Hospitality and Retail Sectors Promote Audiovisual

Bandwidth-Building and Guest Experience-Enhancing Audiovisual Technology for Hotels and Vendors Featured at InfoComm MEA 2013, Co-Located at GITEX

DUBAI, UAE –October 8, 2013 – Hotels and shopping centres in the Middle East and Africa are heavily investing in the latest audiovisual technology to enhance the customer experience, as the tourism and hospitality sectors boom, according to industry experts.

Dubai continues to be one of the region's most popular destinations, attracting a record-high 5.5 million visitors in the first half of 2013, and is on track to achieve 20 million tourists annually by 2020, according to the Dubai Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing.

Demonstrating strong tourism growth, the UAE leads Middle East and Africa with one quarter of total hotel rooms in the active pipeline (32,107 of 117,450), followed by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Egypt, and Morocco, according to a research report by STR Global.

Africa is also posting records in arrivals at 53 million and international tourism receipts at USD 34 billion in 2012, according to a report from the United Nations World Tourism Organisation.

Travellers from the Middle East and Africa are more connected online than those from Europe, following the worldwide trend of 65 percent of travellers taking smartphones and 80 percent taking laptops, according to a recent VISA study.Consequently, guest demand for bandwidth is increasing, according to a case study by trade group Hotel Technology Next Generation.

David Lim, Project Director, InfoComm Middle East and Africa, said: “Hospitality and retail sectors across the Middle East and Africa are increasingly competitive, and hotels and vendors are increasingly investing in audiovisual systems to deliver the best the customer experience and engage with guests. Hoteliers can do more than provide high-speed Internet – they can engage in professional audiovisual systems to enable dynamic content on digital signage, enhance security and environmental sustainability, and transform the customer experience with state-of-the-art cinematic music, sound, and lighting controls.”

Retail is similarly skyrocketing in the region, as Dubai and Abu Dhabi are Top 25 global cities in shopping space under construction, according to a report from real estate services firm CBRE, while Sub-Saharan Africa is seeing 40 shopping centres under construction or set to break ground in 2013 at a total value of USD 3 billion, according to consultants Terrace Africa.

Key players in the hospitality, tourism and retail sectors – from property managers to IT managers – can discover the latest audiovisual resources at InfoComm MEA 2013, co-located at GITEX Technology Week, from 20-24 October 2013 at the Dubai World Trade Centre.

InfoComm MEA 2013 is organised by InfoComm Asia – the Asia Pacific regional subsidiary of InfoComm International, and the Dubai World Trade Centre.

Two of InfoComm MEA's key exhibitors --Extron Electronics, an American manufacturer of professional audiovisual system integration products, and Japanese electronics company Sharp Corporation -- have regional headquarters in Dubai and are eager to expand.

Extron Electronics recently transformed the audiovisual experience of the 1,300 square metreGrand Ballroom at the iconic InterContinental Phoenicia Hotel in Beirut, Lebanon.

Rainer Stiehl, Vice President of Marketing, Europe,Extron Electronics, said: “The Middle East and Africa are fuelling audiovisual innovation in the hospitality and retail fields, driven by the region's tech-savvy population. Hotels and retailers are using digital signage for advertising, news, and events, and are rapidly taking-up audiovisual solutions for conferences and enhancing the guest experience. InfoComm MEA will be the ideal event for us to take our leading audiovisual solutions across the region.”

Sharp Corporation produces a wide range of professional displays for commercial and retail environments.

Tomoo Shimizu, Director-Sharp Business Solutions Division, Sharp Corporation, said: “Properties of all sizes in the Middle East and Africa are seeing increased visitors, and they need to make an immediate impression using the latest audiovisual technology. Our equipment has seen strong success around the world for videoconferencing and interactive displays. Our continued participation in InfoComm MEA enables us to reach the region's leading hotel and retail brands as they seek to meet guests' high technology demands.”