Discussions on the latest issues in the IPTV field, both within the region and across the globe, began today with the opening of the Middle East’s first Interoperability of IPTV workshop. Hosted by du in coordination with the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) and the Arab Information and Communication Technologies Organisation (AICTO), the two-day workshop affirms the telecom’s intentions to facilitate dialogue amongst stakeholders in IPTV, and is being held in Mina A’Salam, Madinat Jumeirah.

The workshop was inaugurated by Houlin Zhao, Deputy Secretary-General, ITU; HE Khedija Ghriani, Secretary-General, AICTO; HE Mohamed Ali Al Wahaibi, Under-Secretary for Communications, Ministry of Transport & Communication – Oman and Osman Sultan, Chief Executive Officer, du.

Topics to be discussed throughout the two-day workshop include the latest on IPTV in the region and globally, with the intention of facilitating dialogue and bringing together key industry stakeholders including, amongst others, regulators, broadcasters, telecoms companies, service providers and IPTV experts.

“Hosting such a prestigious event in the UAE, a regional first for a workshop of this calibre, is a reflection of the UAE’s strong position within the IPTV arena, both regionally and globally. We are proud to host the Interoperability of IPTV workshop, and are keen to further facilitate discussions amongst industry peers both throughout the two-day event, and beyond,” said Osman Sultan, CEO, du.

Houlin Zhao, Deputy Secretary-General, ITU, commented; “ITU IPTV standards are creating a whole new market for innovation, and provide high quality, low cost, interactive, and interoperable IPTV services. Many global companies are now selling products meeting these standards. The workshop and showcasing event will bring broadcast and telecommunication regulators, technologists, and business experts together to encourage the fast rollout of IPTV in the Arab region.”

“The Middle East is a booming market in terms of IPTV, and it is a great recognition of this fact for us to be able to accommodate the Interoperability of IPTV workshop,” commented HE Mohamed Ali Al Wahaibi, Under-Secretary for Communications, Ministry of Transport & Communication – Oman, and President of the AICTO Council. “We hope that the communications occurring between key stakeholders through this workshop will address the issues relating to regulatory standardization and technical aspects. Further, the issue of Arabic content in the digital space will be discussed.”

Khedija Ghriani, Secretary-General, of AICTO said: “We are really pleased to co-organize this first event in the Arab region which is actually the 5th ITU IPTV Interop event, after Geneva, Singapore, India and Brazil, and hope that it will instigate valuable dialogue between those involved in the business. IPTV has revolutionized the way in which we receive information, having entered in another era of communications technology.

“The main target of such an event is to involve all concerned stakeholders in this dynamic field to make the IPTV interoperability part of the sustainable development thus answering the Arab citizen’s needs in terms of e-content and knowledge,” Ghriani added.

“Communications is becoming increasingly converged; soon enough, we will be able to access all communications needs through just three screens – mobile, computer and television. IPTV has revolutionised the way that the world looks at entertainment, ushering in a brand new era,” concluded Osman.

“The Middle East is a booming market in terms of IPTV, and it is a great recognition of this fact for us to be able to accommodate the Interoperability of IPTV workshop,” commented HE Mohamed Ali Al Wahaibi, Under-Secretary for Communications, Ministry of Transport & Communication – Oman, and President of the AICTO Council. “We hope that the communications occurring between key stakeholders through this workshop will lead to solutions for the issues our industry is currently facing.”

Several experts from du will participate in the two-day event. During session one on day one, Rashid Al Ahmadi, Director Fixed Access Network – Planning, du, will speak on ‘IPTV over Bitstream Access’; Saleem Al-Balooshi, Senior Vice President – Customer Operations, du, will be a moderator for session three on day one, at which Ali Dernaika, Senior Manager Video Core Planning, du, will speak on ‘IPTV, the Way Forward’. During session four on day two, Saleem Mobhani, Vice President – Digital Marketing and Entertainment, du, will also make a presentation.
 

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