European manufacturers head for Dubai as CABSAT2006 experiences 23% increase

The show scheduled to take place from March 7 to 9, at the Dubai International Convention and Exhibition Centre, will have strong participation by companies from the Eurozone, including Austria, Belgium, France, Italy plus "Government Supported" country pavilions from Spain, Germany and the UK among others thereby registering an overall growth of 23% in participating companies from Europe.

"The Middle East region offers tremendous prospects for the Communication and Electronic Media sectors and the growing presence of the many European manufacturers is proof of opportunities available ," said DWTC General Manager, Exibitions, Trixee Loh.

Exhibiting for the first time as a "Governmental Supported" National Group is the Spanish Pavilion, bringing the total area occupied by Spanish exhibitors to 192 square metres, an increase by 3 folds compared to the last event.

"The Middle East market is becoming increasingly important for Spanish companies in search of non-traditional market for export, given the fact that exports are the main driving force behind Spanish broadcasting products. The response for CABSAT has been overwhelming. The Spanish Pavilion will showcase highly competitive solutions and a broad array of technological products in the most diverse broadcasting fields ", said Vicente Baena from AETIC, the Spanish Electronics and Telecommunication Industries Association. "The exhibitors are mainly SMEs who provide the most competitive solutions", he added.

In addition to the Spanish participation, other countries have all increased their space at this years show. The German contingent has increased its exhibition space by more than 52% similary the Italian participation has increased by 142 % and the UK's allocation is up by 85% making them the largest group booking with 950 sqm. This spurt in European companies participating at the show is a clear pointer to the show's ability to reach out to buyers throughout the GCC and neighbouring region. CABSAT2006 will also showcase a whole host of technological advances from regionally located companies from the GCC, Asian countries and from as far as North America and Canada.

The Pan-Arab region has seen numerous developments in the Communications and Electronic Media industy over the past two years. Liberalisation of the communication sector by government, explosive growth in the number of new FTA TV and Radio Channels and implementation of new technological advances like DVB-RCS, HDTV, Interactive TV and Broadband via Satellite have stimulated growth and spurred investment substantially.

CABSAT2006 the Leading Electronic Media and Communication Event in the Middle East, will focus on three main segments: i) Cable & Satellite Equipment and Accessories, ii) Broadcast & Production and iii) Communications. The event is expected to attract over 7,500 visitors to CABSAT this year.

Last year the event covered a gross floor space measuring 12,000 M2 and attracted 7,384 visitors. As many as 402 companies from 52 countries participated in the event including five country pavilions from the UK, Germany (Bavaria), China, Taiwan and Korea.