Innovative ICT project may turn to Ontario for support after failing to secure funding from new federal commercialization program

The backers of an industry-university consortium designed to position Canada as a leader in the rapidly evolving field of communications-enabled applications (CEA) are crying foul after their application was rejected in a recent competition for the new Centres of Excellence for Commercialization and Research (CECR) program. The proposal to establish the Canadian Centre for Communications-Enabled Applications Across Any Network (CEA3N) was not among the 11 successful CECR applicants, recently launched by the Networks of Centres of Excellence (NCE) program.

The CEA3N proposal failed despite receiving what its founders say were excellent reviews from both a private sector advisory committee and an NCE steering committee comprised of the heads of the three granting councils. The proponents say Canada could miss out on a huge opportunity to anchor a global ecosystem of companies, research institutions and government entities at the leading edge of the next major wave of Internet development underpinning productivity enhancements in virtually every economic sector. Key portions of the CEA ecosystem are being developed in the US and the opportunity to shift those resources to Canada could be squandered, they say.

"We got exceptionally high marks from the expert panel. The decision not to fund came later. It appears to be very close to a Cabinet-level decision," says project leader Dr Tony Bailetti, associate professor with Carleton Univ's department of systems and computer engineering and director of its Masters of Engineering in Telecommunications Technology Management program. "We can't let it go. If that happens, we fail (and) it will be a sad day for Canada."

Nortel Networks Corp, IBM and Carleton Univ are the primary backers of CEA3N, with each contributing expertise and support for distinct aspects of CEA. But what makes the proposal so powerful is the disruptive nature of the combined technologies, cutting across a wide array of network platforms and industry sectors. By utilizing an ecosystems model and open source architecture (OSA), CEA3N seeks to engage a wide range of players that can contribute to and benefit from the strategic exploitation of what's being called a worldwide discontinuity or disruption caused by the collision of information and communication technologies.

"The ecosystem model is a flexible and progressive way to build partnerships not confined to Canada but anchored in Canada … For CECR the opportunity was too good to pass up. So we're disappointed that we lost and disappointed in the vision that demonstrates for government," says Peter Carbone, VP service oriented architecture at Nortel. "The rhetoric of government is not being matched by action. It's a lot of money they're spending with this program and we need to enhance productivity and in-source to Canada. We've got the intellect but more people are required."

Carbone also says CEA3N received top marks from both the CECR expert panel and the NCE selection committee, adding that the process is "a bit mysterious".

Any suggestion of political interference to the CECR selection process is rejected by Jean Claude Gavrel, associate VP of the NCE program secretariat.

"Absolutely not … The whole process was driven by the criteria of the program and excellence," says Gavrel. "Their review was very high and should we have had funding for more than eleven centres they may have been included … Perhaps strong and well-established centres had the opportunity to put together better proposals."

Gavrel acknowledges that the ICT priority sector was largely unsuccessful in the competition but adds that changes are being contemplated such as running a targeted competition that could boost the chances for ICT centres in future rounds.

While some see political interference, others contend the CECR selection process was overloaded by the volume of applicants and a review system that favours academic research over industry-driven projects.

"There was pent-up demand for commercialization projects and they were overwhelmed by the responses they received," says Jeffrey Dale, president and CEO of the Ottawa Research and Innovation Centre (OCRI). "The government doesn't appear to understand commercialization and ICT is about making money. We have a long way to go in Canada before we are able to say money and wealth are good."

Accepting that the CECR selection process was free of political meddling, there are still concerns about the federal government's commitment to supporting ICT. One official close to the CEA3N proposal says it's important to support this kind of initiative because it accurately targets the evolution of web services and it's industry driven.

"Why, when the government says that ICT is a top priority do we continue to overwhelmingly fund health projects. Health research is important but it does not have the economic impact and multiplier effect of ICT," says the official who requested anonymity. "Nortel and several other companies put up real cash for an innovative OSA commercialization program but were turned down. There is some talk about moving the research to the US."

CECR was created to boost commercialization and research capacity in four key sectors identified in the recent S&T Strategy, including information and communications technologies (ICT), with $165 million available for the inaugural competition. CEA3N made the short list of 25 applicants that submitted full proposals. But the 11 successful centres were dominated by health with ICT left out in the cold.

At stake was $15 million in funding over five years which CEA3N had committed to match with $16.5 million from its various partners including nearly $9 million from companies. Its proposed operational plan projects sustainability after five years with $3 million in cash annually from a variety of sources including consulting services and membership fees.

opportunity lost?

With CECR no longer an option, CEA3N officials are now exploring programs within the Ontario government but Carbone says the proposal will have to be scaled back. "CECR was a very generous program ... The Ontario government has a number of strategic opportunities and jobs programs focused on research, innovation and commercialization," says Carbone. "We'll have to cut back on training and focus on the creation of the ecosystem. People can join us on their own coin. The plan is to go global right away to see if other countries are less risk averse. We'll look at US and South American companies. We may host it outside of Canada."

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