Victoria Research and Education Network Confirmed

June 28th, 2006: A state-wide fibre optic network that will 'revolutionise the way the Victorian academic and research community communicates and collaborates with the world' is confirmed.

Victorian Universities, the CSIRO along with Victorian and Australian governments established the Victorian Education and Research Network (VERN) which will link up to 200 research and education sites throughout Victoria via an optic fibre network delivering super-fast 'broadband' services.

Victorian Minister for Information and Communication Technology, Marsha Thomson, was keen to point up the positives, "VERN will enable academics, researchers and students to send and receive data at speeds of up to 40,000 times faster than the average home broadband connection.

"It will also place researchers in isolated parts of the State on equal footing with their urban counterparts and colleagues around the world."

Funding for the VERN has come from direct investment by Victoria's nine universities and the CSIRO, matched by funding and in-kind support from the Victorian and Federal governments.

Mr John Carruthers, CEO of VERNet, the company established to deploy and manage the network, says,"VERN will tap into up to 200 locations across Victoria through 2,000km of optic fibre. It will link to national networks (such as AREN, the Australian Research and Education Network), and to global education and research communities in the US, Europe, Asia and other regions".

VERN will cover much of metropolitan Melbourne and key regional areas in Victoria, particularly East Gippsland, the Latrobe Valley, and, initially, six regional precincts: Ballarat, Bendigo, Shepparton, Geelong, Wodonga and Werribee. Other towns will be linked in later stages.

Rollout of the infrastructure program is underway throughout regional Victoria and is due to be completed by early 2009.

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