NEWS

ARTHUR D. LITTLE REPORT DETAILS WHY THE MIDDLE EAST MUST PURSUE 5G

Cities face many challenges stemming from societal and technological changes, with population growth, urbanisation, infrastructure provision, cybercrime, and environmental pollution driving the increasing necessity for new digital use cases. Looking ahead, projects based on 5G, the next generation of mobile network technology, will help overcome these challenges and enhance economic development across industries. Arthur D. Little (ADL), the management consultancy firm with the longeststanding presence in the Middle East, expound this viewpoint in their latest report entitled “Is your city ready to go digital? How 5G use cases will unleash your city’s full potential.” The report details how 5G is fundamentally changing the way by which cities can shape urban life for citizens and improve ecosystems for corporations, providing strategic insights and a comprehensive explanation of why cities must pursue the technology.

ADL highlights that 5G implementation frameworks must address two main points. Firstly, cities must decide which 5G use cases are of strategic importance to them and whether they should be provided by the city itself. Secondly, cities must overcome 5G infrastructural challenges by building infrastructure or supporting telecom operators’ efforts to carry out the same mandate. Should these areas not be addressed, people and businesses may view relocation as the answer to declines in competitiveness and quality of life caused by insufficient technological infrastructure coverage in their city. However, new applications based on 5G can make valuable contributions in tackling the challenges above, ultimately preventing residents and organisations from seeking opportunities elsewhere.

ORACLE ENABLES ADVANCED FOOTBALL ANALYTICS FOR PREMIER LEAGUE

The Premier League has chosen Oracle as its official cloud provider. In teaming with Oracle, the Premier League will provide a deeper understanding of the live action on the pitch through new in-match statistics. Oracle’s data and analytics and machine learning technologies will deliver these statistics in real-time to a global audience of billions each season.

“Match Insights – Powered by Oracle Cloud” will present advanced player performance data and statistics during global broadcast coverage, and across the Premier League’s social channels, starting with the 2021/22 season. Machine learning models will be developed to generate immediate results based on live data streams, real-time tracking data, and facts collected on each of the League’s players and from thousands of previous matches.

Research shows that fans are interested in the integration of match data and analysis, and these insights will help tell more stories about Premier League matches, providing fans a data-rich experience. Fans will be able to access a range of match information instantly, whether they are watching from home or checking scores on their mobile devices.

Premier League Chief Executive, Richard Masters, said, “We are always looking at new ways to bring the Premier League to life and enhance the analysis of the competition. Oracle is a global brand with a great track record of driving innovation, and we look forward to working together to bring new levels of engagement to fans around the world.”

IBM UNVEILS NANOMETER CHIP TECHNOLOGY

IBM has unveiled a breakthrough in semiconductor design and process with the development of the world’s first chip announced with 2 nanometer (nm) nanosheet technology. Semiconductors play critical roles in everything from computing, to appliances, to communication devices, transportation systems, and critical infrastructure.

Demand for increased chip performance and energy efficiency continues to rise, especially in the era of hybrid cloud, AI, and the Internet of

Things. IBM’s new 2 nm chip technology helps advance the state-of-the-art in the semiconductor industry, addressing this growing demand. It is projected to achieve 45 percent higher performance, or 75 percent lower energy use, than today’s most advanced 7 nm node chips.

According to the company, the potential benefits of these advanced 2 nm chips could include: • Quadrupling cell phone battery life, only requiring users to charge their

devices every four days. • Slashing the carbon footprint of data centers, which account for one percent of global energy use.

Changing all of their servers to 2 nmbased processors could potentially reduce that number significantly. • Drastically speeding up a laptop’s functions, ranging from quicker processing in applications, to assisting in language translation more easily, to faster internet access. • Contributing to faster object detection and reaction time in autonomous vehicles like selfdriving cars.

“The IBM innovation reflected in this new 2 nm chip is essential to the entire semiconductor and IT industry,” said Darío Gil, SVP and Director of IBM Research. “It is the product of IBM’s approach of taking on hard tech challenges and a demonstration of how breakthroughs can result from sustained investments and a collaborative R&D ecosystem approach.”

