Technology extravaganza set to kick off

As the largest and most influential technology event in the Middle East, North Africa and South Asia, and one of the top three ICT (information, communication and technology) shows in the world, Gitex Technology Week is introducing four new features to this year's event to drive innovation and anticipate the region's most important ICT issues of the day. Gitex Technology Week is recognised as the pivotal platform by the regional and global ICT industry to launch new products and discuss new innovations in the Middle East. And as technology advances and trends develop, Gitex will be at the forefront of delivering those solutions. Digital card technology, digital marketing, cyber security and telecoms symposium will be the new main features in Gitex Technology Week 2011. The Gitex Card Technology feature will help drive one of the most rapidly developing ICT sectors, said Trixee Loh, Senior Vice-President of the Dubai World Trade Centre. "Gitex Digital Card Technology is dedicated to the ever increasing trend towards a multi-purpose device that can carry a wealth of personal data," Loh added. "From a transport pass to debit and credit payment, health records, proof of identification and much more, there is a growing market for portable personal data in a contact or contactless format." Exhibitors, including ABNote, Cardz Middle East, Datacard Group and digital identification solutions among many others will be showcasing the industry's latest technology and solutions. Cyber security Moreover, Loh said that new to this year's Gitex, the Digital Marketing sector will reflect the region's rapid movement towards marketing outside the traditional offline methods, with the sector's top companies, including Yahoo Maktoub, Ikoo, ICANN, Khellan and TKXel highlighting its potential. Social media and mobile devices have opened a stream of advertising and marketing which may well prove to be the future of marketing as we know it. Cyber security at Gitex will address some of the crucial ICT concerns of any business in the region. "As digital espionage and theft become more sophisticated, the need for greater protection becomes more essential," Loh said. ‘Cyber security at Gitex will present the latest and most advanced security measures and world renowned authorities to share insights, experiences and knowledge plus live demonstrations on how to defend against cyber-attacks in real time." Loh added that cyber crime is a major threat to both the global and regional economy. "A recent Trend Micro Smart Protection Network report cites the number of computers infected with malware in the Middle East at more than two million, including 800,000 in the GCC and nearly 100,000 in Dubai alone. "Cyber security has become an integral part of the boardroom agenda and with the recent international spate of hacking incidents, there has been no better time to raise awareness of malware and cyber security issues across the region." Telecoms symposium Another key event in the Gitex line-up is the two-day telecoms symposium which will feature some of the industry's most respected thought leaders who have helped to shape the future of regional tele-communications. It is of critical importance for the operators to stay at the forefront of global trends and spearhead innovation into new services and solutions. The telecoms symposium provides practical insights into shaping the future of B2B and B2C communication. "This year, we are fortunate enough to have among us distinguished speakers Chris Dedicoat, President EMEA of Cisco, Rod Beckstrom, President and CEO of International Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN), Pranav Mistry, Inventor of SixthSense and William H. Saito, Young Global Leader of the World Economic Forum 2011," Loh said. Also taking place for the first time, InfoComm Middle East and Africa (IFMEA) is a joint venture between InfoCommAsia and Dubai World Trade Centre, co-located and jointly promoted with Gitex Technology Week. "The leading non-profit association serves the professional AV communications industry worldwide. This will be InfoComm International's first venture into the Middle East and Africa region, where visitors will be able to see a wide range of AV solutions from established and emerging brands, with companies coming from the US, UK, France, Italy Germany, and as far as Australia, New Zealand, China, Taiwan, Japan and Singapore." Pointing to the main trends that the regional ICT industry is focusing on, Loh said: "The four new elements at Gitex Technology Week are the trends receiving the most attention and investment, along with Mobile Apps, Tablet PCs and Cloud Security.