gov.au or 1800 244 650.

ADVISORY GROUPS

• Information Industries Development Board was established to advise

Government and assist the expansion of local hi-tech industries to national and global

markets. The Board comprises academic, business and government representatives;

• The government maintains strong links to the business community through the

CanTrade advisory board, who provide information and guidance on a range of

issues including developing the ACT business sector, identifying and helping the

Government with investment opportunities.

LAND

The ACT Government has set aside land suitable for the establishment of technology

businesses. These are located at several sites around Canberra. Acquisition of

suitable sites from which to conduct business is also one of the incentives offered in the

ACTBIS package.

ELIMINATING BARRIERS

Doing business with government can sometimes be a time-consuming and challenging

process. The ACT Government has provided a one-stop shop approach for business:

• ACT Business Gateway is an Internet-based entry point and single phone number

for everything from information on taxation requirements, local business policies

to on-line applications for business licenses. Up to 11 payments can be made

online and a feature of the system will be its use of the client’s ABN to reduce

data entry;

• Canberra Business Advisory Service is a suite of activities that support in the

establishment, operation and development of business in the Canberra Region. The

kinds of services offered include seminars and workshops, mentoring, advice and

business facilitation;

• ACT Small Business Growth Program provides small businesses with subsidies

to offset their costs in employing consultants to give advice on strategic and

business planning.

16

MATURE AND INNOVATIVE IT ECONOMY

17

Canberra has maintained the fastest growth in the number ofIT businesses and the fastest IT employment growth of allAustralian States and Territories8. Despite its relatively smallpopulation, Canberra has experienced remarkable growth inits IT sector, expanding 23 per cent between 1995/6 and1998/9, compared with a national growth of 15 per cent.9 Anumber of Canberra IT companies rank in Australia’s fastestgrowing top 5010. Not surprisingly, business confidence in theTerritory is consistently higher than the national average11.

An important factor in developing IT businesses that are world competitive is access to

sophisticated customers including the Federal and State agencies in Canberra.

WORLD-CLASS LOCAL IT ENTREPRENEURS

A significant number of Canberra companies have developed internationally competitive

products and services including:

MANAGEMENT INFORMATION SYSTEMS

• APIR Systems is the financial services industry’s trusted e-commerce infrastructure

provider, supplying the industry standard identification and coding service,

participant authentication and SmartCard PKI security regime. APIR Systems is

developing a centralised real-time adviser compliance system www.apir.com.au;

• Softlaw Corporation’s world leading technology enables the online interactive

assessment of eligibility to complex legislative requirements. It removes the need

for decision-makers to be experts, ensures decisions are correct and auditable,

and enables innovative approaches to e-government service delivery

www.softlaw.com.au ;

• Tower Software specialises in Information Management systems, and

has major contracts in 30 countries, including the USA and Australia

www.towersoft.com.au; and,

8 Trends, St George Bank Ltd. May 2001

9 ABS 8/2000

10 BRW. 18 May 2001

11 Small Business Index (net balance). Yellow Pages. Aug 1999

• Wizard Information Services is a leading IT services and applications solutions

provider exporting to clients in Asia, Europe and North America. Wizard’s products

include an e-business solution, Meta*WizDom which is used to create and manage

complex web sites, both content and transactions. It is currently being used to

provide a whole of Government e-Business solution for the ACT Government

www.wizardis.com.au.

ON-LINE TRAINING APPLICATIONS

• Catalyst Interactive is recognised as one of the global leaders in innovative

e-learning solutions, with clients around the world, including the Los Angeles

Department of Water and Power, Health Canada, Yorkshire Bank, News Corporation

and Qantas. They have offices around Australia and in Canada, UK and USA

www.catalystinteractive.com.au;

• Swish Group’s e-learning division, Learning Curve, exports multimedia professional

development products and services to 25 countries. It has strong links with

Macromedia in the USA. www.learning-curve.com.au, www.swish.com.au;

SECURITY APPLICATIONS

• Endurance Electronics delivers KeySafe security systems to the North Atlantic

Treaty Organisation (NATO) operations www.endurance.com.au;

• Protocom Development Systems specialises in IT security applications. They

employ more than 20 staff and 60 consultants, with offices in the USA and Europe

www.protocom.com.au;

ADVANCED TECHNOLOGIES

• Codarra Advanced Systems is developing an autonomous unmanned aerial

vehicle that can be easily programmed to fly over a specific area using a map on a

notebook computer www.codarra.com.au;

• Compucat Research is undertaking trials in China for vehicle tracking technology

in emergency services www.compucat.com.au;

• Electro Optic Systems manufacture laser guidance systems and large optical

telescopes and enclosures www.eos-aus.com;

18

19

• WetPC develops computing equipment for use under any conditions using their

patented Chordic Graphic User Interface that enables underwater computing.

Suitable for use in oil and gas exploration, mining, defence and oceanographic

industries www.wetpc.com.au.

