News Release:

THE BIGGEST EVER ICT & TELECOM EXPO IN CAMBODIA

Phnom Penh, 3 April 2008. The 5^th Cambodia ICT & Telecom World Expo and e-Government Symposium 2009 open today at NagaWorld Hotel, Phnom Penh and last until 5 April 2009. This annual international exhibition and symposium is hosted by Ministry of Post and Telecommunication, Ministry of Information and co-organized by the National ICT Development Authority (NiDA), and the International Data Group (IDG).

The vision of ICT & Telecom World Expo is to connect the government sectors, businesses, and individuals in Cambodia in the world of ICT & Telecom. Since 2005, the Cambodia ICT & Telecom World Expo has seen remarkable growth and contributed to the development of the industry in Cambodia. The organizers continue to fulfill the commitment to make the Expo and its concurrent activities as the leading ICT & Telecom event in Cambodia.

The Organizers mark the 5^th anniversary of the Exhibition by holding it at a new venue and launching interactive concurrent activities for the first time like Cambodia ICT Best Products Awards, and e-Government Symposium 2009.

With the theme of ”Building a Robust ICT Industry”, the Expo attracts more than 50 multi-national enterprises and domestic companies to come and showcase their latest products, services and technologies. Exhibition space in 3,000 sqm is now fully occupied. The breakdown consists of 40% hardware and software vendors, 32% of internet services providers, 12% of mobile services providers, the rest is telecom services providers others. “In comparison with the 2008’s expo, the exhibition space has almost doubled, reflecting the strong development of Cambodia market as well as our efforts to make the event a great success” commented Mr. Tam Le, Managing Director of IDG Indochina.

Like previous events, the Organizers offer all exhibition visitors free admission. During 3 days of exhibition, visitors will have chance to engage in high-tech shows, live demonstrations of exhibitors, explore the ICT & Telecom world, enjoy special offers to buy hi-tech devices.

The Organizers and their sponsors will also have thousands of USB drivers, anti-virus software, and optical mousses for the first visitors coming to the expo. It’s expected that the Expo will attract the participation from more than 30,000 visitors.

Gamers coming to ICT & Telecom World Expo can enjoy Justice X-wars II (JXII) at CIDC-IT booth and join the game competition and win prizes among total valued at 25 millions Riel. Moreover, the visitors will have chance to win one Yamaha Mio motorbike from EZECOM, laptops from Kah Hock, internet packages from Online, and thousands more in the Lucky Draw program held everyday at the event.

To provide exhibitors, symposium attendees, and visitors with much better service, the Organizers choose Nag World Hotel with new and completed facility for exhibition and conference as the official venue for the Expo 2009. The Organizers also arranged a parking lot nearby NagaWorld Hotel and offer free of charge shuttle bus between the parking lot and the exhibition venue to bring more convenience for visitors.

Cambodia ICT Best Products Awards honor the best ICT products in Cambodia, which is voted by ICT community including specialists in ICT & Telecom industry, IT media, and end-users. The winners are:

-          The Best Desktop: Dell Inspiron

-          The Best Laptop: Acer TravelMate

-          The Best Printer: HP

-          The Best mobile phone: Nokia

-          The Best ISP: Online

-          The Best System Integration: First Cambodia SI

-          The Best Mobile Operator: Mobitel

-          The Best ICT Distributor: AnAnA Computer

-          The Best ICT Magazine: Mobile Phone Magazine

The Organizers celebrate the 5^th anniversary and award “Cambodia ICT Best Products Awards” at the Gala Dinner, which will be held on 3 April 2009. It should also prove highly informative and rewarding, as senior executives representing 200 of the top Ministry of Interior, Ministry of Post and Telecommunications, Ministry of Information, Council Ministers of Royal of Cambodia, multinational and local companies in Cambodia.

E-Government Symposium 2009 Phnom Penh aims at tackling the tricky issue of urgent demand for Public service and cost-effective strategy in the troubled economy. Prestigious Keynote Speakers will deliver market analysis insights, trends and strategic issues in Public service. H.E. Mr. Chea Manith, Deputy Secretary General of NiDA will share about “Objectives of the National Program for Administrative Reform”, while Ms. Naomi Halewood, Operation Analyst, Policy Division of World Bank shares experiences about “Promoting Administrative Reform Using ICT”. Mr. Chakrya Moa, Director General, Ministry of Post and Telecommunications will give keynotes about “Elements for Successful Reform: internet resources - communications to mobilize people”. Mr. Tam Le, Chairman of CEO&CIO Club also proposes a handbook of “CIO/CSO/CISO of Smarter IT spending in economic downturn” based on in-depth analysis and survey throughout CIO and CSO Magazine.

