More than 7,000 SMART Board interactive whiteboards sold in the Middle East since 2002

Dubai, UAE October 05, 2008: SMART Technologies has announced that the one millionth SMART Board™ interactive whiteboard has rolled off the company's production line, making it the first interactive whiteboard manufacturer to reach this significant milestone. Over the past 17 years, SMART has sold approximately three times as many interactive whiteboards than its closest competitor.

The Middle East market has also made a notable contribution towards the success of SMART's products, especially over the last five years. Since 2002, SMART estimates that more than 7,000 SMART Board™ interactive whiteboards have been sold in the region, with the UAE accounting for bulk of the sales.  

According to first-half data for 2008 for the interactive whiteboard product category, SMART has a 53.3 percent global category share, up from 45.5 percent in the first half of 2007. The information comes from Futuresource, an industry-leading global research company that has tracked interactive whiteboard sales for the past eight years. SMART products are assembled in a state-of-the-art 24,155 square meter (260,000 square foot) facility in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada.

For more than 15 years, SMART has continued to develop and refine its SMART Board interactive whiteboard by improving hardware design and upgrading software. The company has steadily expanded its Canadian-based operations to meet increasing global demand for its wide range of popular education, training and collaboration products. In October 2007, the company opened a new, purpose-built facility to provide the flexibility required for accelerated market expansion. With greater production capacity, SMART predicts it will produce its two millionth SMART Board interactive whiteboard within the next couple of years. SMART acknowledges the strong contributions of its staff and suppliers in reaching this notable milestone, particularly as other assembly operations have moved offshore in large numbers in recent years. 

 "Since we first conceptualized the interactive whiteboard, we saw the potential for the product in numerous teaching, learning and collaboration environments," says David Martin, SMART's cofounder and executive chairman. "It's rewarding to know that a growing number of customers have come to appreciate the product's benefits, and we are very proud to have reached this milestone as a Canadian based company with global reach."

"Adoption of the SMART Board interactive whiteboard reflects our strong commitment to understanding customers' needs," says Nancy Knowlton, SMART's co-founder and CEO. "We want to thank our customers for supporting our vision by buying our products and the team of people, both inside and outside the company, who directly support our customers and provide products and services to SMART."

Jeevan Bhingarkar, Director, Imark Distribution, SMART's authorised Middle East distributor Intmark Distributor, said, "The one millionth milestone for the SMART Board™ interactive whiteboard is certainly a remarkable achievement and we are proud to be associated with this world-leading product. Going by the ever-growing popularity of SMART's range of products, especially the interactive whiteboards, we are certain that several more milestones will be achieved within the next few years."   

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A brief history of the SMART Board interactive whiteboard
Twenty-two years ago, SMART's executive chairman and cofounder, David Martin, conceptualized the SMART Board interactive whiteboard, and in 1991 the first generation of SMART Board interactive whiteboards was introduced. The award-winning line of SMART Board interactive whiteboards is the most widely installed in the world because of its unsurpassed product quality, versatility and ease of use. Currently in its sixth generation, the SMART Board interactive whiteboard line has expanded to include models integrated with projectors and other tools.

SMART's product development now also focuses on a variety of supporting hardware, software and content. Today, SMART is recognized worldwide as an innovator of award-winning hardware and software for customers who meet, teach, train and present.

A brief history of the interactive whiteboard product category
SMART sold the world's first interactive whiteboard to the University of Nevada 17 years ago. The university saw the product as an ideal tool for its distance education program, and for the same reason, the University of Ottawa was also an early customer for SMART. Similar to the emergence of most new technologies, it has taken many years for the interactive whiteboard product category to reach a tipping point. Today, interactive whiteboards and interactive displays have become standard in K-12 classrooms, higher education environments and meeting rooms around the world. Futuresource, an industry-leading global research company, forecasts continued strong growth for the interactive whiteboard product category, with a 200 percent sales increase over the next five years. For education, that means one in six classrooms globally will have an interactive whiteboard by 2011.

About SMART
SMART is a private company founded in 1987. Employing more than 1,200 people, SMART is headquartered in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, with assembly facilities in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, and offices in Bonn, Paris, Tokyo, Shanghai, New York City, Chicago and Washington, DC. SMART has been issued and maintains a broad portfolio of patents with numerous U.S., Canadian and other patents pending. In 1992, SMART formed a strategic alliance with Intel® Corporation that resulted in Intel's equity ownership in the company. SMART is the recipient of numerous awards, including the Deloitte Technology Fast 50 Award for Hardware (2007) and a Lifetime Achievement Canada Export Award (2004). SMART was also recognized for eight consecutive years as one of Canada's 50 Best Managed Companies (1998-2006). SMART products are sold through dealers across North America and distributors worldwide. To learn more about SMART, visit www.smarttech.com.

For further information contact:
Orient Planet PR and Marketing Communications
P O Box: 23345, Dubai, UAE.
Tel: 00 971 4 3988901;
Fax: 00 971 4 3988941
Email: info@orientplanet.com
Website: www.orientplanet.com

© 2008 SMART Technologies ULC. SMART Board, smarttech and the SMART logo are trademarks or registered trademarks of SMART Technologies ULC in the U.S. and other countries. All other third-party product and company names are for identification purposes only and may be trademarks of their respective owners.

© Press Release 2008