SITECORE BUYS MOOSEND

Sitecore has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Moosend, a marketing automation and campaign management platform. The acquisition, which is part of Sitecore’s ambitious ongoing $1.2 billion growth plan, is expected to close by the end of May of 2021.

Moosend perfectly complements Sitecore’s industry-leading core offering to create a personalisation powerhouse for modern enterprises. Moosend’s state-of-the-art marketing automation and AIpowered customer engagement features will streamline Sitecore’s ability to engage, nurture, and convert customer relationships to deliver personalised experiences across every channel. The combined offering will make it easier for marketers to deploy and measure campaigns and automate workflows across the entire customer journey – a game-changer for the majority of brands not yet set up for life cycle marketing.

Steve Tzikakis, CEO, Sitecore, said, “At Sitecore, we believe that this environment is actually an opportunity for enterprise customers to make once-in-a-generation leaps forward in terms of human connection, customer acquisition and brand loyalty. That’s why Sitecore is building the industry’s first fully integrated, end-to-end SaaS-based digital experience platform — to facilitate both the modern art and science of earning customer relationships through experience to make consenting to data-sharing an afterthought.”

SOPHOS ANNOUNCES XDR SOLUTION WITH NEW EDR CAPABILITIES

Sophos has announced Sophos XDR, an extended detection and response (XDR) solution that synchronises native endpoint, server, firewall, and email security. With this comprehensive and integrated approach, Sophos XDR provides a holistic view of an organisation’s environment with the richest data set and deep analysis for threat detection, investigation and response.

Sophos XDR extends visibility across Sophos’ next-generation portfolio of solutions for an in-depth picture of threats. At the heart of Sophos XDR is the industry’s richest data set. The solution offers two types of data retention, including up to 90 days of on-device data, plus 30 days of cross-product data in the cloud-based data lake. The unique approach of blending on-device and data lake forensics provides the broadest and most in-depth contextualised insights that can be leveraged by security analysts through Sophos Central and via open application programming interfaces (APIs) for ingestion into security information and event management (SIEM); security orchestration, automation and response (SOAR); professional service automation (PSA); and remote monitoring and management (RMM) systems.

The data lake hosts critical information from Intercept X, Intercept X for Server, Sophos Firewall, and Sophos Email.Sophos Cloud Optix and Sophos Mobile will also feed into the data repository later this year. Security and IT teams can easily access this data to run cross-product threat hunts and investigations, and to quickly drill into granular details of past and present attacker activity. The availability of offline access to historical data further protects against lost or impacted devices.

EXPO 2020 TO DEPLOY CISCO WI-FI

Expo 2020 Dubai is deploying Cisco’s Wi-Fi technology – ensuring fast and secure wireless connections throughout the 4.38 square kilometer site.

Expo 2020 Dubai, the first World Expo to be hosted in the Middle East, Africa and South Asia (MEASA) region, expected to welcome thousands of visitors per day once fully operational from 1 October 2021. It is estimated that the majority of these visitors will be connecting to Cisco’s Wi-Fi network at any given time.

With Expo 2020 Dubai seeking to deliver unique and engaging experiences, Cisco’s Wi-Fi technology will prove critical to keeping visitors at the heart of the action and connected with each other and their surroundings. Cisco’s Wi-Fi network will enable the visitor to connect effortlessly to a rich variety of technology services that will enhance the visitor experience, including engaging AR and VR content as well as application and location services and barcode and QR code scanning. The network will also facilitate fast upload and download speeds so that every visitor can become an ambassador of Expo – sharing their experience with the world through realtime audio-visual content.

Mohammed Alhashmi, Chief Technology Officer at Expo 2020 Dubai, said, “Expo 2020 will showcase breakthrough ideas, innovations and technologies that are shaping the future of our planet. As we prepare to welcome millions of visitors, we are working closely with strategic partners such as Cisco to ensure that Expo 2020 will be one of the smartest, fastest and most connected places on earth, ensuring an exceptional experience for visitors and continuing to provide world-class digital connectivity when Expo transitions into District 2020 – a model for future smart cities.”

SMARTCROWD DEBUTS REAL ESTATE CROWDFUNDING ON TEZOS BLOCKCHAIN

SmartCrowd Holding, parent group of the DFSA-regulated property investment and technology platform SmartCrowd Limited, has signed a deal for leveraging the open-source Tezos blockchain platform in MENA. SmartCrowd will empower people to crowdfund investment in real estate using blockchain technology and cryptocurrencies via the Tezos network.

