It is a pleasure to be here today.
CeBIT Australia is the premier platform for exchanging ideas and exploring the possibilities offered by new technologies.
And this AusInnovate Conference will highlight priorities for research and for developing strategies to commercialise the fruits of this research.
Taking conceptual products, through research and development, and then onto the commercial market really is a vital process to help us exploit the economic benefits of ICT.
Fundamental advances in ICT can drive productivity advances across all sectors of the Australian economy.
And while it is important to be a leading user of ICT, this in itself is not enough.
Earlier this month, I attended National ICT Australia’s Techfest, where they were showcasing outstanding research projects.
I am sure you will hear more today from Dr Chris Nicol [Chief Technology Officer, NICTA] about what NICTA is developing.
But I would just like to say that the showcase was an exciting glimpse of our digital future.
NICTA is developing products and services in areas such as wireless telecommunications solutions, embedded operating systems for mobile phone chipsets, digital-audio networking systems and internet technologies.
And commercialisation activity has increased as NICTA has built on its already impressive patent portfolio.
NICTA has just spun-out its fourth technology company in less than six years of operation.
The company, Monitoring Division, was borne out of a lab project, measuring the performance of the internet at both the physical transport and protocol layers.
Monitoring Division has a license agreement in place and recently completed its first round of venture funding to help it establish its technology.
These types of projects link in with the Government’s broadband agenda and demonstrate why NICTA is a key plank of the Government’s digital economy policy.
Education, infrastructure, innovation and effective regulation are all components of this agenda and I will be talking more about some of these areas today.
It is also stimulating to hear these researchers at the coal face of innovation talking about where they see technology taking us into the next decade.
NICTA Lab Manager, Doctor Terry Percival, has talked [1] about a future where ICT is addressing some of the major challenges that governments are facing around the world.
Tools such as pre emptive health monitoring systems that promote preventative medicine and tele-working applications that reduce the need for travel, will change the way we think about healthcare and business.
These visions of the future demonstrate the importance of research and innovation and underscore why NICTA is a key plank in our policy agenda.
With an Australian Government investment of more than $385 million over 10 years, NICTA is addressing Australia’s strategic ICT innovation needs and developing our broader ICT capabilities.
For the Government, this is a major long-term investment in Australian ICT research and training, which involves the cooperation of four state and territory governments and seven universities.
NICTA is also demonstrating success in this area with its enhanced PhD partnership program with universities.
We have heard time and again that the internet—and broadband in particular—leads to increased productivity.
This could be as simple as someone saving time communicating with a Government agency online.
It may be a small business using VOIP to reduce phone bills and to cut down on travel through desktop video conferencing.
It may be a multinational corporation using wireless tracking to improve efficiency in supply chain logistics.
All of these applications lead to productivity gains and take us one step closer to a full ‘digital economy’.
The Rudd Government recognises the potential for digital technologies to drive productivity in the Australian economy.
You may have noticed that my Department has been renamed to make the Digital Economy an explicit focus.
I am often asked why this Government places such an important policy focus on this.
The very simple answer is that our future prosperity will be closely linked to the growth of the digital economy.
The way it is managed will have a profound effect on our economic performance and the lives of all Australians.
In essence, the ‘Digital Economy’ is the framework where increasing levels of economic activity and social interaction will take place into the future.
Around the world, policymakers are grappling with how to ensure their countries harness the benefit of the digital economy and deal with the challenges.
The countries that are able to do this most effectively will prosper.
ICT is already entwined in our economic and social fabric; in areas as diverse as financial markets, government services, social networking, entertainment, telephony and agriculture.
New services and applications are increasingly viewed as ‘essential’ by consumers and businesses.
You do not have to look far to see this.
Businesses are using ICT and the internet to revolutionise their systems and processes in order to improve efficiency and promote innovation.
And often it is the innovative use of existing technology that can capture the interest of the market and drive gains in productivity.