Fourty Defence Industry companies have grown up in the Canberra region in the past

10 years, with a current turn-over of $100m and employing 600-700 people. Some of

the advanced technologies being developed by Defence include:

• radar surveillance systems (CEA Technologies) www.cea.com.au;

• electro-optic fire control/surveillance systems (Fire Control Systems Pty Ltd)

www.eos-aus.com ;

• communications and other equipment (Australian Technology Information)

www.austechinfo.com.au ;

• systems for the evaluation and project management support of high, medium and

low risk tenders and quotations - both traditional and web enabled (Evalua Pty Ltd)

www.evalua.com.au.

FLOURISHING IT HUB

Canberra is already well established as a key IT hub in Australia. Key ingredients are

undoubtedly the highly skilled community, and the proliferation of higher education and

research institutions. The Federal Government’s presence is also a major catalyst.

In 1998-99 in the ACT12:

12 ABS Cat. No. 8669.0

Employment in computer services industry as a percentage of total population

0.0%

0.2%

0.4%

0.6%

0.8%

1.0%

1.2%

1.4%

1.6%

NSW Vic Qld SA WA Tas NT ACT Aust

ABS Cat No 8669.0, Trends May 2001

Perc

ent

• total income from IT was $622.3M, comprising 6% of total national IT income;

• 729 IT businesses were in operation, comprising about 5% of IT companies nationally;

• average income per IT business was $853,600, compared to the national average

of $711,000 per annum.

Not to be overlooked in this context is the enormous purchasing power of the Federal

Government, with an annual spend IT of estimated of several billion dollars.

UNIQUE NATIONAL NETWORK HUBS

Canberra is the political and bureaucratic hub of the Australian people. Powerful technical

networks link the offices and outlets of Federal agencies; powerful people networks

conduct the lobbying and coordinating services in support of their business interests.

TECHNICAL NETWORKS

Federal Government agencies employ about 400,000 people Australia-wide, and have

invested in sophisticated and diverse telecommunications systems in order to achieve

their fundamental purpose of serving the Australian community. For example,

• Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade operates the Australian Diplomatic

Communications Network linking 85 posts around the world in a secure data

arrangement. This network may also be used by the other agencies with overseas

outposts, such as the Department of Immigration & Multicultural Affairs;

• Centrelink has integrated the Federal government’s social services, involving 23,000

staff spread over 450 sites, making more than 6 million payments per fortnight and

sending in excess of 100 million letters per year.

20

Income generated by the computer services industryper head of population

0

500

1000

1500

2000

2500

NSW Vic Qld SA WA Tas NT ACT Aust

ABS Cat No 8669.0, Trends May 2001

Dol

lars

21

PEOPLE NETWORKS

The ACT is a logical location for national bodies and business associations given its

proximity to Federal Government decision makers. The IT industry is well represented

through bodies such as:

• Australian Information Industries Association (AIIA) is the umbrella group

representing small medium and large companies, both local and international,

involved in developing, producing and distributing computer and

telecommunications hardware, infrastructure, software and service. Their goal is to

influence Federal and State governments to improve members’ business environment

and marketing the value and capability of the Australian IT&T industry

www.alia.com.au;

• Australian Electronic and Electrical Manufacturers Association (AEEMA)

represents local and international manufacturers in the electrical, electronic and

information and communication technologies (IT) industries. Their purpose is to

strengthen the competitive position of the Australian electrical, electronic and IT

industries and promote value-adding by those industries wherever possible, in both

domestic and international markets www.aema.com.au;

• Canberra Region Advanced Technology Manufacturing Association

(CRATMA) formed to assist both Government and industry in the formulation of

policies affecting the advanced technology sector. CRATMA comprises Managing

Directors of approximately thirty high technology companies with an annual

turnover in excess of $450 M last year and employing over 1520 people. A high

percentage of the turnover is in exports; and,

• Internet Industry Association of Australia (IIA) Australia’s national industry

body for internet commerce, content and connectivity www.iia.net.au.

E-COMMERCE FRIENDLY

In Australia, governments increasingly conduct their business electronically. The Federal

and ACT Governments lead the country in their use of IT, and this is reflected in local

business usage.

• Reports E-commerce Beyond 2000 and E-commerce across Australia13

predict that Canberra will enjoy the highest net benefit from electronic commerce of

all Australian states and territories. Their findings suggest that the ACT economy will

realise substantial gains from the greater use of e-commerce and that the Territory is

about three or more years ahead of most other States.

• The ACT community has widespread “e-commerce friendliness”:

• SMEs are already e-commerce active, with 72% connected to the Internet in

1999, compared to 60% nationally;14

• Community has a relatively long history of using an Internet-based system of

information and transaction kiosks (AUSTOUCH), introduced in the mid 1990s and

providing 24 hour access to bill payment, licensing, and information services.

• TransACT is a locally based telecommunications initiative that will deliver high speed

broadband services to the majority of Canberra’s households and businesses by the

end of 2002. These services include multiple telephone lines and continuous broad

band access to the Internet, enabling:

• online and interactive teaching, smartcard ticketing, and video conferencing facilities;

• interactive and pay television; and

• online government facilities, such as bill paying, renewing licenses, and approvals.

