Strategic ICT Partner
Technology Partners
60 Mins Show dates: 20-24 October 2013, Dubai World Trade Centre
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AT GITEX TECHNOLOGY WEEK
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Exhibition hours: 11am -6pm
Lincoln showcases incar technology
Luxury car brand Lincoln has worked with a media company, Thwack, to create a world-first activation, specifically created to make Lincoln’s presence at GITEX Technology Week 2013 unique and memorable. A fully-customised Lincoln MKZ on the stand features a unique rearseat experience for visitors, whereby they can experience the features of the car while being driven around the city of their choice with a virtual chauffeur. The car is also unique in that the front windshield has visuals projected onto it from within, and the windows of the front-door feature interactive brochures that visitors can interact with using gestures. This innovation marks the first time that a multi-directional projection system has been used within an automobile, and the fact that it includes a touch- and gesture-based control system makes it more unique. “Lincoln has always been 4 CONTINUED ON PAGE 3
WHAT’S INSIDE
MobiBus flaunts appbuilding tech
Access Data on cyber security Cyber security has fast become a catch word in the region with organisations paying more attention to the potential threats and dangers within their online space. A few years ago, technology officers may have not invested much in this area, but with increasing awareness it’s a growing concern.
At GITEX Technology Week 2013, Paul Wright, Professional Services Manager, MEA&I, Access Data said, “Cyber security is moving forward in leaps and bounds in the Middle East and the Africa. Our products are taking the theme of cyber security at 4 CONTINUED ON PAGE 4
Etisalat partners with Fujairah Municipality
GITEX interview: WatchGaurd
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Lincoln...
committed to bringing the best, and this goes beyond our automobiles and the owner experience, to even making anyone’s interaction with our brand memorable. Our brief to Thwack was to bring to life all the exciting technologies of the
new MKZ in a way that engaged visitors in an indoor environment driving experience without actually being on the road, and we believe that we have achieved this”, said Paul Anderson, Marketing director, Lincoln Middle East.
The team initially visited Dubai and drove around in the Lincoln MKZ to get a feel of the car, and then went back to research and development to create the solution. Physical experiments were carried on the Lincoln MKZ, and the software and applications were developed with the end-user experience in mind. “We were tasked with creating this chauffeured luxury experience for GITEX visitors, and spent a lot of time both inside the vehicle and in our development rooms to devise the best fit. With this five-minute experience, the customer is actually immersed in the Lincoln brand in a memorable way, while at the same time educated on the latest and best within the Lincoln MKZ”, said Samantha Billingham, Thwack. Using 10 projectors of 500 lumens each for the window displays, military-
grade lazer software for the touch and gesture controls, and full two-way integration with platforms such as Twitter and Facebook. The app to control the experience was also designed to capture customer data when a visitor finishes the experience, and transfer data to the dealer as well as to Lincoln, if the visitor has requested a physical test drive. The physically-modified interiors of the vehicle also feature a customized air-conditioning unit that does not require the engine to be switched on, as well as a unique thermal conducting unit to divert the heat generated by the projectors outside the vehicle. Significant cabling and a full back-up system – both fully concealed – support this system. Lincoln’s stand during GITEX Technology Week is located in Hall 3 of the Dubai World Trade Centre.
MobiBus flaunts app-building tech
Mobile App developing newcomer MobiBus is flaunting its new app-building technology at GITEX Technology Week 2013. It is the first build-your-own mobile app in the Middle East region. The app is available for purchase
on either a quarterly or annual basis, costing $150 per month on the quarterly tariff and $125 per month on the latter one. Pierre Azzam, Founder and President, MobiBus, said: “MobiBus is so easy to use, the customer
does not need to have advanced technology skills, they can build the app in four easy steps. Our slogan is ‘An App for Everyone’ because we genuinely believe that anyone can use this app, and should be able to. “We take care of the headache of
ensuring that the customer’s app is on the apple or google play market, which takes a big weight of their mind.” The app is designed for a variety of customers, but Azzam says it is principally aimed at SMEs and startup entrepreneurs. “The biggest challenge that most entrepreneurs and small businesses face is their lack of capital,” he said. “We saw a large gap in the market, one of a need to facilitate the process of starting apps, which are huge cornerstones in this day and age.” He is also acutely aware of the potential for growth on home soil. “Our company is certainly what I would describe as homegrown. We are based in Dubai and I have personally been in the Middle East for 20 years. The region is extremely appealing for marketeers today, and we are hopeful that the launch of our product comes in a timely fashion.”
organisations evolve, that evolvement involves creating gaps or electronic voids. This enable offenders out there to take advantage of those gaps. I see us mainly being placed with the larger organisations due to these facts,” Wright explained. In 2014, Access Data plans to expand by increasing its staff and introducing new products in the market. Education is one of the key ways to move forward,
according to Wright. “But it needs to be continuous because offenders are also business inclined, so as soon as we change our tactics, so will they.” He went on to caution that vendors will always be playing catching up; it’s just a matter of how far the catching up is. “Our plan is a layered approach because there is no one-stop solution for cyber security,” he said.
“We will try and reduce that gap as much as possible.” The biggest challenge in this space is the continuous evolvement of cyber criminals and the fact that technology moves forward quickly. Wright further urged organisations to work in partnership and close those electronic voids. “Think of your cyber security and ensure that you have an incident response forensic capability either in house or outsourced.”
