Top technology leaders discuss the challenges and potential at Cloud Confex conferences as big data steers commercial strategies and shifting markets
Dubai, United Arab Emirates
Big Data is big news at GITEX Technology Week 2012, as increasing numbers of businesses and organisations across the Middle East and Africa (MEA) region seek to unlock value from massive and exponentially growing datasets.
The much-hyped trend was top of the agenda at Cloud Confex, which kicked off two days of intense conferencing today. The largest and most influential platform of its kind in the Middle East, the event is offering an in-depth look at the possibilities of moving from a network-centric to a data-rich environment, and the challenges and opportunities of managing Big Data in the Cloud.
"Every 10 years the IT industry creates a major tectonic shift. Handheld devices, sensors and data generated by social networking are generating an explosion of data mostly outside the corporate firewalls. Big Data is the next big game that will allow companies to analyse all kind of data and make business decisions based on deep analysis and not just gut feeling. Big data is not a revolution but an evolution of the current data warehouse infrastructure that is already in place but it requires clear industry expertise to reap those benefits," said Jean-Claude Michaca, Vice President - Engineered Systems for Oracle, Eastern Europe, Middle East & Africa, during his presentation at today's Cloud Confex conference.
"Big Data is threatening to make IT more complex. Oracle takes the view that by simplifying the IT stack by closely engineering applications, middle ware, database and infrastructure, companies can manage big data effectively. As importantly companies can respond to the results of big data analysis in an effective way," Michaca added.
Jason Bath, Director - Business Analytics, Database and Technology, SAP MENA, which is a sponsor of Cloud Confex, said: "Data is no longer a by-product of running a business, it is the raw materials needed to stay in business and compete effectively."
"Many businesses are also being forced to adhere to stricter government regulations calling for increasingly detailed data accumulated over many years. The good news is that the affordability of powerful commodity hardware, combined with the right software, is making it possible to rapidly collect and crunch massive datasets into genuinely game-changing actions. Big Data offers massive opportunities for businesses in the MEA region, and it is encouraging that GITEX is featuring the topic so heavily and authoritatively this year," Bath said.
Topics discussed at Cloud Confex included how chief information officers (CIOs) can capture the most important data and deliver it to the right people in real-time, how they can store and analyse it and, crucially, how it can be kept safe. Today Big Data is beginning to steer commercial strategies and shifting markets, and its competitive value is becoming one of the most crucial discussions among businesses. Big Data is also featuring prominently at the Cloud Confex exhibition, which started on Sunday and runs until the end of the week.
Key speeches were also delivered by Sebastien Marotte, VP Enterprise EMEA at Google who discussed Big Data Cloud Convergence and solving challenges in the cloud. In addition, the state of cloud computing in the real world in terms of adoption, approaches and attitudes was addressed by Adriana Karaboutis, VP and CIO at Dell; David Chalmers, Chief Technologist at Hewlett-Packard and Mark Chaban, Director of Server & Cloud Platform Marketing at Microsoft MEA, at Cloud Confex today. Robert Swinnen, VP and GM at Intel Service Provider Group discussed the improvement of business analytics performance using cloud-based environments.
According to IDC's 2011 Digital Universe Study, Extracting Value from Chaos, which was sponsored by 2012 GITEX attendee EMC, the world created a staggering 1.8 zettabytes (1.8 trillion gigabytes) of digital information last year. Over the next decade, the amount of information managed by enterprise datacentres will grow by a factor of 50, and the number of files the datacentre will have to deal with will grow by a factor of at least 75. Meanwhile, the number of IT professionals in the world will grow by less than 1.5 times.
IT research company Gartner believes that 85% of Fortune 500 organisations will be unable to exploit big data for competitive advantage up until 2015, presenting a lucrative playing field for those providing viable solutions. Open source analysts Wikibon recently predicted that the market will experience a compound annual growth rate of 58% between now and 2017 to hit the $50 billion mark.
According to a report on merger and acquisition activity by independent mid-market investment bank Berkery Noyes, sheer potential of this nature has prompted a tripling of Big Data company purchases during the first six months of 2012.
Trixee Loh, Senior Vice President at Dubai World Trade Centre, which organises GITEX, said: "From aggregating social media for enhanced business performance and dialogue to crunching search engine trends to map disease outbreaks or predicting unemployment trends, the ability to harness the power of Big Data is becoming an absolute imperative. GITEX Technology Week is intent on moving the needle on this issue across the MEA region, ensuring that both opportunities and challenges are understood from all angles."
Now in its 32nd year and running under the theme "Where Technology Means Business", GITEX Technology Week connects more than 130,000 industry professionals and over 3,500 suppliers from 144 countries across five continents, making it one of the world's top three ICT exhibitions.
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About GITEX Technology Week
Website: www.gitex.com
Launched in 1981, GITEX is the ICT business gateway to the Middle East, North Africa and South Asia Region. Focused on providing exhibitors with high ROI through direct business opportunities with decision makers, GITEX has maintained its position as the industry's trend setting authority. For more information, visit www.gitex.com
About Dubai World Trade Centre (DWTC)
Website: www.dwtc.com
As the organiser of GITEX Technology Week, Dubai World Trade Centre offers more than 32 years' experience of delivering world-class events in the Middle East, providing local, regional and international exhibitors with unmatched expertise and in-depth market knowledge.
Our team organises 18 of the largest and most successful international and regional shows in Middle East, providing an ideal platform for business development in the region. Our commitment to ongoing innovation within the exhibition industry has supported the rapid growth and development of a wide range of business-to-business and business-to-consumer shows, and delivered consistent satisfaction to exhibitors and visitors.
For more information, please contact:
Wallis Marketing Consultants
Tel: +971 (0)4390 1950
Gitex@wallis-mc.com
© Press Release 2012
