Samsung recently hosted a four-day training program for its service partners in the Middle East. Designed with a focus on the upcoming GSM products of the company, the training program was attended by nearly 38 technical staff members representing 22 countries across the Middle East and Africa region.
The training was aimed at equipping the participants with different skill sets and levels of knowledge and further enhancing their interaction with Samsung’s research and development (R&D) team from Korea. The instructors from Samsung’s headquarters in Korea provided the participants with in-depth know-how of critical components within the company’s GSM product segments.
“Samsung conducts such training programs at regular intervals,” said B.S. Kim, manager, of Samsung’s Gulf Customer Satisfaction Headquarters. “The main idea behind the training session is to ensure that Samsung service centers across the region are well equipped to offer the best services to customers for all high-end products that we manufacture.”
Gulf PC Market Thrives
Led by a surge in demand for portables, shipments of personal computers rose 13.8 percent in volume and 8.7 percent in value last year in the Gulf states. According to a new IDC study, “IDC’s Gulf States Personal Computing Forecast 2004-2008 and 2003 Vendor Shares,” shipments are expected to jump by more than 32 percent this year as continuing government reforms and various e-government and e-business initiatives help drive the sale of hardware. In terms of value, falling prices will be partially offset by a shift to portables and higher-speed desktops, resulting in an expected rise of more than 25 percent in 2004.
With the largest population in the region, Saudi Arabia also represented the largest market for PCs in 2003 and will again in 2004. With less than a tenth of Saudi Arabia’s population, the UAE was close behind in second position, reflecting the success of Dubai as an international business center and large projects in the government, financial and oil and gas sectors. Together, these two countries accounted for almost three-quarters of PC shipment volume in 2003 and will continue to dominate in 2004.
“The elimination of customs duties within the GCC should help spur the country markets across the board,” said Omar Shihab, analyst, IDC CEMA’s Systems Group. “Moreover, strong economic growth and the high price of oil will fuel the acquisition of hardware needed to bring IT levels up to international standards at both public and private organizations.”
Desktops continued to dominate the Gulf PC market, accounting for more than 67 percent of PC shipments in 2003. IDC expects the form factor to again dominate in 2004, though it will lose a few points of share to portables, which will remain the fastest growing form factor over the next few years. By contrast, x86 servers are expected to hold steady in terms of market share.
“Mobility is getting hot in the Gulf States,” said Shihab. “Not only are prices falling for portable PCs, but mobile phones are increasingly common; and both small and medium-sized organizations as well as large businesses are investing in portables both for the space saved and for the flexibility they afford. Nevertheless, shipments of all three form factors are expected to expand over the next few years.”
Name-brand players dominated the PC market of the Gulf last year. Capturing all of the top five spots, international vendors accounted for more than 71 percent of unit shipments and more than 75 percent of the value of shipments in 2003. HP took top honors, with Dell coming in second, and Acer third.
INTRACOM Hires Sales Director
To support their regional expansion strategy, INTRACOM, one of the world’s largest providers of telecommunications, information and electronic defense systems, announced that it has appointed Jorge Soto as sales director for the Gulf and Subcontinent.
One of Soto’s key roles as sales director will be to ensure overachievement of sales objectives at INTRACOM. He will also oversee the definition and implementation of channel strategies throughout the Middle East designed to capture strong market share in some of the region’s leading markets.
“This region is a significant market for INTRACOM and in my capacity as sales director, I am committed to making sure that our cost effective, state-of-the-art offerings are well received in the Middle East. My previous experience in marketing will also help me ensure that our relationships with regional clients stay strong in the long-term,” said Soto commenting on his role.
By the end of 2004, INTRACOM is expected to sign contracts valued at more than 620 million euros. Currently more than 45 percent of the company’s annual turnover is generated by exports and in the next few years that figure is expected to reach 50 percent.
