Without reliable communication technologies, communities cannot connect, industry can’t flow and economies will not prosper. Wireless communications technology surrounds us – in our smart devices, navigation systems, personal media devices, data centers, home services and appliances, and vehicles.
Most people don’t realise that wireless communications are responsible for the efficient operation of major infrastructure and many public services. Worth more than $4billion to the Australian economy each year, the wireless communications industry forms an important part of the Information and Communications Technology (ICT) sector which includes two way radio, IoT, cellular and broadband technologies to name a few.
Find out how ARCIA membership helps to ensure the sustainability of the sector.
Australia and the Private Mobile Radio (PMR) market.
The private mobile radio (PMR) market in Australia is growing steadily and plays a critical role in the delivery of a wide range of public and private sector activities.
In terms of geographic size – the world’s sixth largest country by area, and demographically small population of approximately 23 million people – Australia’s adoption of PMR technologies is considerable and is used by many sectors of the economy.
A recent study commissioned by the Australian Radio Communications Industry (ARCIA) has estimated the number of licences allocated by the Australian Communications and Media Authority at 65,000, with estimates there are around 1.5 million radio users active on licenced channels. Five separate user groups were identified for the purposes of the survey and include:
- General Recreation/Private
- Business Commercial – smaller business, including retail and wholesale, small transport (such as taxis), event operators
- Business Enterprise – larger corporate including mining companies, rail and large transport operations, large manufacturing businesses
- General Government and Utilities
- Emergency Services
Today two way radio communications are widely adopted in the mining, utilities, transport, public safety, farming and government sectors – and despite technological change driven by the rapid rise of mobile telephony and smart phones – PMR remains a necessary and deeply embedded technology in almost every environment you would expect in a modern society that needs rapid and reliable group communications.