ITAO changes dates for IT expo

Bhubaneswar: In an effort to conduct the IT Expo in Orissa at a larger
scale by accommodating more space for telecom and consumer electronics industry
in the expo, IT Association of Orissa (ITAO) has rescheduled the dates for the
event postponing it by a day.

According to the new schedule, the event will commence on December 24 and
will end on the 28th of same month. While the vendors account for nearly 250
stalls in four hangers, the channel players have been left with remaining 35
priced stalls in the event. Resorting to the use of canopy in the Exhibition
Ground, the venue for the event, the channel partners are left with a small
portion of the display area available.

Elaborating on the event plans, Dayananda Ratho, Secretary, ITAO commented,
"We have asked the Chief Minister of Orissa, Naveen Patnaik to inaugurate the
event. However, with elections on the row, if he does not turn up, we may ask
the governor of the state to inaugurate the same."

Speaking on rescheduling the dates for the expo, Ratho added, "There were
some issues with the sponsors and many of them were not finalised beforehand.
Also, the event manager was not in the row. In our last meeting, ITAO
unanimously agreed to postpone the event by a day, primarily on sponsor's
requests. This time, we have also incorporated the telecom and the consumer
electronics segment in the expo."

With a total estimated cost of over half a crore for the expo, ITAO is aiming
to make 30 percent profit. With an estimate of nearly fifteen thousand visitors
every day, ITAO will shortly be finalizing consumer offers flooding it with
discounts, cash benefits and other schemes.

The SMB segment has seen the highest growth in the state contributing to over
30 percent of the total consumer segment. With e-governance projects and
data-center projects rolling in, the IT retail segment is on a boom in the
state. Compared to the markets in the East which are on a steady decline and is
on the way to stagnation, it is Bhubaneshwar only which is registering a steady
growth mainly because of bulk purchases by the state government and the thriving
SMB sector.

However, it is the end-user SOHO segment and the enterprise segment, which
are accounting for the major portion in the wholesale and retail markets.
Primarily targeted towards the enterprise and the end-user section in the state,
the event is also focussing on the SOHO segment after the recently held ITAO
Exhibition Committee Meeting.

Providing an ideal opportunity for both the vendors and the channel
community, the expo is set to bash the thriving IT market in the state. Aiming
to contain the visitors in the expo, Ratho concluded, "Our primary objective is
to spread IT, Telecom and technological awareness among the people across the
state and it is because of this that we are having three sections; IT, Telecom
and Consumer Electronics verticals in the same event."