VANCOUVER, BC – The Vancouver Island Advanced Technology Centre (VIATeC) has selected Sharp's Audio Visual as a finalist in its 2009 Technology Awards, Sharp's is up for an award in the “Employee/Team of the Year” category which recognizes an individual or a team in the technology sector who ‘demonstrates outstanding initiative and service delivery, and has had a significant impact on the company for which they work.'

VIATeC is the conduit that connects people, knowledge and resources to grow a successful technology sector in Greater Victoria. VIATeC was founded in 1989 to promote and enhance the development of the local advanced technology industry. With only a handful of known technology companies, the ambitious mandate to facilitate the development of Greater Victoria as a global centre of excellence for advanced technology was set.

“This is an important acknowledgement for Sharp's,” says Tim St. Louis, Vice-president, Sales & Marketing. “The Island is a major centre of advanced technology development and commercialization in the province and we're honoured to be considered among the top technology firms in the Greater Victoria area.”

Since VIATeC's inception the Greater Victoria tech sector has grown to over 900 known technology companies, employing more than 13,000 people and generating in excess of $1.7 billion in annual revenues. The growth of this sector has outpaced the provincial average making Greater Victoria the second largest tech sector in BC and technology the #1 private industry in Greater Victoria.

VIATeC is intended to be the first place that people contact for information or assistance related to advanced technology in Greater Victoria. VIATeC's membership, which currently stands at over 300 annually elects VIATeC's Board of Directors, which in turn provides guidance to the Executive Director.

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