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This page will involve an analysis of IT concentrations in the country of Canada. A map will be provided to visually depict where the high-tech clusters "technopolis" are located. Statistics will be used to understanding these various clusters located within Canada.

The Canadian IT Sector

The Canadian IT sector, which includes computing and telecommunications hardware, software and services companies, represents $65 billion in revenue annually. The companies in Toronto represent nearly 40 per cent of this total national revenue figure (approximately $25 billion annually). New Media is also a rapidly growing industry in Toronto. Toronto is home to the majority of Ontario’s digital media activities. According to the Toronto New Media Works Study (February 2000) over 400 new media companies — 69.7% of Ontario’s digital media companies — call Toronto their home, and generate over $1-billion in revenue annually.

ICT Clusters in Canada

Toronto may be the equivalent to Silicon Valley in the U.S., however, there are more clusters than Toronto which make up Canada's complex IT communities. Below is a chart which outlines the IT clusters of activity across the country of Canada. and the major corporate participants.

The two most prominent clusters in Canada are the: Toronto/Ottawa/Montreal Triangle and the growing western ICT complex (Vancouver/ Edmonton/Calgary Triangle).

The Toronto/Ottawa/Montreal Triangle

This cluster has a combined population of approximately 10,000,000 with an advanced ICT infrastructure employing nearly 300,000 ICT professionals. The primary concentrations of this cluster are telecommunications, optical, digital media, software, and e-commerce expertise. This corridor has 5 of the top 20 ranked computer and electrical engineering programs in North America.

The Vancouver/Edmonton/Calgary Triangle

The growing Western ICT complex of Canada is the Vancouver, Edmonton and Calgary Triangle. This cluster has a combined population of 4,000,000 with over 100,000 ICT professionals. This particular cluster has been built around telecommunications including a strong wireless hub, software and digital media including animation, special effects and interactive software development. There is a strong academic and R&D infrastructure. This cluster has 3 of the top 20 electrical engineering programs in North America. Hence, this cluster is increasingly being integrated into the US west coast complex.

[Source: Industry Canada]