CommunicAsia celebrates 30 years

SINGAPORE: Over the last three decades, Asia has undergone rapid change and transformation, emerging as one of the world’s most vital economic markets and the leading region in IT innovation. During this time, CommunicAsia has not only been witness to this remarkable transformation, but also played a key role in bringing together the players within the IT industry.

2009 marks its 30th anniversary, thirty years during which CommunicAsia has always stayed ahead of its time, serving as the platform for launching technology breakthroughs that have changed the way people and businesses communicate and interact over the last three decades.

CommunicAsia is now the largest infocomm exhibition and conference in Asia, and a must-attend event in the calendar for business leaders, government officials and trade professionals across the region. The event has come a long way since its humble beginnings back in 1979 as a mid-sized biennial show at what was then the Hyatt Singapore’s Convention Centre. CommunicAsia1979 featured 219 exhibitors including British Telecommunication Systems, CIT Alcatel, Hitachi, N.E.C. Computers Singapore, Philips and Sagem.  The exhibition expanded rapidly in the ensuing years, playing its part in the industry’s transition from analogue to the digital era.

By 1990, the number of exhibitors had doubled to more than 500 companies from 30 countries as several factors created a wave of change that swept across Asia. This included the liberalisation of national telecommunication markets and emergence of multiple telecom operator environments that began in the late eighties, accompanied by rapid technology adoption like the use of satellites for global communications. CommunicAsia was a catalyst for these changes, but also benefited from them. As a result, its 20th anniversary in 1999 saw a record 1,000 companies from across the globe exhibiting at what had become the premier event for information communications and technology in Asia.

The year 1999 was also a watershed year as it marked the decision to turn CommunicAsia into an annual affair, brought about by the rapid pace of technology development spurred on by the arrival of the Internet. The pace of development accelerated further when mobile communications moved beyond military use into the consumer sphere in the 90s, finding fertile ground in Asia where it soon became the fastest growing telecommunications service.  An annual CommunicAsia helped the industry keep up with the latest solutions and trends.

As the Asian infocomm markets grew exponentially, CommunicAsia’s role as the key platform to building links into emerging markets in the region was critical to the operations of international companies.  Thirty years on, CommunicAsia is Asia’s most established and relevant trade event for the infocomm industry. The event last year, together with BroadcastAsia and CGOverdrive, featured more than 2,200 exhibiting companies from 61 countries and attracted over 62,000 trade attendees from across the Asia-Pacific, Europe, US and the Middle-East regions.

“We are delighted that CommunicAsia has continued to serve the infocomm industry well over the last 30 years.  This is a remarkable feat and the show’s ability and readiness to persistently evolve will ensure its relevance for the decades to come,” said Mr Victor Wong, Project Director of event organiser, Singapore Exhibition Services. “CommunicAsia’s leading position in Asia will be even more evident in these difficult times.  As companies become more cautious with spending, both exhibitors and trade visitors will limit their participation to only the most important events.”

CommunicAsia2007, together with BroadcastAsia2007 and CGOverdrive2007, garnered the Exhibition of the Year Award at the Singapore Business Events Awards, organised by the Singapore Exhibition and Convention Bureau (SECB) of the Singapore Tourism Board (STB).  This is a testament to the contribution and success of CommunicAsia as the staple trade show for infocomm industry professionals from the region and beyond.

The shows will return to Singapore Expo from 16-19 June 2009.  CommunicAsia2009 will feature key technologies that draw huge interest and demand from the market.  The show saw strong growth in the WiMAX, IPTV and mobile entertainment segments in 2008, attracting good crowds at the show. These clusters will return in 2009, with new “hot” technology additions like Navigation and Location-based Services, Femtocell and Green IT.