The IT fair is resurrected in a new form
Informatix is the name of that event that will take over from the ashes of the IT&T fair that breathed its last gasp last year when the September edition was first postponed and then cancelled amid plummeting interest from exhibitors and the...
Informatix is the name of that event that will take over from the ashes of the IT&T fair that breathed its last gasp last year when the September edition was first postponed and then cancelled amid plummeting interest from exhibitors and the public.
The "new" event is being organised by Network events at the Malta Fairs and Conventions Centre, Ta' Qali between March 6 and 8. It is new up to a certain point, as John Formosa, managing director at Network Events explained to i-Tech.
"It was unfortunate that the last IT&T fair was cancelled. However, the Informatix event has been welcomed by the industry and we have seen an excellent response. Informatix, as an event, used to be organised some years ago and was always very popular. The industry has been very gad to see this event back on the calendar."
Mr Formosa insisted that the upcoming Informatix will be much different from previous IT&T fairs as the emphasis will shift from a purely commercial event to one with a strong informational and networking aspect.
"We are not simply organising a fair, but rather a weekend event that pulls together a broad spectrum of interests that meets the expectations of both our advertisers, our visitors and our sponsors. Whether you are looking to buy a computer, curious about IT business trends or seeking out new opportunities in this field, then this event is for you. We have conferences, a careers day and other interesting items that are being held at the event. This greatly increases the appeal and means that Informatix is a far more inclusive event with a much greater scope than a simple exhibition."
He reassured that the exhibitors that had shied away from the last edition of the IT&T fair had a better reaction to the Informatix concept.
In recent years i-Tech had reported how the price of exhibition space in recent years had been perceived as a major hurdle by exhibitors. Visitors to the fair, held at the trade fair grounds in Naxxar until 2006, could not help but notice that the number of small IT exhibitors kept shrinking in recent years and only the large exhibitors, especially the national communications companies, could afford large stands.
At one point even major hardware vendors opted to organise so-called "open week-ends" at their premises during the opening times of the fair rather than be present in the fair itself.
When in 2007 the fair moved to MFCC it was re-branded at ITEX and the organisers tried to inject new life in it. But the 2008 edition was cancelled as the organising company was going through troubled times and exhibitors kept back. It was at this stage that Network Events stepped-in to take over the organisation of the event and other fairs.
A declining interest in traditional fairs has also been mentioned as a possible factor in the demise of the traditional IT fair in Malta. The major IT and communication vendors today have well-equipped websites and some of them offer online shopping with special offers all year round.
"Online shopping is still in its infancy in Malta," commented Mr Formosa when i-Tech raised this issue. "Most consumers still like to physically see and touch the object that they are looking to buy. A fair gathers all of the retailers under one roof, enabling you to quickly see what is on offer in the local market and make easy comparisons amongst competitors. This not only helps consumers, but also helps retailers as they can put their products to the test by displaying them adjacent to their competitors."
Tradition goes that the IT fair is held round about October or November, just after the start of the new scholastic and academic year in Malta. Mr Formosa insists that March is still "an excellent time for our business customers as the madness of Christmas is over and the lean months of January and February have passed. It gives them time to make an informed decision about the IT upgrades they need to make".
"Similarly, IT is a rapidly evolving field. While IT purchases may be made at the start of the scholastic year, many within the field are always looking to new developments to upgrade their existing architecture. And what better time to do some spring cleaning on your IT system than the start of spring itself?" concluded the managing director of Network Events.
Details on the opening times of Informatix will be available in the coming days.
The "new" event is being organised by Network events at the Malta Fairs and Conventions Centre, Ta' Qali between March 6 and 8. It is new up to a certain point, as John Formosa, managing director at Network Events explained to i-Tech.
"It was unfortunate that the last IT&T fair was cancelled. However, the Informatix event has been welcomed by the industry and we have seen an excellent response. Informatix, as an event, used to be organised some years ago and was always very popular. The industry has been very gad to see this event back on the calendar."
Mr Formosa insisted that the upcoming Informatix will be much different from previous IT&T fairs as the emphasis will shift from a purely commercial event to one with a strong informational and networking aspect.
"We are not simply organising a fair, but rather a weekend event that pulls together a broad spectrum of interests that meets the expectations of both our advertisers, our visitors and our sponsors. Whether you are looking to buy a computer, curious about IT business trends or seeking out new opportunities in this field, then this event is for you. We have conferences, a careers day and other interesting items that are being held at the event. This greatly increases the appeal and means that Informatix is a far more inclusive event with a much greater scope than a simple exhibition."
He reassured that the exhibitors that had shied away from the last edition of the IT&T fair had a better reaction to the Informatix concept.
In recent years i-Tech had reported how the price of exhibition space in recent years had been perceived as a major hurdle by exhibitors. Visitors to the fair, held at the trade fair grounds in Naxxar until 2006, could not help but notice that the number of small IT exhibitors kept shrinking in recent years and only the large exhibitors, especially the national communications companies, could afford large stands.
At one point even major hardware vendors opted to organise so-called "open week-ends" at their premises during the opening times of the fair rather than be present in the fair itself.
When in 2007 the fair moved to MFCC it was re-branded at ITEX and the organisers tried to inject new life in it. But the 2008 edition was cancelled as the organising company was going through troubled times and exhibitors kept back. It was at this stage that Network Events stepped-in to take over the organisation of the event and other fairs.
A declining interest in traditional fairs has also been mentioned as a possible factor in the demise of the traditional IT fair in Malta. The major IT and communication vendors today have well-equipped websites and some of them offer online shopping with special offers all year round.
"Online shopping is still in its infancy in Malta," commented Mr Formosa when i-Tech raised this issue. "Most consumers still like to physically see and touch the object that they are looking to buy. A fair gathers all of the retailers under one roof, enabling you to quickly see what is on offer in the local market and make easy comparisons amongst competitors. This not only helps consumers, but also helps retailers as they can put their products to the test by displaying them adjacent to their competitors."
Tradition goes that the IT fair is held round about October or November, just after the start of the new scholastic and academic year in Malta. Mr Formosa insists that March is still "an excellent time for our business customers as the madness of Christmas is over and the lean months of January and February have passed. It gives them time to make an informed decision about the IT upgrades they need to make".
"Similarly, IT is a rapidly evolving field. While IT purchases may be made at the start of the scholastic year, many within the field are always looking to new developments to upgrade their existing architecture. And what better time to do some spring cleaning on your IT system than the start of spring itself?" concluded the managing director of Network Events.
Details on the opening times of Informatix will be available in the coming days.