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WHAT'S NEW
ICT Industries Survey (ICTIS):
In the past, the ICT Industry Survey (ICTIS) has been conducted as a stand-alone survey on a biennial basis. Following the 2006-07 ICTIS, the collection of financial information about the ICT industry became part of the Annual Integrated Collection (AIC) rolling survey program. As part of the rolling program, ICT industry statistics will be collected every 6 years. The first collection is scheduled to be conducted in respect of 2012-13 and then again for 2018-19. Any increases in frequency will require user funding. While these AIC based surveys are intended to produce outputs comparable to the previous ICTIS, users will be consulted prior to the development of the 2012-13 survey to ensure that content needs are met
Internet Activity:
Internet Activity, Australia, June 2010 (cat. no. 8153.0) was released on 20 September 2010. Data in this release are sourced from the Internet Activity Survey (IAS), and are based on results from all Internet Service Providers (ISPs) operating in Australia as at 30 June 2010. The IAS provides key statistics on the supply of internet services and the participation of Australians in internet activities, including subscriber numbers by access technology, download speed, state or territory, type of subscriber, and volume of data downloaded. IAS data have recently highlighted key trends in internet subscriptions, including a strong growth in the number of wireless broadband subscribers as well as increasingly higher speeds of connections.
Household Use of Information Technology (HUIT):
Due to a reduction in the frequency of the HUIT collection from annual to biennial, the next publication will be in respect of the 2010-11 financial year, to be published in December 2011. HUIT data has not been collected for the 2009-10 financial year.
The 2010-11 Household Use of Information Technology (HUIT) module for the Multipurpose Household Survey (MPHS) is being expanded to collect more content. The 2010-11 HUIT focuses on the nature of IT, the activities undertaken and reasons for use of the Internet rather than just connectivity. Development of the Children's Participation in Cultural and Leisure Activities (CPCLA), which contributes to the HUIT outputs, is expected to occur in the first quarter of 2011, with release of data expected in December 2012. Since the ABS will not collect HUIT data in the MPHS for the 2011-12 financial year, the ABS will advise users about dissemination plans for CPCLA 2012 outputs relating to ICT.
Business Characteristics Survey (BCS):
The BCS is used for the collection of data required for input into the Business Longitudinal Database (BLD) and the production of point in time estimates for Business Use of Information Technology (BUIT); business innovation in Australia; and a broad range of other non-financial business characteristics. Key indicators for innovation and use of information technology in Australian businesses are collected annually, with a more detailed set of items for each of these topics collected biennially on an alternating basis.
Innovation Content Review:
Users are being consulted to determine whether the current innovation outputs from the Business Characteristics Survey (BCS) are still relevant and up-to-date; continue to meet users needs; and, whether refinement or changes are required to meet new or future needs. This review will impact on the content of the 2010-11 BCS (with detailed innovation data due for release in August 2012). The ABS is seeking feedback from Innovation Reference Group (IRG) members regarding both current and potential content.
Business Longitudinal Database (BLD):
A key aspect of the BCS is the collection of statistics to populate the BLD. These directly collected data, along with a range of financial information from administrative sources such as the Business Activity Statement (BAS) will be used to create the BLD. The scope of the BLD is restricted to small and medium businesses. When fully established the BLD will cover a five year period, however, to date it includes three years worth of data.
The BLD is available for research purposes through a Confidentialised Unit Record File (CURF), which is released with the approval of the Australian Statistician. To ensure microdata is maintained, access is managed in a unique virtual environment, the Remote Access Data Laboratory. Further information is available at the CURF Microdata Entry Page on the ABS website. The most recent release of the BLD CURF is 2006-07 and contains three years worth of data, 2004-05, 2005-06 and 2006-07. The next release will be in December 2011, and will contain data up to the 2009-10 reference period.
Research and Experimental Development (R&D)
Recent releases of R&D statistics relate to the 2008-09 reference period. R&D data were collected compiled and released for the business, higher education, and government and private non-profit sectors. For the current reference period (2009-10) results will only be available for the business sector, as R&D data are currently collected on a biennial basis for the remaining sectors.
State and Territory Data:
The Innovation and Technology statistics output program releases state and territory level statistics from all four Surveys of Research and Experimental Development; outputs for Household Use of Information Technology; and, the Internet Activity Survey.
State and territory level statistics are not available from any of the outputs from the Business Characteristics Survey. This is because state/territory are not included in the stratification for sample design and, as such, the included sample may not be representative of the business population in each state or territory. Also, as changes in the composition or structure of the state/territory business population are not accounted for in design, movements for a particular indicator (for example, innovation) may not reflect a real change. State/territory outputs are, therefore, subject to more than usual sampling error (as measured by standard error) and the quality maybe highly variable from collection to collection.
Further information on any of the above can be found in Innovation and Technology Update (cat. no. 8101.0).
Releases to watch out for:
| Product releases | Release date |
| Internet Activity, Australia, December 2010 (cat. no. 8153.0) | 1 April 2011 |
| Summary of IT Use and Innovation in Australian Business, 2009-10 (cat. no. 8166.0) | 23 June 2011 |
| Business Use of Information Technology, 2009-10 (cat. no. 8129.0) | 25 August 2011 |
| Selected Characteristics of Australian Business, 2009-10 (cat. no. 8167.0) | 15 September 2011 |
| Research and Experimental Development, Business, Australia, 2009-10 (cat. no. 8104.0) | 23 September 2011 |
| Household Use of IT, 2010-11 (cat. no. 8146.0) | December 2011 |
| Microdata: Business Longitudinal Database, Expanded CURF, Australia (cat. no. 8168.0.55.001) | December 2011 |
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This page first published 19 May 2006, last updated 8 February 2011 |
