Senator the Hon Helen Coonan
Minister for Communications,
Information Technology
and the Arts
When only the Best will do
Australian Interactive Media Industry Association 11 th Annual Awards
Sydney
4 February 2005
Thank you Adam [Spencer, Master of Ceremonies] and good evening.
It's a pleasure to be here tonight to help celebrate the achievements of Australia's interactive media and digital content industry.
This is a unique and exciting industry that combines art, science and technology. It provides a beautiful example of convergence and is probably the only industry that succinctly covers all of my portfolio - Broadcasting and Media, Telecommunications, Information Technology and the Arts.
Not only does it have an enormous amount of public appeal, it also has great commercial value.
Australia 's interactive media industry
I've had a long-standing and very keen interest in the interactive media and digital content industry.
As long ago as my first speech as Senator for New South Wales in 1996, I addressed some key issues that affect the industry and outlined my vision for the way forward.
This included outlining the role for Government, which is to foster conditions for emerging markets, including Australia's trading relationship with Asia.
Between 1985 and 1993 Australia was becoming less relevant in the booming Asian markets and had lost export opportunities worth $12 billion. As I stated in 1996, and as I reiterate now - that is a negative trend that will not be allowed to continue.
I recognised that Government needs to identify and encourage new growth opportunities to boost productivity and provide the enabling conditions to attract globally competitive industries.
A clear example I gave was the need to provide a regulatory environment in telecommunications and multi-media that allows competition to deliver the very best results.
As we've seen over recent years, the Government is successfully delivering in these areas and Australia's innovative and competitive environment is getting stronger.
Importantly, the interactive media industry is becoming a key enabler for innovation across the broadest possible range of sectors from health to mining, education, defence and the arts.
The industry is now worth an estimated $19 billion and the potential for further growth is considerable.
As Minister for Communications, Information Technology and the Arts, I'm now in a position where I can ensure that the interactive media and digital content industry continues to move forward.
The excellence and diversity of the creative products we have in Australia has the potential to capture economic benefits through exports and help boost the image of Australia as an innovative society.
We are now in a critical phase of development, which presents us with significant export opportunities - particularly into Asia and the USA.
Export opportunities
The Government is keen to assist with developing Australia's export market and it's great to note that the digital content sector is an enthusiastic user of our Export Market Development Grants scheme.
This program has been specially designed to encourage the creation, development and expansion of overseas markets for budding Australian companies looking to export.
The grants scheme is administered by Austrade and is the Government's principal assistance program for aspiring and current exporters. We have committed an additional $30 million over the next three years to the program, making a total of $160 million available per year.
AIMIA is also playing an important part in boosting Australia's exports and international image. With support from Austrade, AIMIA is delivering free export assistance to members through the TradeStart program.
The program is doing very well and has had quite a few success stories like Victoria's e-Wise Solutions, which is the developer of FOCUS, an innovative enterprise software application who is opening up new opportunities in the USA.
Another success story comes from South Australian based Mobile Application and Games developer Kukan Studio.
An active AIMIA member, Kukan Studio joined TradeStart and has made several sales of its mobile solutions to Saudi Arabia, Hong Kong and Taiwan and is inroads into Asian markets.
Asia presents a massive opportunity for our Digital Content sector and the high profile film Hero, which I had the recent privilege of viewing, is a great example of this potential.
This groundbreaking Chinese cinematic experience had much of its special effects and design work done in Australia, utilising the talents of Sydney digital production company Animal Logic. Its post-production sound and colour were also the product of Australian firms Soundfirm and Cinevex Atlab.
A finalist in this year's Best Entertainment category, the stunning visual effects of Hero have been wowing audiences around the world.
The film has set new Chinese box office records and shot to number one at the North American box office in August this year.
The introduction of a Best Emerging Exporter category at last year's AIMIA Awards further signifies the importance of exports and encourages and celebrates offshore success.