SmartCrowd CEO and Co-Founder Siddiq Farid, said, “As a fully licensed and regulated business, it is essential that we use technology that enhances trust, transparency, and efficiency. By using the Tezos blockchain, we are empowering our investors and providing an even better service that aligns with our core values. This announcement underlines our commitment to pioneer the way people invest in real estate using the very best technology.”

The agreement will offer three main benefits for SmartCrowd investors. First, it will provide greater transparency for investors as Tezos enables smart contracts on a decentralised blockchain ledger. Second, fast and secure transactions on the Tezos network will increase the speed at which transactions are executed, providing investors with a frictionless buying and selling experience and ensuring that each transaction is reflected instantaneously on the SmartCrowd dashboard. Finally, the technology will give SmartCrowd investors more options for liquidity by lowering minimum investment thresholds. This will provide SmartCrowd customers with the most inclusive, efficient and effective service.

VMWARE ANNOUNCES ZERO CARBON COMMITTED INITIATIVE

VMware has announced the launch of the VMware Zero Carbon Committed cloud partner initiative. The goal is to catalyse the transition to zero-carbon clouds and help its customers reach their sustainability and decarbonisation targets by connecting them with cloud providers that have aligned goals.

Participating VMware Cloud Verified providers must operate infrastructure-, energy- and carbon-efficient data centers based on VMware software defined data center (SDDC) technologies and be committed to powering those data centers with renewable energy sources by 2030. European-based partners Atea and OVHcloud as well as Equinix, IBM, Microsoft and OVHcloud US have joined the initiative.

“It’s crucial we make significant progress on climate action as soon as possible, so it’s encouraging to see more and more companies, including VMware customers and partners, as well as countries committing to reach net zero carbon,” said Joe Baguley, VP & CTO EMEA, VMware. “This initiative builds on VMware’s history of helping customers reduce their environmental impact through the more efficient use of IT infrastructure, and will make it easier for our customers and partners to accelerate their transition to a lowcarbon economy.”

VMware as a longstanding commitment to sustainability. The company achieved carbon neutrality and is committed achieve net zero carbon emissions for its operations and supply chain by 2030. This target is part of VMware’s 2030 Agenda, which outlines its 10-year commitment to create a more equitable, sustainable and resilient world. A key component is “Intrinsic Sustainability” innovation to help its customers, through VMware’s virtualization and cloud solutions and partnerships, meet their sustainability goals by reducing the carbon emissions associated with their data center operations.

AVEVA, MAIRE TECNIMONT COLLABORATE TO ACCELERATE INDUSTRIAL DX

AVEVA has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contractor Tecnimont, a subsidiary of the Maire Tecnimont Group, to create new digital predictive and prescriptive maintenance services that drive enhanced business outcomes.

This partnership will extend usage of AVEVA’s Asset Performance Management (APM) solutions across the Maire Tecnimont Group, globally, enhancing plant operability and lowering maintenance costs. This will in turn deliver increased information availability empowering better, more informed decision-making, and ultimately improving overall business performance. As part of the agreement, the two companies will work together over a twelve-month period on a defined number of customer projects to promote the application of predictive maintenance technology for critical plant assets.

“Digital transformation is one of the technology drivers most needed to give our industry a much-needed boost. This MoU with AVEVA aligns seamlessly with Maire Tecnimont’s strategy for digital transformation: it complements our value proposition which focuses on NextPlant, our new digital services and solutions portfolio that has been designed to fully meet customer’s needs, while simultaneously improving our operational model through the creation of digital enablers,” said Pierroberto Folgiero, CEO Maire Tecnimont Group

Kim Custeau, Vice President, Asset Performance Management, AVEVA, said, “AVEVA’s Asset Performance Management suite is well positioned to advance industrial operations of the future. By enabling companies to predict failures before they occur, we are helping to reduce unplanned downtime as well as drive efficiency and safety throughout plant operations. We are excited about the partnership with Maire Tecnimont and look forward to supporting our joint customers in overcoming today’s industrial challenges by leveraging human experience with artificial intelligence.”

