Dubai Internet City Backs Trend in Video-on-Demand Services at IPTV World Forum Middle East and Africa 2009

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 Dubai Internet City (DIC), the region’s largest managed ICT cluster and a member of TECOM Investments, today leveraged its participation at the IPTV World Forum Middle East and Africa 2009 to show support for fast emerging trends in Internet Protocol television (IPTV).

DIC was the official ICT partner of the event that was held from 15-16 November at the Jumeirah Beach Hotel in Dubai and attracted over 750 industry majors.
 
Malek Al Malek, Executive Director, Dubai Internet City, said: “Many of the world’s major telecom providers today are exploring Internet protocol television as a new revenue opportunity from their existing markets. While IPTV is changing the TV viewing experience into one that is more interactive and personalized, it is also important for the industry to examine ways to maximise the benefits audience receive through this technology.
 
“Unlike the one-way information flow from the broadcaster to the viewers, IPTV offers target audiences an opportunity to communicate on their own terms, and participate with a community of like-minded peers based on individual interests and needs. The success of the forum is a reflection of the region’s acceptance to move with the times as people realize the need to reassess the way they interact with the broadcast medium.”
Raul Alvares, Project Director at TECOM Investments, parent company of Dubai Internet City, delivered a presentation on ‘Mobile TV, Challenges and Opportunities in the UAE’ during the two-day conference.
 
Alvares said: “TECOM Investments is already exploring the mobile TV industry through the pilot set up of a mobile TV commercial network in the region, otherwise known as DVB-H.
 
“The successful implementation of the project will create market opportunities for the IT and media sectors in the region, enabling companies to partner and consider more advanced services for the mobile TV service industry. Ultimately, this will allow a more interactive experience for viewers as and when they would like to receive content from television networks.”
 
Industry statistics reveal the existence of a growing number of IPTV installations among the business community in addition to the government and education institutions. IPTV has become a means of delivering live TV content and video-on-demand over the Internet through conventional TV sets. Thanks to broadband services, web-based TV viewing has become increasingly popular and is set to reach over 400 million households worldwide by the year 2010, up from more than 200 million in 2005 according to a Gartner report
 
The rise of social media sites in the region are prime examples of multimedia service experience via the Internet. IPTV services enable high-speed access channels allowing viewers to ‘channel surf’ and access an interactive guide that can help them search for channels by title or even a TV personality’s name. On the other hand, the rise of IPTV has enabled television networks to deliver high-impact, premium quality and tailored broadcast content in a cost effective fashion to a potentially global audience.
 
At the forefront of the region’s ICT industry, Dubai Internet City serves as a platform for IT players to interact with others and establish business partnerships in niche segments of the industry. Dubai Internet City remains committed to supporting emerging technology trends in the region and continues to play an instrumental role in developing the industry while contributing to Dubai’s drive towards creating a knowledge-based economy.
 

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