Ms. Anh Truong, Event Director of IDG Indochina comments: “We exert all our strength to make Cambodia ICT & Telecom World Expo 2009 to be the biggest ever ICT & Telecom Expo in Cambodia.”  The organizers would like to acknowledge and thank the following sponsors: Metfone as principal sponsor, PCCW Global and Chuan Wei as silver sponsor, EZECOM as hospitality sponsor, Online as WiMAX technology sponsor, CUBE as communication sponsor, CiDC Information Technology as e-sport sponsor and other sponsors.

Viettel (Cambodia) PTE. Ltd, with brand name as METFONE, was established since 1^st June 2006 with full license to provide all kinds of telecom services includingVoIP, Mobile, ISP, Leased Lines, etc… It aims to become the leading telecom operator in Cambodia and commits to improve the country’s telecom infrastructure, contributing to Cambodia economic growth. Metfone is continuously expanding its network coverage and capabilities to reach its target of largest coverage and customer base to bring social benefits for Cambodia people, especially in remote and rural areas.

PCCW Global is an operating division of HKT Group Holdings Limited (HKT); it is the Hong Kong’s premier telecommunications provider and a world-class player in ICT. Reaching more than 1,000 cities and 80 countries, the PCCW Global network supports a portfolio of integrated global communications solutions that include fiber and satellite transmission and International Private Leased Circuits, IP transit, MPLS-VPN, ATM/frame relay and IP telephony, plus capabilities such as hosted PBX solutions.

Headquartered in Phnom Penh, Chuan Wei is focused upon developing and deploying next-generation wireless and fiber optic broadband services.  With licenses for nationwide WiMAX, data and voice services, Chuan Wei is aggressively expanding its capacity to include a full-spectrum of communication capabilities. Chuan Wei is committed to delivering world-class broadband communication and information services for Consumers, SMEs, Enterprises and Network Operators in Cambodia and across Asia Pacific.

The representative of CiDC-IT commented about their service: “Sabay is currently the most popular online entertainment provider in Cambodia, with its flagship online computer game JXII “Nisai Snea Dao Tep”. JXII was launched in 2008 in Cambodia and has attracted a large following among young Cambodian players. Sabay’s mission statement is the development of online content for the Cambodian market with a focus on developing a vibrant online community. A community that is both Internet and computer savvy and can help our country to keep ahead in the next decade. The content provided by Sabay is aimed at awakening the younger generations interested in computer and providing a platform to explore new communication tools such as online chat (Sabay Talk), online mail (Sabay Mail) and other online content aimed to developing computer and Internet skills.”

About the organizers

NiDA

NiDA stands for the National Information Communications Technology Development Authority which was established by Royal Decree on August 23, 2000. This authority is tasked to:

• Formulate IT promotion and development policy for the short, medium and long term.
• In charge of IT policy implementation to ensure maximum economic growth.
• Monitor and audit all IT related projects in the Kingdom of Cambodia.

NiDA is both a regulator and a promoter. These are not contradictory roles but rather an integrated approach to ensure that the regulatory role is aligned with the development objectives.

International Data Group (IDG)

Established in 1964, International Data Group (IDG) is the world’s leading technology media, research, and event company. A privately-held company, IDG published more than 300 magazines and newspapers including Bio-IT World, CIO, CSO, Computerworld, GamePro, InfoWorld, Network World and PC World. The company features the largest network of technology-specific website with more than 400 around the world. IDG is also a leading producer of more than 170 computer related events worldwide including LinuxWorld Conference & Expo R, Macworld Conference & ExpoR, DEMO R, and IDC Directions. IDC provides global market research and advice through offices in 50 countries.

IDG Indochina, a subsidiary of IDG, established in 2003 as a 100% foreign-owned company, is active in event management, publications, research in technology. Through the presence of IT Conference and Exposition brands in Finance, Banking, Education and Training, Communications and Networking, Public Services, Vietnam Computerworld Expo; publications such as PC World, Computerworld; Research, IDG Indochina is the leading company in these areas in Indochina  markets of Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam. Further information is available at www.idg.com.vn and www.idgcambodia.com

For further information, those interested to attend the exhibition and the conference should visit our website www.idgcambodia.com/ict or contact: