More than 3,300 companies from 82 countries will participate in the Gitex Technology Week – one of the top technology events in the world.

As many as 572 renowned companies including 3LCD, Blackberry, Dangaard, Harman House, HCL Technologies, NEC Philips and UTStarcom have joined the event for the first time.

The event, running from September 8 to 12, will also host 28 national pavilions led by China, the largest national pavilion with 115 companies.

Italy and Bulgaria will send first-time official representation while several regional pavilions making their presence include those of Egypt with 28 companies and Lebanon lining up 28 companies.

The mega-event, which is divided into three major streams – Gitex Business Solutions, Gulfcomms and Consumer Electronics – will enable greater specialisation and focused business development for specific technology sectors, , the organisers said.

This year’s Gitex Technology Week occupies a full 64,000 sq m within Dubai International Convention and Exhibition Centre, filling the entire venue to capacity.

The event is sold out, with four companies -- Dubai Internet City (DIC), etisalat, Oracle and Sony -- taking more than 1,000 sq m  of space.
 
 “Gitex has over the years consistently facilitated new business opportunities and partnerships for the participating international ICT community. We are confident this presentation of Gitex Technology Week, with the new customer-focussed initiatives will create even more business value for all participants,” said Dubai World Trade Centre director-general Helal Saeed Al Marri.

Industry support has been robust, with world technology leaders including Acer, CA, Cisco, Cognos, DIC, du, etisalat, HP, IBM, i-Mate, Intel, Oracle, Panasonic, Samsung, SAP, Sun Microsystems, Sony, TRA  and Trend Micro set to announce important strategic developments and host major product launches during the event.

“Through the continued dialogue we have with our clients and the new programmes we implement, we believe we will be able to strategically position Gitex Technology Week as the most significant and innovative trade show to effectively serve the dynamic requirements of the region’s ICT industry,” said Al Marri. 

As part of its visitor enhancement programme for this year, Gitex Technology Week will present the Gitex Priority Club, sponsored this year by Sun Microsystems. This initiative will grant visiting senior executives with show-related privileges that will optimise their time and experience during their visit to the event.

Also new this year is Gitex Technology Week Global Conference, sponsored by IBM and developed with Conference Management Partner CPI.  The keynote address features Alfred W Zollar, World Wide President and General Manager of IBM Tivoli Software who will present to a senior executive audience on “Innovation That Matters”.

This inaugural Global Conference features a 5-day educational programme of 45 speakers including Dr Otto Schily, Member of German Parliament, Optimiza, Justin Doo, MD, Trend Micro MEA, Mr. Hari Padmanabhan, CEO, 3I Infotech Middle East, Mohammed Shah, CTO, KEC Saudi Arabia, Mr. Hatem Al Sibai, CIO, Al Ghurair Group, Mr. Bob Kalka, Global Security Enablement Manager Tivoli Software, IBM Software Group, Mr. Ahmad Al Mulla, CIO, DUBAL , amongst others in 10 powerpacked  sessions.

The Conference programme is designed to complement the exhibition by providing a dialogue-based avenue of discussion for some of the challenges and opportunities currently experienced by the industry, particularly within the Middle East and North Africa.

A series of daily CxO power lunches have been designed to identify critical management issues and offer peer-level networking opportunities. Industry-specific sessions covering various themes are to include: Keeping pace with growth: focus on Public<