The Singapore-based trade show CommunicAsia is hoping to outstrip its Hong Kong rival ITU Telecom World by opening up to a wider range of industries, smaller companies and Chinese firms.
The rub is that Hong Kong is planning to do the same thing for its event.
A showdown looms for the two trades shows next year as the organisers race to sign and lock up large corporate sponsors, lease contracts on thousands of square metres of exhibition space, and claim bragging rights for hosting the region's most important communications industry event.
Senior executives from the two sides have downplayed the tough competition for industry investment and trumpeted the salient advantages of their respective events.
'I have no doubt that Telecom World in Hong Kong will be a successful show,' said Stephen Tan, chief executive at CommunicAsia organiser Singapore Exhibition Services.
'But we are confident of CommunicAsia's relevance to the information and communications technology industries in the region, and how the annual show attracts a high proportion of quality international trade visitors interested in purchasing new technologies and solutions.'
