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| CeBIT Australia 2009 ORGANISERS of the world's largest business technology trade fair, CeBIT Hannover, have declared the event a huge success, despite the effects of the economic turmoil, having attracted 4,300 high-tech exhibitors from 69 countries, and more than 400,000 business visitors from all over the world. Despite the unprecedented depth of the global recession, Deutsche Messe AG Board Member Ernst Raue said the industry had drawn "fresh optimism" from the strength of the CeBIT event. "A huge number of exhibitors and visitors are now leaving Hannover with a renewed sense of buoyancy as well as bulging order books and a solid foundation for new business, " Mr Raue said. CeBIT's optimistic tone was set early on by California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, who opened the event with German Chancellor Angela Merkel. California had special status at CeBIT 2009 as its first ever 'Partner State.' "His (Governor Schwarzenegger's) optimistic and determined attitude strengthened the ICT industry's resolve to capitalise on all the available opportunities, " Mr Raue said. "This spirit of new momentum was felt tangibly by everybody at the show." The strength of CeBIT in Hannover has bolstered the already optimistic outlook for its sister event CeBIT Australia 2009, which is organised by Deutsche Messe AG subsidiary Hannover Fairs Australia and will be held at the Sydney Convention and Exhbition Centre from May 12-14. Mr Raue conceded the depth of the global economic crisis had not left the CeBIT event untouched. Both exhibitor and visitor numbers were down by about 20 per cent. But given the severity of the economic conditions, Mr Raue said the organisers were "extremely pleased" with the result. Hannover Fairs Australia Managing Director Jackie Taranto, who led a delegation of top research and business leaders to CeBIT Hannover, said there was a sense of optimism about the future among the thousands of exhibitors, with many expecting the downturn would present at least as many opportunities as challenges. "We've actually drawn strength from what we saw in Hannover, and we're more confident than ever that CeBIT Australia 2009 will be the biggest event we've held in Australia in its eight year history, " Ms Taranto said. "There is enormous interest from business users in new, low-cost solutions that let them gain efficiencies without having to dig deep for capital outlays. We expect record numbers of visitors through the doors at CeBIT Australia, and we think our conference program – which has been tailored to suit the difficult times – will be especially well attended." CeBIT Hannover featured a significantly "Green" outlook, with a lot of interest in ICT products and services that allowed companies to both reduce their carbon footprint while at the same time improving business efficiencies and delivering a fast return on investment. In his opening address, the environmentally pro-active Governor Schwarzenegger said the climate change was one of the great global challenges of the our time, and that the ICT sector had an enormous role to play both in addressing environmental issues, and in providing the productivity innovations to drag the global economy out of its slump. "Technology is also helping us to develop cleaner cars and alternative fuel to clean the air and to fight climate change, " said Governor Schwarzenegger, who led a delegation of more than 50 California technology firms to the event. "It's leading also to newer and cheaper forms of renewable energy and all of these advancements save customers and businesses big money and create millions and millions of jobs." The Australian Government Minister for Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy Stephen Conroy delivered a keynote address to a Broadband Forum as part of the CeBIT Global Conferences program in Hannover, detailing the plans for the National Broadband Network and highlighting the need to ensure regional areas were not left behind. Holding side meetings with global counterparts and European business leaders, Senator Conroy underscored the critical nature of the Government's NBN investment in providing a long-term productivity engine to drive the Australian economy. Senator Conroy is expected to name a winning bid to build the $15 billion NBN project in the next several weeks. In addition to provide short term economic stimulus as the massive nationwide network is built, it would give Australia a long term platform on which to build a whole new digital-based economy. CeBIT Australia 2009 opens at the Sydney Convention and Exhibition Centre at Darling Harbour from May 12-14. The event include five separate technology conferences held on-site at the event, including AusInnovate, the nation's peak R&D/commercialisation forum sponsored by top public sector research agencies NICTA, CSIRO ICT Centre and the Defence Science and Technology Organisation (DSTO, and the e-Government Forum, sponsored by the Australian Government Information Management Office (AGIMO). The other conferences are Access 2009, a peak business telecommunication event; WebForward 2009, a two-day conference on internet-based 2.0 technologies for business; and Enterprise 2009, a event focused on the latest cost-effective technology to maximise business returns. write your comments about the article :: © 2009 Exhibition News :: home page |