Region Ripe for the Adoption of Next Generation IT Infrastructure That Will Boost Profitability, Says Dubai Internet City Chief at IDC Summit

·        As Financial Climate Improves, Regional CIOs say agility is key as they upscale IT strategies to attain business advantage

·        Dubai Internet City Partners with IDC Summit 2011, Highlighting Its Competitive Edge as Most Preferred Base for Companies in the IT Sector

Dubai-UAE: 21 February, 2011 – Chief Information Officers from the region taking part in the IDC Middle East CIO Summit 2011, said that the region was ripe for the advent and implementation of new information technology, and that there was an ‘imperative need’ to re-align IT strategies that would position them in the lead to harness new opportunities.

The positive and dominating note was echoed at the two-day ‘Middle East CIO Summit 2011’, themed “Winning Strategies of Empowered CIOs”. The Summit was organized by the International Data Corporation (IDC), a global market intelligence and advisory firm in the IT and telecommunications industries, in partnership with Dubai Internet City.

Held at Atlantis, The Palm, Dubai, on February 20 and 21, this year’s summit provided a platform for CIOs, CTOs, businesses and IT executives to acquire insights into IT strategies, emerging technologies and best practices that have direct implications for their business landscapes. The Summit allowed enterprises of all sizes to re-evaluate existing workforce productivity and align growth strategies to business units within the organization for effecting change with transparency, efficiency and urgency.

In his keynote address, Malek Al Malek, Managing Director of Dubai Internet City and of Dubai Outsource Zone, observed that the expansions made by IT companies in the region even in difficult economic times was a salutary testament to the capabilities of their CIOs as they strove to grow operations in the region’s emerging markets.

Pointing to the way ahead, Malek said, “As the financial climate improves, companies that are slow to respond to the adoption of new market values will find themselves outpaced by more agile competitors. One of the chief challenges now facing CIOs is how to implement the rapid and dramatic technological advances in the IT sector – such as cloud computing – and integrate them into the enterprise’s advantage, while ensuring a maximum return on investment.”

Referring to the bright outlook for the region's ICT market, IDC's vice president and regional managing director for the Middle East, Africa, and Turkey, Jyoti Lalchandani, said: "We are delighted to have Dubai Internet City, as an ICT partner for the 4th year at the event. The Middle East CIO Summit 2011 is taking place against a backdrop of positive sentiment in the region, with our latest forecasts indicating a 10% year-on-year increase in IT spending in the Middle East during 2011, compared to a global average of 6.8%.

“There remains a strong focus on forging the closer alignment of ICT with the wider business goals of the organization, and we expect virtualization, business intelligence/analytics, and cloud computing to be the major ICT investment areas for the year ahead."

At the forefront of the region's ICT industry, Dubai Internet City, a part of TECOM Investments ICT Cluster, 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.

In 2010, Dubai Internet City registered year-on-year growth with 150 companies setting up base at the ICT cluster. The year also saw 48 of DIC’s business partners expanding their commercial operations and businesses in the region.