The information and communication technology (ICT) industry, a key sector in Montreal’s positioning.

Montreal leads North America with the most competitive operating costs, according to the KPMG study “Competitive Alternatives."

Note that venture capital investments have also been good in Quebec, with 244 million invested in 2005, representing 34% of Canada’s total ICT investment (source: Réseau Capital).

Job
According to the latest data, collected in 2005, the information and communication technology industry represents 115,900 jobs and generates 19 billion dollars of revenue. This includes manufacturing of computer systems, software and telecommunications (voice and data).
Wages, pensions, interest and profits generated by all 4,972 Quebec ICT firms total 10.8 billion dollars (source: MDEIE).
The average number of employees per firm is 35. Most firms have fewer than 15 employees and a few have over 100, a profile that is comparable to that of all North American firms (source: TECHNA).

Exports
Regardless of business size, our members’ technology products and services cover all areas of economic activity and are sold around the world: healthcare, security, manufacturing, financial services, etc.
Quebec’s ICT product exports total 7.1 billion dollars, while imports are valued at 11 billion dollars.
Constantly evolving, in 2003, the industry invested 984 million dollars in research and development (R&D).
- Breakdown of goods exports:
• 80% of ICT goods shipments are international
• 66% of international ICT goods exports go to the United States

Importance of Quebec’s ICT industry
• 4.9% of Quebec’s GDP
• 3.1% of Quebec’s employment
• 1.0% of the global industry
• 24% of revenues in Canada
• 22% of employment in Canada

An enormous selection of business solutions: 
Firms develop specialized solutions which are an important lever for the entire economic base. The solutions cover all sectors of economic activity, both locally and internationally.
(Source: MDEIE)