070/05
15 June 2005
$7 million for Queensland Centre of Excellence
The Minister for Communications, Information Technology and the Arts, Senator Helen Coonan, welcomed today’s announcement of $7 million for a Centre of Excellence in Cultural and Media Industries at the Queensland University of Technology.
The Minister said the announcement today by Minister for Education, Science and Training, Dr Brendan Nelson would help drive complementary Government initiatives to support media industries such as the Digital Content Industry Action Agenda.
“Research and innovation play a key role in the ongoing success of media industries, especially in export markets,” Senator Coonan said.
“The Centre of Excellence will play a pivotal role in supporting Action Agenda priorities to strengthen research and innovation in the digital content and creative industries in Australia. It will work closely with education, industry and government to ensure the linkages work more effectively.
“The Centre will bring together a wide range of high performing organisations in university and cultural arenas and draw on research talents in media, communication and cultural studies, law, information technology, education and business in half a dozen universities across four states and two territories.
“This initiative is part of a wider range of Australian Government support for the digital content industry,” Senator Coonan said.
Partners in the Centre of Excellence include the Australian Film Television and Radio School (AFTRS), and the Australasian Cooperative Research Centre for Interaction Design (ACID). Both have both been separately funded by the Australian Government for complementary programs to support business training and commercialisation of digital content R&D.
In the last Budget, the Government confirmed additional funding for AFTRS of $9 million over three years to deliver digital interactive and multiplatform production courses and to establish a national Screen Business Skills Centre to develop and deliver advanced business skills.
“This will help address the gap between the skills learned in digital content courses and the actual skills required in the workplace by industry,” Senator Coonan said.
“The digital content industry is recognised as a dynamic sector and is increasingly important in fuelling growth in broader areas like telecommunications, education, government services and health.”