Samsung and e-Company give UAE nationals chance to compete in World Cyber Games finals in San Francisco

Dubai, July 14, 2004: Samsung Electronics, the regional and global leader in digital technology, has today announced the commencement of the UAE leg of 'World Cyber Games 2004', the world's largest online gaming festival. The UAE-round of the global gaming festival will be held in alliance with local partner, e-Company, gaming service engine www.mplayer-arabia.com. Samsung is hosting this gaming festival in the UAE for the second consecutive year.

Samsung is the global sponsor of the tournament, which tests teams of online gamers from around the world. The winning team from the UAE heats will get a unique opportunity to represent the UAE at the World Cyber Games Finals 2004, which will take place in San Francisco, from the 4th to the 10th of October 2004.  Total prize-money of Dhs 110,000 is also on offer for the winning teams.

"As a global digital leader, Samsung is proud to again support the World Cyber Games (WCG), one of the world's most exciting digital entertainment events," said Mr. J. H. Park, President, Samsung Gulf Electronics (SGE). "Samsung has been a worldwide sponsor of the World Cyber Games since it's inception in 2000, because we are committed to promoting a fun and challenging digital entertainment culture and to building greater friendship and harmony among the youth of this world."

The 3-week tournament is open only to UAE nationals above the age of 15 and aims to attract over 500 gaming enthusiasts to compete against each other in the popular 'Counter-Strike' game. 

"Mplayer Arabia is going from strength to strength due to an increasing popularity of online gaming in the region," said Mr. Abdulla Hashim, Senior Manager, Business Development and Marketing, e-Company.

"We are pleased to partner with Samsung as we are confident that the event will establish a new benchmark for the gaming industry, paving the way for future competitions, as well as expanding the online gaming community, in the region. Furthermore, the gaming festival gives our online gamers a challenging and potentially rewarding competition, in addition to a unique opportunity to represent their country at a global level," Mr. Hashim added.

The tournament will be played in two stages. The first stage, which takes place online everyday at www.mplayer-arabia.com for 2 weeks, will begin on the 8th of August and conclude by the third week of the month. Online games will be played between two teams with five players on each side under the supervision of a moderator from Mplayer Arabia. In the second stage the qualifying 16 teams will be invited to play at a specially designed cyber stadium in Wafi City's Wahi Mall between the 25th to the 28th of August 2004.

The final round, which takes place in San Francisco, USA will witness 700 of the world's best gamers from 64 countries competing to win the coveted 'World Cyber Games 2004' championship in addition to a total prize-money of US$ 400,000.

With Samsung's support, the WCG launched in 2000 with a preliminary event called the World Cyber Challenge, was first held officially in 2001 as the World Cyber Games. Since then, WCG has grown to be the greatest global festival for gamers and digital entertainment culture throughout the world, with participation from over 60 countries. Over the last three years, the WCG Grand Final has been held in the Korean cities of Seoul and Daejeon. However, starting with San Francisco in 2004, the WCG Grand Final will continue to be held in different cities across the globe.

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Editors' Note:
About Samsung Electronics
Founded in 1969 in Korea, Samsung Electronics today has 25 production bases worldwide and 59 sales subsidiaries in 46 countries. Samsung Electronics global strategy involves eight main regions: North America, Europe, Southeast Asia, Central Asia, Middle East & Africa (MEA), China, CIS and Latin America. Based on its vision of 'digital convergence' where everything will be integrated through networks, Samsung Electronics has currently positioned itself into four main business units, Home Network, Office Network, Mobile Network, and Core Components, producing the world's most innovative digital products. Currently, Samsung Electronics is the world's largest computer display manufacturer.

About eCompany
eCompany is Etisalat's one-stop e-solutions powerhouse formed by the internal merger of its key online business unites Emirates Internet and Multimedia (EIM) and Comtrust into a single entity on 27th of June, 2004. eCompany combines world-class infrastructure and a customer focused service mindset to efficiently and effectively serve corporate and individual Internet and e-Services  needs.

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© Press Release 2004