When most people think of Australian exports to China, it’s either coal or iron ore that comes to mind. But, increasingly people are recognising that Australia is also one of the world’s most savvy information and communication technology (ICT) nations.
While Australia is ranked 54th in the world by population, its ICT market, valued at more than A$120 billion, is the eleventh largest in the world and the fifth largest in the Asia-Pacific.
In the south-eastern corner of Australia lies the State of Victoria – Australia’s manufacturing, services, innovation and knowledge powerhouse. Victoria occupies only three per cent of Australia’s land mass, yet it is responsible for 24 per cent of Australia’s total economic activity.
During the 2009-10 global financial crisis, Australia was one of the few countries that still managed to record positive growth. It was Victoria that led Australia out of the crisis creating more than 100,000 new jobs, more than any other Australian State.
Victoria is also Australia’s ICT hub, enjoying Australia’s most advanced and best-connected infrastructure networks. More than 15,000 technology companies call Melbourne home, including the bulk of top Australian-based ICT companies.
Victoria hosts significant operations for leading global companies including IBM, Infosys, Fujitsu, NEC, Ericsson, Microsoft, Huawei, ZTE Corporation, and Cisco, to name just a few.
World-class telecommunications infrastructure is a vital platform for technology companies, and Victoria leads the Australian technology and telecommunications industry, generating 25 per cent of national ICT revenue and employment.
Telstra, Australia’s largest telecommunications company, is headquartered in Melbourne. Telstra recently announced an A$800 million data centre expansion program, including a major new data centre that will spearhead Telstra’s growing cloud capabilities.
In 2010, the Australian Government chose Melbourne to be the technology hub of its multi-billion dollar National Broadband Network roll-out (NBN Co), generating even more business and job opportunities in Victoria.
Victoria is also home to Australia’s leading research institutions including the Australian Synchrotron, the National ICT Australia Victoria Research Laboratory (the largest ICT research lab in Australia) and the La Trobe University Centre for Technology Infusion.
Further testimony to Victoria’s world-class ICT research and development capability has been the recent decision of global IT giant IBM to open a global research and development lab in Melbourne – one of only ten worldwide operated by IBM.
Victoria’s small and medium sized ICT companies also contribute to the State’s R&D excellence. For 22 years, Victoria’s Enex TestLab has supported ICT research and development with professional laboratory testing services covering over 90 industry sectors including hardware, software, systems, security, usability, media and communications, and wagering, lotteries and casinos testing. Enex also operates in Europe and, in 2007, commenced operations in China.
China is Victoria’s number one trading partner
ICT is Victoria’s third largest export industry and increasing numbers of small smart flexible ICT companies are now focused on China.
For example Victorian company SmartTrans (www.smarttrans.com.au) is enjoying great success in China. SmartTrans provides software solutions for the transport and logistics industry and content and applications for mobile telephone users. The company is currently providing its mobile phone application management program to Chinese customers of the world’s largest mobile phone operator, China Mobile, and expects to expand this service to include customers of other telecommunication providers in China in the near future.
In 2008, Vix Technology (www.vixtechnology.com) operators of major transit and mobility projects throughout Asia, implemented the world’s largest transit clearing-house for the Beijing rail network- responsible for 14 of the network’s major metro lines, servicing more than nine million passenger journeys every day.
These are specific examples but the Victorian ICT industry includes companies that manage vast transport networks, e-commerce and mobile commerce, plus the enabling telecom infrastructure. Other opportunities span all sectors from health to education, from manufacturing to logistics, to energy efficient solutions for a sustainable future.
Key Chinese ICT companies operating in Victoria include Huawei Technologies, ZTE Corporation, Changhong Electric, TCL and VanceInfo.
Victorian Government support
The Victorian Government is committed to building strong relationships with China around ICT.
Rapid growth has fuelled an urgent need to increase the adoption of ICT technologies across the Chinese economy. Victorian ICT specialists have much to offer China, particularly in the development and application of ICT technologies to assist China as it continues to grow and develop.
Since 2009, the Victorian Government has supported a substantial program of ICT industry engagement with Greater China, including following the 2010 Shanghai World Expo.
With assistance from the Victorian Government, ten Victorian ICT Trade Missions have visited the Greater China region in recent years, introducing more than 100 Victorian ICT companies to the opportunities Greater China offers.
When Victoria’s Premier Ted Baillieu visited China in September 2011, he announced that the Victorian Government would host a ‘super trade’ mission to China in the first half of 2012. The mission will help more than 100 Victorian companies and organisations, many from the ICT industry, travel to China and meet potential partners and customers.
Next time you think Australia, think Victoria. And search ‘Victoria ICT‘.
