The annual Computex Taipei show is expected to attract more than 35,000 prospective buyers from Taiwan and abroad this year and generate US$20 billion in transactions, the event’s organizers said at a press conference yesterday.
The Taiwan External Trade Development Council (TAITRA, 外貿協會) said that the new Taipei World Trade Center Nangang Exhibition Hall would house part of the fair, allowing for the biggest Computex Taipei show ever.
THINKING BIG
“While most ICT [information and communications technology] exhibitions worldwide have begun to reduce their exhibition space, Computex Taipei will see an increase of 53 percent in floor space this year,” TAITRA executive vice president Walter Yeh (葉明水) said.
With the increase in space, the number of exhibitors will increase by slightly more than 28 percent to 1,710 this year from a year ago, while the number of booths will surge by around 53 percent to 4,482 booths, TAITRA’s data showed.
Furthermore, local firms including Acer Inc and Asustek Computer Inc (華碩電腦), along with foreign companies such as Intel Corp and Advanced Micro Devices Inc (AMD) will showcase their latest products, which Yeh said would help attract visitors.
The number of prospective buyers visiting Computex Taipei this year is expected to increase by around 2,000. In addition to US$20 billion in business transactions at the exhibit, the fair is expected to generate follow-up business worth between US$50 billion and US$60 billion, Yeh said.
“Computex Taipei is the most important procurement platform in the world,” Yeh said.
EXPO THEMES
Another of the event’s organizers, the Taipei Computer Association (TCA, 台北市電腦公會), said Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (WiMAX), ICT crossovers, new generation laptops and “green” technology would be the show’s main themes this year.
“The promotion of WiMAX technology will become TCA’s main focus in the next three to five years, which will give Taiwan’s information technology industry another new face and growth,” TCA deputy secretary general Chang Li (張笠) said.
Computex Taipei 2008 starts on June 3 and continues until June 7 at the Taiwan World Trade Center Xinyi and Nangang exhibition halls.
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