Last year's winner for Best Emerging Exporter, webMCQ Pty Ltd, set a very high standard for the competition. In 2002, they won an international tender process conducted by Sun Microsystems on behalf of UK e-Universities Worldwide (UKeU).
With the aim of building a worldwide online university, UKeU had a requirement for an online exam engine to provide the key functional component of assessment for their online courses.
Bids were received from the UK, the US and other countries - but it was our Australian entrant webMCQ that outshone them all.
And it's great to see that the high standard continues. Congratulations to this year's finalists in the Best Emerging Exporter category.
Your work demonstrates great skill and innovation, and a willingness to form important partnerships at the international level. Thank you for your efforts. This is really helping to raise the profile of Australia as a world leader in the game of interactive media and digital content.
Ways forward
To secure our future in this industry, it is critical to continue to develop these export opportunities.
One of the challenges we face is tapping into the fast growing market for mobile content.
Mobile phones have become the 'must have' device globally. There are now more than 300 million mobile phones in China and Taiwan alone and of the 90 million phones in Japan, 80 per cent are multimedia enabled.
This presents huge opportunities for Australian content producers with our trading partners, particularly as the biggest reason mobile phone users don't take up the multimedia option is the current paucity of content.
The Australian Government is committed to meeting this challenge and making sure that the industry can continue to grow.
In last year's election-winning policy, we noted that the development of compelling digital content and applications will be a key driver in promoting the take up of a range of new technologies, including broadband, interactive television, and next generation mobile phones.
We also committed to developing a thorough Digital Content Strategy that will help to accelerate the production of digital content.
This will be supported by the Digital Content Industry Action Agenda that was launched at last year's Awards by my predecessor.
The Industry Action Agenda is driven by industry, with Government providing a facilitation role and builds on two and a half years of research by the Creative Industries Cluster Study and is aimed at accelerating the production, distribution and marketing of digital content and applications both here and overseas.
A strategic Industry Leaders Group has been formed to steer the development of the Action Agenda, and includes high calibre leaders from across industry, including broadcasting, film, interactive media and education.
The Leaders Group has identified four areas of focus - export and research, finance and investment, education and training, and innovation.
These are key areas for growth and are being considered by working groups that draw on even wider expertise from the suppliers and consumers of interactive media, digital content, academia and government.
I'm keen to progress the Industry Action Agenda and am looking forward to receiving the report from the Leaders Group in the middle of this year.
During the Election the Government in its Industry policy also announced a $25 million Cooperative Innovation Program to support cooperative projects to develop and use new technologies. Priority will be given to projects meeting strategic industry needs identified through an Action Agenda.
The Department of Industry, Tourism and Resources is currently finalising the guidelines for this program - but I will be encouraging the Leaders Group to think constructively about initiatives which may fit this new program.
Australia is rich with interactive talent and it's important that we have a strong and clear vision for how we position ourselves as a world leader in the industry.
Tonight's awards
I'd also like to take this opportunity to thank AIMIA for its contribution to the growth of Australia's interactive talent.
Tonight's Awards are another fine example of your commitment to encouraging and celebrating great work in this vibrant industry.
I'm reliably informed that the judging criteria for these awards are rigorous, scrutinising entries on their potential for success.
To emerge through such thorough scrutiny, surely means that the winners are clearly candidates to be world leaders.
I'd like to take this opportunity to congratulate all of this year's finalists and the soon to be announced winners, from each of the 20 categories.
Unfortunately I won't be able to stay for the whole evening - but I'm fascinated to learn more about the sector and I will be talking to AIMIA about organising a demonstration of some of tonight's winning innovations.
Conclusion
If I can leave you with one thing tonight - I'd like to challenge you all to continue developing this important industry and most of all, keep exporting!
It is now my pleasure to declare the 11th Annual AIMIA Awards, officially open. Thank You.
Helen Coonan, Senator for New South Wales, First Speech, October 1996 - www.aph.gov.au/senate/senators/homepages/first_speech/sfs-2m6.htm