澳大利亚维多利亚州–技术卓越中心
每当谈及澳大利亚对中国的出口，多数人脑海中浮现的无外乎煤炭或者铁矿石。不过越来越多的人正在意识到，澳大利亚也是世界上信息通信技术(ICT)最先进的国家之一。
澳大利亚的人口数量在全球仅排名第54位，但其价值超过1200亿澳元的ICT市场却在全球位列第十一，在亚太地区位列第五。
在澳大利亚的东南一隅，坐落着维多利亚州–澳大利亚的制造、服务、创新与知识动力中心。维多利亚州面积仅占澳大利亚陆地面积的百分之三，但其经济活动总量却占澳大利亚的24%。
2009-10年全球经融危机期间，澳大利亚成为平安度过危机且取得正向增长的少数国家之一。正是维多利亚州引领澳大利亚度过了这场危机，为澳大利亚创造了10万多个工作岗位，多于其他所有州。
维多利亚州还是澳大利亚的ICT中心，拥有澳大利亚最先进、连接性能最好的基础设施网络。共有15,000多家技术企业在墨尔本安家，包括多家澳大利亚顶级ICT公司。
多家全球领先公司在维多利亚州积极开展业务，包括IBM、Infosys、富士通、NEC公司、爱立信、微软、华为、中兴、思科以及其他公司。
世界级的电信基础设施为技术公司提供了重要平台，维多利亚州是澳大利亚科技与电信业的领袖，为澳大利亚贡献了25%的ICT收入与就业岗位。
澳洲电信(Telstra) 总部设在墨尔本，是澳大利亚最大的电信企业。该公司最近公布了一项8亿澳元的数据中心扩展项目，包括新建一座大型数据中心，旨在引领澳洲电信正在增长中的云计算技术的发展。
2010年，澳大利亚政府决定，总额数十亿澳元的国家宽带网络(NBN Co)项目将落户墨尔本，为维多利亚州创造了更多商业和就业机遇。
维多利亚州还是澳大利亚领先研究咨询机构的大本营，包括澳大利亚同步加速器中心(Australian Synchrotron)、国家ICT澳大利亚维多利亚州研究试验室(澳大利亚最大的ICT研究试验室)以及拉筹伯大学技术融合中心(La Trobe University Centre for Technology Infusion)。
全球IT巨头IBM最近决定在墨尔本设立全球研发试验室，该试验室是IBM在全球范围内运营的仅有的十家试验室之一，再次证实了维多利亚州的世界级ICT研发实力。
中小型ICT企业也为维多利亚州的研发卓越实力做出了贡献。22年来，维多利亚州Enex TestLab始终支持ICT研发，提供专业试验室测试服务，覆盖90多个行业门类，包括硬件、软件、系统、安全、可用性、媒体与通信，以及博彩、彩票和赌场测试。Enex还在欧洲开展业务，并于2007年进驻中国。
中国是维多利亚州最大的贸易伙伴
ICT是维多利亚州第三大出口产业，拥有灵活运营能力的小型智能ICT公司，正越来越多将业务重点转向中国。
例如，维多利亚州企业SmartTrans (www.smarttrans.com.au) 就在中国取得了巨大成功。SmartTrans为交通和物流业提供软件解决方案，为手机用户提供内容与应用。该公司目前为全球最大的移动电话运营商–中国移动的中国客户提供手机应用管理项目，并计划在不久的将来扩展该服务，覆盖中国其他电信提供商的客户。
2008年，亚洲大型交通与移动项目运营商，Vix Technology (www.vixtechnology.com) 为北京地铁网络部署了全球最大的清算中心，负责该网络14条大型地铁线路的结算工作，每天为九百多万名乘客提供服务。
除以上具体实例外，维多利亚州ICT产业还包括管理大型交通网络、电子商务与移动商务的公司以及支持性电信基础设施。维多利亚州还提供可观的创业机遇，覆盖从医疗到教育、从制造到物流，再到能源效率解决方案的所有其他产业，努力创造可持续发展的未来。
在维多利亚州运营的主要中国ICT公司包括华为技术有限公司、中兴公司、长虹电子、TCL和文思信息技术公司。
维多利亚州政府支持
维多利亚州政府致力于和中国发展良好的ICT产业合作关系。
中国经济的快速增长催生了普及ICT技术的迫切需求。维多利亚州ICT专家可以为中国提供大量帮助，特别是在中国继续增长和发展之际为其提供ICT研究与应用协助。
自2009年起，维多利亚州政府在大中国区为2010年上海世博会之后的大型ICT产业促进项目提供支持。
在维多利亚州政府的协助下，维多利亚州十个ICT贸易代表团最近几年参观了大中国区，向100多家维多利亚州ICT公司展示大中国区的商机。
维多利亚州州长百鲁 (Ted Baillieu)在2011年9月访问中国期间宣布，维多利亚州政府将在2012年上半年派出”超级贸易”代表团访问中国。这支代表团将帮助100多家维多利亚州公司和组织(其中多家来自ICT行业)前往中国，与可能的合作伙伴和客户会面。
下一次你想到澳大利亚，请记得维多利亚州。别忘了搜索”维多利亚州ICT”。
在中国运营的其他著名维多利亚州ICT公司包括：
nSynergy (www.nsynergy.com)
Reality Learning (www.realitylearning.org)
Voxel Agents (www.thevoxelagents.com)
Trickstar Games (www.trickstargames.com)
Valleyarm (www.valleyarm.com)
Gradient (www.gradient.com.au)
QSR International (www.qsrinternational.com)
PaperCut 软件国际私人有限公司(www.papercut.com)