22

14 Yellow Pages Survey, 2000

13 National Office for the Information Economy, 2000.

23

EFFECTIVE INCUBATORS, VENTURE CAPITAL,AND MENTORING

Private sector and ACT Government energies have been invested in active and practical

support for innovative ideas that have emerged from local IT industries. Support ranges

from access to seed funding and grants, to free-of-charge specialist advice.

• Epicorp Limited; the Australian Capital Region’s technology commercialisation

centre assists new start and spin-off technology businesses through a comprehensive

program including specialist business development and support services,

accommodation, infrastructure, seed funding and access to later-stage finance.

Epicorp forms an important part of the IP commercialisation strategies for its owner

members, the CSIRO, ANU and University of Canberra and also assists businesses

from the general business community. The Epicorp Seed Fund provides equity

finance from $50k to $500k for eligible businesses;

• Business Angels Network operates within the ACT where the well networked

business community has a variety of high net worth individuals actively investing in

early stage ventures;

• Venture into Canberra for a Capital Investment program was an ACT

government initiative for 1999-2000 designed specifically to introduce leading

venture capital investors to the outstanding investment opportunities in the Canberra

Region. Sixteen venture capital firms were involved;

• Canberra Business Development Fund is a venture capital fund involving public

and private funds, with $4M available for investment in innovation;

• Australian Capital Ventures was formed in 2000 in recognition of the shortage

of start-up capital for innovative local businesses. This ACT-based venture capital fund

aims to inject over $30m in two stages; and,

• Renewable Energy Equity Fund (REEF) is a $27 million Federal Government

licensed venture capital fund based in Canberra supporting developments in

renewable energy and is a partnership between Magma Pty Ltd and Continental

Venture Capital to form CVC Investment Management Pty Ltd.

WORLD-CLASS R&D

For its size, Canberra has by far the highest concentration of high profile academic

researchers in Australia, making Canberra an ideal location for organisations undertaking

specific research challenges, for example:

• BlueLab R&D Centre is a joint venture between the Australian National University

and Taiwan’s Yuh Chen Group to develop next-generation applications for high-

capacity data storage.

• Similarly, Acton Lasers is a joint venture in the development and production of

ultra-small semiconductor lasers, one of the building blocks of the IT and

communications revolution.

• Biotron is currently engaged in a joint venture with the Australian National

University in two ground breaking projects:

• Virion - commercialising technologies shown in laboratory tests to arrest HIV; and,

• C-Test - investigating early stage detection and diagnosis of all forms of cancer

through simple blood tests.

Centres of excellence and innovation are well established in Canberra, with staff applying

IT to their ground breaking endeavours, for example:

• The Australian Partnership for Advanced Computing which houses the

largest computational research computing facility in Australia at its national facility at

the ANU. The resources of the National Facility consist of a range of systems (peak

computing system, software, mass storage systems, visualisation systems and data

communications) as well as professional staff;

• The Cooperative Research Centre for Satellite Systems is a facility consisting of

industry, research organisations and universities working together in a space enterprise

to strengthen Australia’s expertise and industrial capability in satellite technologies;

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• Smart Internet Technical Cooperative Centre;

• National Centre for Epidemiology and Population Health (NCEPH) is a

centre of excellence in research and graduate teaching in epidemiology and

population health. It is jointly funded by the Commonwealth Public Health Education

and Research Program (PHERP) and The Australian National University, as well as

obtaining significant external funds from other sources. NCEPH is a University-wide

Centre which is separate from both The Faculties (which engage in undergraduate

teaching and research) and the Institute of Advanced Studies (which engages in

postgraduate training and research) but has associations with both of these major

areas of the University;

• Plant Sciences Centre - gene shears biotechnology;

• Sports Science & Sports Medicine Centre - advanced technology training to

develop the potential of leading athletes;

• CRC for Advanced Computational Systems provides solutions for corporate and

SME end-users through commercially focused R&D on interactive user interfaces,

high performance computation, large-scale data management, digital media,

internet applications, and broadband networks; and,

• Canberra Deep Space Communications Centre (CDSCC) is one of three

locations in NASA’s Deep Space Network. The other sites are in Spain and California.

These facilities communicate with spacecraft exploring the solar system. The

Canberra facility has an array of 4 large radio telescopes. The Centre is playing the

leading role in communicating with the 2001 Mars Odyssey Orbiter.

www.cdscc.nasa.gov.

INTERNATIONAL INVESTMENT ATTRACTION

Many international and national communications, IT and multimedia companies have

already established a presence in Canberra. Factors underpinning the ACT’s

attractiveness as an investment location are the research and development capacities of

the Region’s tertiary and research institutions, access to Federal government agencies and

programs, world leading communications infrastructure, availability of highly qualified

staff and proximity to Asian markets;

BusinessACT is developing a proactive investment attraction strategy that will build on

these advantages to target companies in the photonics, defence, biotechnology and

environmental industries.

For more information: www.business.act.gov.au

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CANBERRA