"Rich Multimedia and Information Technology are the Future for Arab Media," says Etisalat

Ali Al-Ahmed, Executive Vice-President of Planning and Strategy at Etisalat, said: "The rapid increase witnessed by the Arab world in the area of electronic publishing, and internet broadcasting has emphasized that these new approaches will motivate innovation in media for the future".

Al-Ahmed continued: "Online media is helping to achieve a balance between the distribution of information and the actual facts that are of interest to consumers. Information Technology has given the world a chance to gain more knowledge through more television stations and a wider variety of media".

According to statistics, the number of people using the Internet worldwide has reached 1.3 billion representing 20% of the world's population, and that there are now over 3 billion people using mobile phones.

With regards to the contribution of technology to the press in the Arab World, Al-Ahmed explained that the online media has provided the opportunity for many people in the Arab World to interact with the news.

"Modern applications for the Internet and Multimedia mobile devices provide the opportunity for anyone, anywhere to upload or download a video for specific events. This has connected viewers around the world to the news directly and quickly. Also by using a mobile phone anyone can capture an event and upload it on the Internet within minutes for millions of people around the world to view," Al-Ahmed continued.

Al-Ahmed represents the largest Arab telecommunications company, with 63 million subscribers, including the companies that Etisalat manages internationally.

Etisalat has introduced the most advanced technical services to the region, which have accelerated the use of Internet and multimedia applications in the Arab World in general, and the United Arab Emirates in particular.

In the UAE, there are close to 197,000 subscribers registered on Facebook, 5000 UAE Facebook groups, and more than 19,000 'UAE' You Tube videos available from the Internet.

"Etisalat has played a major role in providing the most advanced technology in the region," said Etisalat's Executive Vice President. "The corporation has made significant progress in the areas communications networks and Information Technology, and has provided the most modern tools available on an international level which in turn made the United Arab Emirates a hub for hundreds of Arab and international media agencies. This will also see the rise in new services in the online Arab media, it is expected that this year will see the launch of electronic versions of newspapers across the UAE for mobile phones".

During the forum, Al-Ahmed brought outlined the issues related to the Forum's main focus - 'Technology and the Integration of the Arab Media'. He highlighted the important role of advanced technology to support the media and the growing role of technology contributing to new forms of media, and to develop techniques that have changed the scope of media over the past few years.

With regards to the ability of the Internet to absorb this huge sum of information, photos and video, Ahmed said: "The world of the Internet is rapidly changing and every day there are new developments. Therefore, it is difficult to predict how much these new services will affect the requirement for capacity on the network".

The UAE hosts the Emirates Internet Exchange (EMIX), a part of Etisalat as well as landing points for all the major Eastward and Westward submarine cable networks.

Etisalat is also launching new submarine cable systems between the UAE and Europe (IMEWE - India, Middle East and Western Europe) and between the UAE and Africa (TEAMS - The East African Marine System and EASSy - East Africa Submarine Cable System).

Etisalat was established in 1976 and is today one of the major communications corporations on regional and global levels.

Etisalat is on its way to becoming one of the 10 largest communications companies in the world by 2010, and currently operates in 16 countries with international investments of estimated $40bn.

With an estimated market value of about $34bn Etisalat is ranked 16th globally in the telecommunications sector.