MUMBAI: Fulfilling business interactions and knowledge exchange amongst like-minded industry professionals marked CommunicAsia2013, EnterpriseIT2013 and BroadcastAsia2013, a one of its kind industry event in Asia. The four day event, starting 18 June, got global industry leaders together to showcase latest technologies and solutions for information and communications technology (ICT) and digital media industries.
The event which was held at a uniquely spectacular venue, Marina Bay Sands, Singapore saw 51,000 attendees from 100 countries/regions. Unlike past years, CommunicAsia/ EnterpriseIT and BroadcastAsia this year was conducted under one roof. While CommunicAsia was held at basement 2 and level 1, BroadcastAsia was organised on level 3, 4 and 5. The arrangement proved advantageous to visitors as they had to only climb different levels, instead of different venues.
This year, while CommunicAsia had 1,328 exhibitors, of which 82 per cent was from overseas, BroadcastAsia had 716 exhibitors of which the overseas exhibitors comprised 86 per cent.
Themed ‘The Next Wave: Empowered Customer‘, CommunicAsia focused on the central information requirements and featured 8 tracks and 2 interactive workshops. The BroadCastAsia international conference was designed on the theme ‘Enhancing User Experience, Monetising Content.‘
What marred the excellent organisation was the heavy smog, which made visibility difficult even at 100 metres.
"The show has done extremely well this year. All the attendees, including exhibitors, conference speakers, delegates as well as members of the press, have expressed satisfaction in terms of the content of the show. For us, this is testament to our success," said Singapore Exhibition Services (SES) Chief Executive, Stephen Tan. SES is the organiser of CommunicAsia2013, EnterpriseIT2013 and BroadcastAsia2013.
"By holding all the shows under one roof, we could leverage the increasing convergence of technologies across both sectors, and still have each show maintain its own appeal," he added.
Unveiling of Panasonic Toughpad JT-B1, a 7-inch Android rugged tablet designed for Asian customers, Huawei‘s- P6 Ascend, world‘s slimmest smartphone and Thuraya‘s innovative phone sleeve, that converts ordinary iPhone into a satellite phone for mobile communications almost anywhere in the world, by connecting the phone to Thuraya‘s satellites, were among the major highlights of Enterprise and Communic Asia 2013.
Retail Juice chief executive officer Richard Jones said, "This is our first experience with exhibiting at CommunicAsia and it has been fantastic. It has exceeded our expectations both with the number of visitors and leads we have generated, and also the quality and diversity of opportunities we have created." Jones through the exhibition has developed new relationships with potential customers and partners in Asia, Europe and America. "We will be returning next year and also recommending the event as a great business investment," he opined.
CommunicAsia2013 also brought together its largest ever contingent of more than 130 satellite communications companies. Asia Broadcast Satellite, APT Satellite, Asia Satellite Telecommunications, China Satcom, Eutelsat, Intelsat, Inmarsat, MEASAT, SES, SKY Perfect JSAT and THAICOM among others showcased their latest satellite communication solutions and applications in broadband, HD content delivery and remote area connectivity for government, military and maritime sectors as well as innovations that will bridge the gap between the ICT and broadcasting industries.
Adding to the list of many of the firsts, the tradeshow also streamed live ultra high-definition content to an Ultra HD TV screen over MEASAT‘s satellite network, using Ericsson‘s compression technology.
"There is a good representation of international exhibitors at CommunicAsia2013 and I‘m impressed with the show. In particular, the solutions provided by the exhibitors from China attracted my attention because of their competitive pricing. I am here to find suppliers for fibre optic deployment and I have found useful contacts for future partnerships," said PT. Ketrosden Triasmitra of Indonesia business and risk analysis manager Irene Mayarani.
