Positive Infocomm Industry Outlook in 2007 for Singapore and the Region

At the recent SiTF 2007 ICT Business Outlook Forum, Mr Chan Yeng Kit, Chief Executive Officer of the Infocomm Development Authority of Singapore (IDA) said that the outlook for 2007 looks positive for Singapore's infocomm companies.

Mr Chan Yeng Kit, Chief Executive Officer of the IDA shared that the outlook for 2007 looks positive for Singapore's infocomm industry

According to Mr Chan, initiatives started in 2006 will help bring about even more growth in the infocomm market. Initiatives like Wireless@SG, and the Next Generation Network under the iN2015 Masterplan will continue to help Singapore's infocomm industry grow.

Quoting figures from research firm IDC, Mr Chan said that, while the local market is expected to grow at a rate of 4.8% to US$4.7 billion, the Asia Pacific market is expected to grow at a rate of 6.5% to US$239 billion. As such, infocomm companies would do well not just to leverage on the local market but also to look overseas for further growth.

The Singapore Government and IDA are launching more schemes to help infocomm companies establish themselves locally and globally

As industry development is one of the key focus areas of the iN2015 (Singapore's 10-year Infocomm Masterplan), the Singapore Government and IDA are launching more schemes to help infocomm companies establish themselves locally and globally.

To help infocomm companies gain inroads to overseas markets, IDA will continue to help these companies in strengthening their capabilities to grow and expand to new markets and capitalise on opportunities in the international front.

An example is the Infocomm Enterprise Programme (iEP) which aims to develop the capabilities of infocomm companies in the implementation and delivery of large-scale, sector-wide projects and to create new intellectual property (IP). The IDA will help co-fund approved projects to help infocomm companies build up their capabilities in implementation of large-scale projects and enhance their credentials and export potential.

According to Mr Chan, initiatives started back in 2006 will continue to help Singapore’s infocomm industry grow

Another initiative is Infocomm Singapore, a unified brand for 'made-by-Singapore' infocomm products and solutions along with the Infocomm Singapore Portal. This branding initiative is a joint effort between the Singapore Government and the infocomm industry to help infocomm enterprises garner more mindshare in the global marketplace, elevating the perceived value of Singapore's infocomm products and services both locally and overseas.

Mr Chan added that, with the infocomm sector projected to build on its growth from 2006, the IDA will continue to lead the infocomm sector to new heights, and work closely with infocomm companies grow and prosper in the knowledge economy.

More information on the Infocomm Enterprise Programme (iEP) is available at the IDA Website.

In partnership with International Enterprise Singapore (IE Singapore), the Singapore Infocomm Technology Federation (SiTF) and the Infocomm Development Authority of Singapore (IDA) have launched Infocomm Singapore – Innovations in Action, a unified brand for 'made-by-Singapore' infocomm products and solutions.

Launched by Dr Vivian Balakrishnan, Minister for Community Development, Youth and Sports, and Second Minister for Information, Communications and the Arts at the SiTF 2007 ICT Business Outlook Forum, this branding initiative is a joint effort between the government and the infocomm industry to garner greater mindshare in the highly competitive global market.

Dr Balakrishnan announcing the launch of the Singapore Infocomm brand

The Infocomm Singapore brand seeks to elevate the perceived value and generate stronger recognition of the quality and uniqueness of Singapore's infocomm products and services both locally and overseas. Singapore companies can also leverage on the brand to establish a name for themselves overseas to generate new business opportunities and strategic partnerships.

The impetus for the Infocomm Singapore brand came from a perception audit conducted by SiTF, IDA and IE Singapore. It was found that while the government infrastructure in Singapore is distinctive, the awareness of Singapore-developed infocomm products and solutions lagged behind those of India and China.

Mr Stephen Lim, Co-Chair of the Infocomm Singapore Brand Management Committee, said, "It is our vision to be the world's most trusted, intelligent and results-oriented solutions partner with the power to transform how people live, work and play. This vision will serve as a beacon for our infocomm companies and guide them in positioning themselves overseas."

Overseas missions and trade shows will help companies leverage on the Infocomm Singapore brand to make inroads overseas. This will not only bring new business opportunities and strategic partnerships, but also enhance customers' trust and loyalty in our local companies.

In addition, branding seminars and customised workshops organised by IDA and IE Singapore will be available to help Singapore Infocomm companies' jumpstart their branding efforts. Companies interested in taking that first step towards building their own brand can sign up for these workshops and work one-to-one with brand consultants to devise an actionable plan for their brand audit, strategy, positioning and communications.

The newly launched Infocomm Singapore brand seeks to elevate the perceived value and generate stronger recognition of the quality and uniqueness of Singapore’s infocomm products and services both locally and overseas.

The brand logo helps play an important part to beef up efforts to groom and grow the infocomm sector. The multiple "l", designed in an upward direction, represent Singapore's infocomm industry's progress towards excellence. The multiple "l" also stand for words such as Innovative, Integrated, Inspiring and Imaginative.

The tagline – Innovations In Action – encapsulates the initiative's brand values: to be innovative and progressive; to be trusted with an impressive track record; to be results-oriented; to collaborate and build enduring partnerships; and to be dynamic in an ever-evolving industry.

"These are the values we want to propagate in our branding. Some, we already possess. For the other areas that we are still not strong in, we are going to work towards achieving them," said Mr Lim.

More information on the Infocomm Singapore Brand is available at the IDA Website.

(From left) Mr John Chambers, Cisco's Chairman and CEO and Dr Lee Boon Yang, Minister for Information, Communications and the Arts witnessing the strategic collaboration Memorandum of Intent (MOI) signing ceremony

Cisco and the Infocomm Development Authority of Singapore (IDA) have agreed to expand on their Memorandum of Intent (MOI) signed in October 2005 to further enhance current and future collaborations for converged infocomm applications in Singapore.

In a ceremony witnessed by Dr Lee Boon Yang, Minister for Information, Communications and the Arts and Mr John Chambers, Cisco's Chairman and CEO, on 8 December 2006, both parties will look to further development and deployment of next-generation networking solutions.

"Cisco's and Singapore's visions are alike in many ways," said Mr Craig Gledhill, Cisco's Managing Director for Singapore and Brunei. "Cisco is building the network to become the platform to enable life's experiences and the Singapore government similarly sees ICT as the enabler that will impact the way Singaporeans work, live, play and learn. This shared vision is the driver behind iP3(interaction across People, Private and Public enterprise) and Cisco is excited to be able to contribute to iN2015."

(From left) Mr Craig Gledhill, Mr John Chambers with Dr Lee Boon Yang and Mr Leong Keng Thai

Mr Gledhill added that Cisco was looking forward to the development of proof-of-concept projects that may be applicable for wide-spread adoption in Singapore.

According to Mr Leong Keng Thai, Deputy Chief Executive & Director-General (Telecoms), the IDA, welcomes the opportunity to collaborate with MNC partners like Cisco to explore the use of next-generation technologies for Singapore's development. "Such partners can lend their experience and expertise in helping us to achieve our iN2015 vision of building an intelligent nation, global city powered by infocomm," he said.