GCC countries have been working towards diversifying their economies to become independent of petroleum. One of the major focus areas for the nations of the region has been tourism and the subsequent investment in the entertainment industry. In an attempt to provide exclusive and immersive experience, the industry has had to rely majorly upon new technological advances.

According to industry expert Sharif Rahman, CEO, International Expo Consults (IEC), organisers of Deal 2019, “The amusement, entertainment and leisure industry in the GCC countries have come a long way. UAE boasts of multiple, award-winning entertainment venues prevalent in the country. As host to multiple theme parks such as IMG World of Adventures, Legoland, Motiongate, Bollywood Parks; and Ferrari World and Warner Bros in driving distance, Dubai is definitely the theme park capital of the region”.    

Rosa Tahmaseb, managing director EMEA – Helix Leisure, said “The industry in the Middle East is interesting at the moment. With various factors affecting the economy, we are seeing a slight change in spending patterns. However, with Saudi Arabia opening up to the entertainment industry, the sector will surely have a big impact on both vendors and operators alike.

One of the reasons that the entertainment industry has found success in the region is its early adoption of the latest technology. Virtual reality and augmented reality has been around for a long time, particularly the former, but its application in theme park rides and games has been pretty recent. The region has welcomed this new change wholeheartedly in the form of a VR park in Dubai Mall that was launched earlier this year.

Technology has also helped in consolidating the back-end operations of the park. Firms such as Embed, a Helix Leisure company, who deal in debit card technology, have been providing point of sale and revenue management technology to the amusement parks and FECs around the world.

As part of the upcoming Deal 2019 event, Embed would be introducing its ticketing and booking management platform ‘Booking Boss’, an end-to-end, web-based ticketing and booking management solution for high-performing attractions. Booking Boss centralises all admissions revenue and since it’s a cloud-based platform, it allows for seamless connectivity with the world’s largest database of online travel agents (OTAs) via the Channel Manager. By centralising admissions into Booking Boss, the customers benefit with increased business visibility which results in the ability for informed business decisions, increased revenue opportunities, improved internal processes and streamlined customer ticketing and booking experiences

“We have had a long-standing and fulfilling relationship with Deal 2019. This year we will showcase Booking Boss. It provides attractions with the option to centralise ticketing and booking management. The platform manages bookings no matter which channel it comes in but also arms the business with a variety of tools such as capacity management, scheduling, re-allocation and auto-communications. This enables attractions the opportunity to maximise selling opportunities and ultimately, increase profit margins”, added Tahmaseb.

Deal 2019 would mark the silver anniversary of the show. For the past two and a half decades, Deal has represented the largest gathering of entertainment and leisure industry’s key players and visitors from the Middle East, Africa, US, Mediterranean and Asian countries. Deal has shaped the region’s entertainment industry during this time and has brought together opinion leaders and high-tech innovations all on one platform.

Opening its doors for the 25th time, Deal 2019 is scheduled to be held between March 25 and 27, 2019, at Halls 1, 2, 3 and 4 at the World Trade Centre, Dubai.  - TradeArabia News Service