The 2012 edition of Dubai Entertainment Amusement and Leisure (DEAL), the largest amusement and entertainment show in the Middle East, opened today (April 17) in Dubai.

The 18th edition of the show, which expects to attract over 5000 trade visitors, will run up to April 19 at The Arena, Dubai World Trade Centre.

DEAL 2012 was officially inaugurated by Hussain Nasser Lootah, Director General of Dubai Municipality. Mohammed Falaknaz, vice president of event organisers International Expo Consults (IEC) and Sharif Rahman, CEO, IEC were present among other senior international industry officials during the inauguration.

IEC is a subsidiary of Falak Holding, UAE’s multi-faceted business conglomerate.

“We have reached another landmark today and is a big day for all of us at IEC as we have inaugurated the 18th edition of the show,” said Falaknaz.

“I would like to thank all our exhibitors and partners who have supported and trusted us throughout this journey. We grew organically and today it has become one of the largest platforms in the Middle East for entertainment and leisure industry. The show has generated sales amounting to millions of dollars for exhibitors during the last year and we are expecting this year to be another record breaking event.'

The show is featuring over 200 firms from across 30 countries.

DEAL 2012 will witness a large gathering of key players and visitors representing the amusement industry from the Middle East, Africa, Europe, US, Mediterranean and Asian countries.

The event will welcome some of the amusement industry’s leaders, with regional and global names such as Warehouse of Games, Amusement Services International (ASI), Rainbow Productions, Zamperla Middle East, EOS RIDES - DARSIE SRL and The United Distributing Company among other industry majors from across the globe.

According to a research by US based Global Industry Analysts (GIA) the worldwide market for theme parks is forecast to reach $31.8 billion by the year 2017.

As per the report, growth will primarily be driven by increased consumer per capita spending on entertainment and leisure platforms, and growing base of middle class households, increasing disposable incomes, urbanization in developing countries, and waxing popularity of mass entertainment.

“The entertainment and amusement industry is growing worldwide and in the Middle East.  We are expecting approximately 18-20 per cent growth within the industry this year which is a remarkable rate of growth,” said Falaknaz.

“Our show was completely sold out several months prior to the event and that is a great indication that the industry was not impacted by the regional or the global situation.”

“Definitely the amusement and theme parks industry will grow in the years to come.  As mentioned the key reason for that is this region doesn’t have the luxury of being outdoors throughout the year,” said Sharif Rahman.

“Family Entertainment Centres (FEC) are growing as this is a part of a mall where people go to shop and dine and also take their family to the entertainment activities which are all available within the mall at a fraction of the cost. People want something different and interesting to spend their time and money on. Through DEAL we aim to address all these aspects of the industry and aim to provide a platform for the exhibitors and customers,” he added.

“As an exhibitor, this is their best opportunity of the year to showcase quality equipments and services to thousands of potential buyers at a single venue. This year again, there are several innovative solutions that are being showcased at the show,” Rahman concluded. – TradeArabia News Service