‘Shotcode’ technology [2], for example, is connecting retailers and consumers in new and exciting ways.
This technology allows anyone with a camera and internet access on their mobile phone to instantly gain access to product information.
Users simply photograph a code and the technology provides the link to promotional material or further information.
Once these types of technologies are fine-tuned, it is up to individual companies to decide how best to use it.
Facebook and other social networking platforms have proven extremely popular with consumers.
As a result, major corporations are now using them as recruitment and internal communications tools.
Perhaps some of the most exciting possibilities in the transition to a Digital Economy are in the education and health sectors.
Schools and universities are increasingly using the internet for education and research.
Using the internet, students can remotely access audio or video recordings of lectures and better participate in distance education.
Improved broadband and technology will deliver a new generation of applications that further enhance the virtual classrooms of remote students.
Researchers can use the internet to collaborate with colleagues around the world, accelerating the development and availability of scientific breakthroughs.
Earlier this year, the University of Melbourne and the University of California San Diego launched a super-broadband link supporting the OptiPortal visualisation wall.
This ultra-resolution screen will assist researchers at Melbourne Uni, and other Australian universities later this year, to share unique instruments and collaborate to interpret complex data.
This type of investment will keep Australia at the forefront of international development.
The link between investment in education and broader economic benefits is well accepted.
Equipping current and future generations with the best possible technological opportunities, will enable Australia to make an effective transition towards a knowledge based economy.
Improvements in ICT—particularly if underpinned by the widespread availability and affordability of higher speed broadband—will further open up the possibilities for improved distance learning education.
We are also on the cusp of exciting developments in the e health sector.
Some doctors and hospitals are already diagnosing patients remotely.
High quality video conferencing facilities is allowing ‘real time’ interaction between patients and doctors in separate locations.
The Veterans Association of America has implemented a remote patient monitoring program.
As a result of this scheme, hospitalisation has been reduced by up to 60 per cent.
The social benefit of this type of program — which allows older people to stay at home and retain independence — is enormous.
And, along with this, there are huge economic savings — particularly if we project into the future and recognise that Australia has an aging population.
But harnessing all the potential of the digital economy relies on us having access to fast affordable broadband.
The Government has to make sure that this country has the infrastructure, the skills, the confidence, and the regulatory settings in place to become part of a fully fledged Digital Economy.
Broadband the Digital Driver
This is critical for Australia’s long-term economic prosperity and international competitive standing.
But it will also be critical for promoting social cohesion, and even cultural depth.
Obviously, the availability and affordability of first-class internet services for all Australians is one of the key elements in harnessing this potential.
Statistics show just how integral technology is becoming to people all over the world.
As at March 2008, there were more than 1.3 billion internet users worldwide [3].
And more and more of these people are going online to do business.
More than 25 per cent of people in the OECD ordered goods or services online in 2007, while over 30 per cent of the OECD population performed online banking activities.
But the internet is also helping people in more intangible ways.
Forty-five per cent of internet users in the US reported that the internet helped them make big decisions.
And in Korea — a country where 94 per cent of households are connected — users report personal benefits including convenience, promotion of civic rights, participation in politics and an increase in leisure time.
In the 2008 Digital Future Project—which is a study of internet usage in the United States—45 per cent of users said that the internet was important or very important in helping them to maintain social relationships.
In Australia, the most recent ABS data shows that last year there were more than seven million internet subscribers.
They also show that—where available—there is an increasing demand for higher speed broadband services.
The internet is viewed by some as an essential facility—in much the same way as gas, electricity and the telephone.
And a recent report by the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) indicated that Australians already see the internet as an essential part of their lives.
Seventy per cent of household consumers indicated that broadband is a ‘critical service for the future’ [4] .
All of these figures suggest that we are in the process of a profound social and economic revolution.
The Australian Government’s vision for Australia’s transition to a Digital Economy is based on a number of clear and sound policy principles.
Australians should have access to the best infrastructure and services possible.
Connectivity should be available to all Australians irrespective of where they choose to live or work.
