Swellnet is run by Ben Matson, an expat South Australian now living on the Gold Coast. Ben completed an Earth Science degree at Flinders University in 2001, and since that time has worked as a Research Scientist in Climate at SARDI (SA) and as a Research Scientist in near-shore swell conditions at the Griffith Centre for Coastal Management (Qld).

Swellnet began in 1998, with Ben's initial forecasts sent out to a small network by fax and email. This evolved into an online service in March 2002, and Swellnet forecasts are now contracted by many of the WCT competitions including the Quiksilver Pro (Gold Coast, Fiji, Japan and France), the Rip Curl Pro (Bells Beach) and the Billabong Pro (Teahupoo). Additionally, a host of other WQS and Surfing Australia competitions have utilised Swellnet's long term outlook, including the Salomon Masters in Margaret River, the O'Neill Deep Blue Classic in the Maldives and the Rip Curl Cup in Indonesia.

For more information, feel free to contact Ben via ben at swellnet dot com dot au.