HELP AG: DDOS AND RANSOMWARE ATTACKS HIT RECORD LEVELS IN ME

The cybersecurity arm of Etisalat Digital, Help AG’s State of the Market Report 2021 revealed that over ten million Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attacks were recorded globally in 2020, including a 183% increase in the UAE alone, while ransomware attacks are on the rise, with the government, private, oil and gas, telecom and healthcare sectors particularly affected.

The first of its kind to focus exclusively on digital security in the Middle East region, Help AG’s State of the Market Report 2021 delivers cybersecurity intelligence across a range of parameters, including the top threats over the course of 2020, the region’s biggest vulnerabilities, the kinds of attacks and attack vectors which are a cause for concern, the anatomy of some high-profile breaches, security investment patterns of organisations in the region, and where the market is headed in terms of technologies and evolution.

“Public and private sectors across the world are facing unprecedented levels of digital threats which are only increasing year-on-year,” said Stephan Berner, Chief Executive Officer at Help AG. “Help AG’s State of the Market Report was created to be the ultimate guidebook for cybersecurity in the Middle East. Through the report, Help AG seeks to work closely with our clients and our partners to spread awareness and stay ahead of emerging threats, thus elevating cybersecurity for the entire region.”

GARTNER: IT SPENDING IN MENA TO SOAR TO $171 BILLION IN 2021

IT spending in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) is projected to total $171 billion in 2021, an increase of 4.5% from 2020, according to the latest forecast by Gartner.

“IT projects were either put on hold or canceled in MENA because of

COVID-19. In 2021, as the situation in the region improves and businesses understand the true value of a resilient digital ecosystem, IT spending will return to a pre-pandemic growth rate,” said John-David Lovelock, distinguished research vice president at Gartner. “In the first quarter of 2021 projects such as ‘remote work visas’, ‘Smart Dubai 2021’, and other economic policy regulations were launched. These are expected to boost technology investments in the region.”

In 2020, IT spending in MENA grew 2.7%, as compared to 2020. Most of the segments experienced flat growth, except for communications services which grew 7.2% last year. This year, enterprise software will experience the highest growth at 14.5%. The increase in number of remote workers will be the catalyst to this growth. Growth will also return to segments such as data center systems and devices over the next two years.

IT spending in MENA will return to pre-pandemic levels and even surpass it over the next two years. “Different economies have reacted differently to the pandemic. Rapid digitalisation of MENA, especially the gulf countries, began before the pandemic. While 2020 slowed the growth of IT in the region, the ‘K-shaped’ recovery has begun faster in this region, as compared to Asia and Latin America,” said Lovelock.

CIOs in MENA will increase their spending on servers, applications and infrastructure software in 2021, to support the rapid digitalization efforts. Additionally, the increase in remote workforce will increase spending on mobile devices and remote working technologies such as desktop-as-aservice (DaaS).

SENETAS, THALES UNVEIL QUANTUM RESISTANT NETWORK ENCRYPTION SOLUTION

Thales and Senetas have collaborated to launch the world’s first quantum resistant network encryption solution, capable of protecting customer data (at speeds up to 100 Gbps) against future quantum attacks. Regarded as among the most significant threat to cybersecurity, quantum-computing looks set to render many of today’s security methods, such as encryption, obsolete.

With estimates that a working quantum computer outside a lab environment will be a reality within the next five to 10 years, minimum security requirement standards are being developed to protect data in a quantum world. The United States National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) is currently selecting finalists amongst the quantum safe encryption algorithms being developed. In anticipation of this, the collaboration between Thales and Senetas supports the current finalists (including Thales’ Falcon algorithm), enabling an easy transition to the winning formula expected to be chosen by NIST in 2022. The solution also supports the latest European Telecommunication Standards Institute standards for how quantum keys are created, protected and distributed – an important and emerging security capability that has application usage in 5G networks.

Enabling customers to combine both conventional and quantum resistant encryption in a single network security platform, the solution also provides long-term data protection in a quantum world. Hackers harvesting encrypted data today, will come unstuck when attempting to break data with supercomputing power in the future. The adoption of the new standards will protect any critical data and continue to render the data useless without the correct key.