And the affordability of services—including for disadvantaged members of our society—is a critical element of the equation, and an important policy focus.
National Broadband Network
The Government’s policy for a National Broadband Network has received a lot of attention.
Last week, the Treasurer Wayne Swan announced the Building Australia Fund.
This fund will not only support the future of Australia’s road, port and railway infrastructure, but also facilitate the delivery of a new National Broadband Network.
Before the election we committed to make up to $4.7 billion available for a high-speed broadband network covering 98 per cent of Australian homes and businesses.
The widespread availability and affordability of first-class broadband services is a first-order priority for the Rudd Government.
The National Broadband Network is foundation infrastructure that will support services and applications that people need now, and those innovations that will emerge in the future.
E-Security Considerations
The National Broadband Network will be a key driver in Australia’s transition to a fully fledged digital economy.
Yet many of the opportunities that come with a connected world bring with them risks and dangers that we need to address.
There are emerging e-security threats and vulnerabilities that pose a challenge to the effective and efficient use of new technologies.
This is having an effect on consumer confidence.
Recent OECD figures show that in the EU, more than 30 per cent of internet users do not buy online because of security concerns.
In Australia this figure is about 20 per cent.
Governments and the private sector need to work together across jurisdictions to improve cyber-security, combat spam and protect privacy, consumers and minors.
Home users, students and small businesses are the most vulnerable segment of the Australian digital economy.
They need to be aware of these e-security risks and have the tools to protect themselves from threats.
The Government has identified three priorities to provide an integrated approach to Australia’s e-security.
The first of these priorities is reducing the e security risk to Australian Government information and communications systems.
The second is reducing the e security risk to Australia’s national critical infrastructure.
And the third is enhancing the protection of home users and small and medium-sized businesses from electronic attacks and fraud.
We are focusing our efforts on a number of areas.
For example, we are educating parents, children, teachers and business on the risks of online engagement and giving them with the skills to avoid dangers.
And we are engaging with industry to set priorities for action.
This is vital to maintaining trust and confidence not only in the internet, but within the wider digital economy.
We need to address the online risks to children so parents and teachers can have confidence in the internet as a valuable educational and social tool.
That is why the Government has allocated $125.8 million towards a comprehensive cyber-safety policy.
This policy focuses on education, research, and law enforcement.
It also focuses on managing current threats through technical mechanisms such as ISP-level filtering of illegal material including child pornography.
A range of awareness and education measures are aimed at teaching children to be good cyber citizens.
Children and parents need to be empowered to deal with a host of rapidly emerging problems such as cyber-bullying, identity theft.
The Government has broadened the scope of a Consultative Working Group on cyber-safety to address issues like these.
The group will provide advice to the Government on priorities and measures required by Government and industry to ensure world’s best practice safeguards for Australian children engaging in the digital economy.
In addition, our publicly funded research institutions are working on new technologies and systems to better provide online security.
For example, the CSIRO ICT Centre has developed the Trust Extension Device, otherwise known as the TED.
TED software can be loaded onto a USB memory stick or mobile phone to provide a secure, virtual environment on an un-trusted computer for all transactions and access to information.
TED was developed in collaboration with the finance sector to provide more secure online transactions between organisations and their customers.
It makes trust ‘portable’.
Conclusion
As I am sure you will hear throughout this conference, innovative use of new technology is a huge part of increased productivity and continued economic growth.
As I have set out today, this Government has a clear vision for harnessing the potential of Australia’s digital future.
We are pursuing a coordinated approach to ensure Australians have the infrastructure, confidence, skills and regulatory environment they need.
By doing this we can create a foundation for economic prosperity for the decades to come.
We will have in place a vital platform supporting Australian innovation.
We will have connections and equipment to ensure Australian children have the skills to compete in with international peers.
Australian companies will be better placed to attract investment and commercialise their products.
Australia will be positioned as a mainstay export player in the global digital economy.
Thank you
