OTTAWA, ONTARIO–(Marketwired – Feb. 3, 2014) – CANARIE, Cybera and TEC Edmonton today announced a partnership to provide Edmonton-area businesses with a suite of powerful, cloud-based resources to support product development and commercialization.
Through this partnership, TEC Edmonton will provide Edmonton businesses access to CANARIE’s Digital Accelerator for Innovation and Research (DAIR) program. DAIR provides low-cost cloud-based computing resources for entrepreneurs to develop, test, prototype and demonstrate next-generation products. DAIR’s made-in-Canada cloud provides entrepreneurs with the time horizon, scalability and cost certainty unmatched by other cloud offerings.
“This is a province built by entrepreneurs. It’s at the very core of what makes us Albertans — and Canadians,” says Robin Winsor, President and CEO of Cybera. “At Cybera, we are connecting this spirit to advanced technology and this is helping to cultivate a new generation of businesses. We are delighted to help bring this important CANARIE program to the west.”
Cloud technologies are transforming myriad sectors of Canada’s economy. According to an international survey conducted by the University of Manchester, 80% of responding businesses said cloud strategies have increased profits by up to 50%. Over 65% report cloud technologies have reduced IT costs, a meaningful benefit for small businesses looking to enter global markets.
“CANARIE and Cybera, together with business accelerators like TEC Edmonton, and the academic community, are powerful allies for Canadian businesses working on next-generation products and services,” says Jim Ghadbane, President and CEO of CANARIE. “Partnerships like this make it easy for entrepreneurs and small businesses to get the support and services they need, when they need it, to move from idea to market launch.”
The TEC Edmonton partnership is an expansion of the Powered by DAIR partner model, in which organizations supporting businesses secure a block of DAIR resources and offer the service as an extension to their existing services. Administrative and marketing support is also offered, to assist in cloud incubation support to clients. For business owners, Powered by DAIR is a one-stop shop of services that reduces the time and effort required to navigate various programs.
“Our clients, entrepreneurs in the Edmonton region, can use flexible cloud computing and ultra-fast networks through DAIR to rapidly develop new products, scale their businesses smoothly, and access the best computing infrastructure possible at very low cost,” says TEC Edmonton CEO Chris Lumb. “We know this will be very appealing to compute-intensive young companies, and we’re pleased to partner with CANARIE and Cybera to bring this to market.”
Powered by DAIR has been launched with the City of Fredericton’s goFred network, Startup Calgary and educational institutions such as Ottawa’s Algonquin College and New Brunswick Community College.
The TEC Edmonton/CANARIE/Cybera partnership is an example of Canada’s innovation ecosystem players working together to strengthen the information and communications technology (ICT) sector and boost the competitive edge of entrepreneurs driving Canada’s economic growth.
TEC Edmonton’s business accelerator services and strong links with the University of Alberta support the rapid commercialization of innovative research. CANARIE’s history of seeding transformative technologies in both the public and private sectors help Canadians compete in the global knowledge economy. Cybera’s focus is on accelerating technology adoption in Alberta through a range of initiatives, including management of the ultra-high-speed public research network. Together, the partners deliver a powerful suite of services to spur business innovation and growth in Alberta.
DAIR’s free cloud resources are also available to any small or medium-sized Canadian business through the CANARIE website at http://atir-dair.canarie.ca.
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About CANARIE
CANARIE designs, delivers, and drives the adoption of digital infrastructure for Canada’s research and education communities. CANARIE keeps Canada at the forefront of digital research and innovation, fundamental to a vibrant digital economy.
CANARIE’s roots are in advanced networking, and CANARIE continues to evolve the national ultra-high-speed backbone network that enables data-intensive, leading-edge research and big science across Canada and around the world. One million researchers, scientists and students at over 1,100 Canadian institutions, including universities, colleges, research institutes, hospitals, and government laboratories have access to the CANARIE Network.
CANARIE also leads the development of research software tools that enable researchers to more quickly and easily access research data, tools, and peers. In support of Canada’s high-tech entrepreneurs, CANARIE offers cloud-computing services to help them accelerate product development and gain a competitive edge in the marketplace.
Twelve provincial and territorial network partners, together with CANARIE, collectively form Canada’s National Research and Education Network (NREN). This powerful digital infrastructure connects Canadians to national and global data, tools, colleagues, and classrooms that fuel the engine of innovation in today’s digital economy.
Established in 1993, CANARIE is a non-profit corporation, with the major investment in its programs and activities provided by the Government of Canada.
For more information, please visit: www.canarie.ca.
About Cybera
Cybera is a not-for-profit organization responsible for overseeing the development of Alberta’s cyber-infrastructure, including management of Alberta’s ultra-high-speed advanced research network CyberaNet.
About TEC Edmonton
TEC Edmonton is a non-profit joint venture between the City of Edmonton and the University of Alberta, providing business acceleration, entrepreneurial development, and technology transfer services to technology-based startup companies or projects.
Communications Manager
CANARIE Inc.
(613) 943-5432
ela.ienzi@canarie.ca
Chris Lerohl
TEC Edmonton
(780) 492 9126
chris.lerohl@tecedmonton.com
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