Ballarat is currently home to approximately 100 ICT firms. In order to develop a profile of the Ballarat ICT sector, a web-based survey was widely circulated to the region's ICT firms. In total, 23 firms completed this survey, representing a response rate of approximately 23 percent. An overview of the results from this web based survey is presented below.
The majority of responding organisations are classified as micro businesses.
Figure 5 - Size of local ICT businesses
Although a considerable proportion of businesses (50 percent) are young (i.e. operating for less than 5 years), reflecting recent opportunities in ICT, half of respondents had been operating in the Ballarat region for 5 years or more.
Figure 6 - Years operating in the Ballarat region
Ballarat has representation across all major sectors of the ICT industry. The three dominant sectors within the local sector are software (e.g. application development, web-based application development, games); telecommunications; and ICT services (e.g. ICT consulting, training and education services).
Figure 7 - ICT sector representation
Respondents to the survey indicated that they provided goods and services to a variety of industry sectors. The high proportion of respondents who nominated that they target all sectors, suggests that a broad rather than niche focus may be common within the local ICT sector.
Figure 8 - Industries targeted by local ICT companies
As indicated by Figure 9, the majority of respondents indicated that their sales revenue was less than $500,000.
Figure 9 - Sales revenue of respondents (2005/06)
Sales and export information provided by respondents indicate that the Ballarat ICT sector has a relatively strong presence outside of the Ballarat region.
Figure 10 - Market focus of local ICT companies
Nearly two-fifths of respondents (39 percent) indicated that they claim ownership for the Intellectual Property (IP) for ICT products and services they provide. Furthermore, 39 percent indicated that they undertook ICT related research and development and innovation activities in the last 12 months. The major foci of such activities were the development of new ICT goods and services or customising or modifying existing products and services.
An important prerequisite for developing an effective ICT strategy for Ballarat is identifying the region's current strengths, assets and barriers inhibiting its development. The consultation phase of the strategy development process identified that the region has experienced a number of ICT related achievements since the inception of Ballarat IT 2010 in 1994. Some of the major achievements during this period are presented in Table 5.
Table 5 - ICT achievements in Ballarat
Year |
ICT Achievements |
|---|---|
1995 |
|
1999 |
|
2002 |
|
2003 |
|
2004 |
|
2005 |
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| Chapter 5. Where is Ballarat as a vibrant and dynamic ICT centre? | University of Ballarat Technology Park |
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