CeBIT Asia, an annual information and telecommunications trade show in China, will see fewer exhibitors this year, with the number expected to drop to about 400 from 544 in 2002 due to the impact left by SARS, according to Deutsche Messe AG, the organizer of the event.
The show, which will enter its third year and be held from September 18-22 in Shanghai, has attracted only 65 exhibitors from Taiwan this year, compared to 161 in 2002. A conflict in schedule between CeBIT Asia and the Computex 2003 exhibition in Taiwan is the major reason behind the drop, the organizer said.
Computex 2003, originally scheduled for June 2-6, was postponed to September 22-26 due to the SARS outbreak.
Many international exhibitors decided not to attend this year’s CeBit Asia show, citing concerns about SARS. Even the number of Chinese exhibitors will drop to about 150 this year from 173 in 2002. Legend and Haier, both leading electronics vendors in China, declined to take part in the exhibition this year, but promised to come back next year, said the organizer.
Acer, Asustek Computer, BenQ, Hewlett-Packard (HP), Dell and Toshiba will also be absent from the show.
On the other hand, Samsung Electronics will remain to an important exhibitor at the show, while Sony will join the event this year for the first time. Other international companies including Infineon Technologies, Kodak and Taiwan-based AOpen, Ritek, CMC Magnetics (CMC) and Dbtel Technology have also signed up for the event, the organizer said.
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Source:
DigiTimes
