Abu Dhabi to host global telecom leaders

More than 50 representatives from international telecoms solutions providers such as Alcatel Lucent, Ericsson, Tektronix and Motorola will debate the issues affecting a fast growing market at MECOM, the Middle East Communications Exhibition and Conference, taking place from May 26-28 at the Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre.

The MECOM summit is held under the patronage of HH General Sheikh Mohammed Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces and Chairman of the Executive Council of the Emirate of Abu Dhabi, and is officially supported by the Telecommunications Regulatory Authority of the UAE and Dubai Internet City.

A recent report from Madar Research concluded that in the Middle East and North Africa region alone the telecommunications and broadband internet sectors would generate $70 billion in annual revenue by 2015. The same report estimates that GCC states need to invest $375 billion in telecoms in the next 10 years if they are to keep pace with changing global technologies.

Against this background, the summit's programme reflects the pressing issues affecting the telecoms industry including mobile internet, 3G and broadband, techno fraud and security and web 2.0.

With internet penetration and broadband subscription on the rise, industry experts estimate that the GCC will spend approximately 25% of their funds devoted to infrastructure development on the expansion of telecommunications.

A highlight of the summit will be the opening address by Ericsson's Jeremy Foster entitled 'The New Economy - capturing the next growth phase', which details the opportunities and challenges in adapting technologies.

David Hirst, Exhibition & Conference Director of MECOM said the summit comes at a critical juncture for the telecoms market. 'Every country in the region from Saudi Arabia to Iran, Palestine and Syria are all facing the challenges posed by a rapidly growing telecoms market - land-based, internet and mobile,' he added. 'The MECOM Summit will tackle these issues head on in the most important gathering of industry experts in 2008.'