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AccessData... GITEX this year. Organisations used to question the need to invest in cyber security as they didn’t see any returns in this area. But what they are beginning to understand is that there will be returns as the companies will continue to be in business in a safe online environment.” For Access Data, the opportunities in this region lay with larger organisations. “This is because they are so vast and also because
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Etisalat partners with Fujairah Municipality
Etisalat has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Fujairah Municipality to enhance and strengthen their strategic partnership, services, special offers and projects.
HH Sheikh Mohammed bin Hamad bin Mohammed Al Sharqi, Crown Prince of Fujairah, Saleh Al Abdooli, CEO, Etisalat UAE, Mohamed Saif Al Afkham, Director General,
Fujairah Muncipality, Abdul Aziz Taryam, CEO Advisor and General Manager-Northern Emirates, Etisalat, were present during the signing held at GITEX Technology Week 2013. “Fujairah Municipality is one of the strongest governmental department of the East Coast utilising Etisalat’s various services. They are our strategic partners for business, network development as well as utility and general services,” said Taryam. “Etisalat will continue to provide ICT services aiming to boost and upgrade the mobility services in the department. This is essential to enable effective flow of information and efficiency in all sections of the municipality.”
Al Afkham added: “We have continuously invested in the future especially in utilising advanced telecom and ICT solutions to deliver public services in the most effective manner. Fujairah Municipality has been a long standing partner with Etisalat, and this new partnership will help drive our joint strategic initiatives and help the growth of the Municipality.” The new announcement will enable the provision of e-services, smart solutions and special offers to all employees and workers of the government sector. Etisalat’s mgovernment solutions and services are on display this week at stand ZA1, Zabeel Hall.
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GITEX Interview: WatchGuard features. This step offers customers the ability to accurately and easily apply security policies and changes to both wired and WLAN resources simultaneously, which is critical to enforcing security standards across the entire network infrastructure.
John Spoor, Regional Manager, Middle East, WatchGuard Are you releasing launching anything new at GITEX 2013? If so, what? We have a lot going on at this year’s GITEX in terms of new releases and launches. We are introducing our Data Loss Prevention Solution for Unified Threat Management (UTM). This new solution will enable businesses to instantly protect data and prevent costly regulatory attacks within their networks. Secondly, WatchGuard is partnering up with NCP engineering to offer Premium IPsec VPN Client. Microsoft Windows and Apple OS X users will be able to set up through one-click remote VPN access and reduce administrator set-up with this new best-in-class technology. In terms of announcements, WatchGuard attained its position as a “Leader” in Gartner’s 2013 Magic Quadrant for Unified Threat Management (UTM). According
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to Gartner, “savings of half of the total cost for network security can be achieved for small or midsize businesses (SMBs) using UTM.” Additionally, independent test have shown and validate WatchGuard’s ability to protect mid-sized businesses nearly 3.5 times faster than competing solutions, when all standard UTM features are enabled. Finally, as more and more companies incorporate bring-yourown-device (BYOD) policies into their networks in order to enable a mobile workforce and enhance productivity, WatchGuard is launching two new Wireless Access Point products, providing businesses with the same level of security for their Wireless Local Access Network (WLAN) traffic that they rely on for their traditional wired traffic. The new Wireless Access Points AP100 and AP200, extend the high-performing best-inclass and policy based management
How have you seen the Middle East respond to those trends in question, and how did you think that will change over the next year? There have been quite a few target examples of advanced malware since Stuxnet that seem to target Middle Eastern companies and critical infrastructure, such as the attacks on Duqu and Flame for example. As a result, we believe there is much more awareness and interest in information and network security. Companies in the Middle East are realizing that firewalls alone are not going to prevent attacks, and that they need to invest in more technology and people to protect themselves from these cyber risks. This regions is investing more in cyber security, and we’ve seen more security companies and professionals start to develop in the Middle East. What is the top reason you invest in GITEX — do you see a healthy return on your investment, or is it more about presence/visibility? During Gitex, WatchGuard is looking to expand the brand presence, increase our channel partner base, and of course, meet with new customer prospects. WatchGuard
has recently opened a new office in Dubai, helping to expand their presence in the region. The Middle East is a key growth area for us and it’s an important time for WatchGuard to be cementing relationships and expanding partnerships. We want to have partners throughout the region, on the ground, to provide our customers the solutions that they need to secure their businesses. What does your company hope to achieve by appearing at GITEX 2013? Further to expand our brand presence within the Middle East, we are looking to see a ROI for the time that we are putting in. We need to find the most appropriate resellers available so that we can develop a solid partnerships base. We are also competing with larger security vendors that are better known. We offer great products, effective solutions, but we need to get our name out there, with the ultimate goal being that WatchGuard being associated with security. As for the role that partners will play within this region - they will work directly with the customers. They are our connection to clients and the ones that implement our products and soltuions. We need to invest the time into new partnerships to insure that they are offering the best advice and service to customers. We will also be looking for specific partners that can support key industry verticals such as banking, finance, telecom and the public sector.
GITEX highlights
Publisher Dominic De Sousa, COO Nadeem Hood, Commercial Director Rajashree R Kumar, Group Editor Jeevan Thankappan Editors Ben Rossi, Tom Paye, Janees Reghelini, James Dartnell Circulation Manager Rajeesh M, Production Manager James Tharian, Senior Designers Analou Balbero, Glenn Roxas, Digital Services Manager Tristan Troy Magma Web Coordinator Jarris Pedroso Photographers Jay Colina, Abdul Kader
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