$11m Vic collaboration fund opens doors

Victorian Minister for Technology Gordon Rich-Phillips has today launched Victoria's $11 million technology fund, providing funding for Victorian companies that want to collaborate on ICT problems.

"Under the first round, we are looking to commit a total of between $4 million and $5 million to successful projects," Rich-Phillips said.

Projects have to involve collaboration between at least two Victorian small- to medium-sized enterprises with fewer than 200 employees to combat a shared problem. Funding of up to $500,000 will be available for each project.

"The Digital Futures Fund will encourage Victorian companies, researchers and end users to work together to develop ICT solutions to address major business challenges," Rich-Phillips said. He hopes that it will provide a catalyst to increase productivity, drive growth and improve competitiveness.

Preference will be given to "applications that reflect areas of strategic importance to Victoria", with Rich-Phillips giving data mining and analytics, cloud computing and cybersecurity as examples.

The Digital Futures Fund is part of Victoria's $85 million Technology Plan for the Future.

In other Victorian news, Rich-Phillips also announced today that ICT services company Interactive will invest in a $30 million Melbourne facility to support its cloud products and managed services to provide an environment for 300 staff.

The building, which is being built next door to Interactive's current Melbourne address, will have a slide to get between the levels, an industrial kitchen providing lunch deliveries to staff desks, collaborative areas, video conferencing for all staff and full connectivity. It will also house a 120 rack datacentre. The plan is to have it completed in September 2013.