Compaq Opens first Solutions and Technology Center at Dubai Internet City

keralamonitor.com

19th January 2002, Dubai, UAE - Compaq Middle East today announced that it has opened the first Solutions and Technology Center in Dubai Internet City (DIC). The opening comes after the signing of an agreement between Compaq and DIC to establish the center and was inaugurated today by Compaq's Vice-President and Managing Director of the Business Development Group in Compaq EMEA, Matti Virtanen, along with Joseph Hanania, Compaq Middle East's Managing Director and Dubai Internet City's CEO Ahmed Binbyat.

The Compaq Solutions and Technology Center is the first Solutions center to be established by an international vendor in DIC, and focuses heavily on the actual demonstration of various enterprise business solutions as opposed to simply showcasing products. The center is expected to offer great benefit to Compaq's regional customers, channel partners and independent software developers in achieving an in-depth understanding of Compaq's offerings.

"Compaq's Solutions and Technology center is the result of the strategic investments and strong partnerships Compaq has developed in the region," commented Joseph Hanania, Managing Director of Compaq Middle East. "We believe its location will further contribute to its success, as it draws advantage from DIC's rich business culture and excellent infrastructure".

The Compaq Solutions and Technology Center at DIC is the first of its kind in the Middle East region established to better serve customers and partners and help in simplifying the use and deployment of information technology. This center is a state-of-the-art facility designed to demonstrate the breadth of Compaq solutions and consultancy services for enterprise businesses, the seamless integration of the company's products with other industry offerings to enable a company's business objective.

Compaq will use the Center to demonstrate its cross-industry solutions as well as industry-specific solutions for such industry sectors as telecommunications, banking and e-business. In addition to software solutions, Compaq will demonstrate its infrastructure solutions such as Mission Critical platforms, High Availability Clustering, Storage Area Networks, Disaster Recovery and Enterprise Backup as well as business solutions such as CRM and Wireless communication.

The move was welcomed by the DIC management team. According to CEO Ahmed Binbyat. "The center is a valuable addition to the growing resources of Dubai Internet City. As international vendors, such as Compaq, continue to invest in the local IT industry, Dubai's role as an IT hub for the region grows further in importance".

Matti Virtanen, Compaq's Vice-President and Managing Director of the Business Development Group in Compaq Europe Middle East and Africa commented on the opening of the new center saying: "The establishment of the center is part of Compaq's strategy to demonstrate the extensive breadth and depth of its solutions and showcase its strength in the large enterprise arena. The center offers great benefits to existing and potential customers, by helping them make informed decisions based on deep understanding of the particular solution relevant to their specific business need."

Furthermore, the center can help enhance channel partner skills and knowledge in both sales and technical aspects of Compaq offerings, as it provides a real hands-on training experience on a variety of high-end solutions in a single location, with support from skilled Compaq staff. Software developers can also benefit from use of the center as it acts as a testing-ground for compatibility of applications on industry-standard hardware before they are made available to the public.

The mission of Dubai Internet City is to create an infrastructure, environment and attitude that will enable new economy enterprises to operate locally, regionally and globally from Dubai with significant competitive advantages.

Dubai Internet City is the world's first complete Information and Telecommunications center to have been built inside a free trade zone. Over 200 technology companies have already signed up to join the community at Dubai Internet City. Along with sister companies Dubai Media City and Dubai Ideas Oasis, Dubai Internet City is located in the Dubai Technology, Electronic and Media Free Zone Authority, a budding new economy cluster. More information on Dubai Internet City is available at www.dubaiinternetcity.com.