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24th September 2010

Foreign Market Opportunities For Canadian Developers

CanadaVia DFAIT: Hong Kong has one of the most liberalized and sophisticated telecommunications markets in Asia. As of April 2010, Hong Kong’s mobile phone penetration rate reached 180% – one of the world’s highest. Currently there are five mobile operators serving 7-million highly tech-savvy Hong Kong residents. Four out of the five operators have deployed 3G services using HSPA, which support mobile data services such as downloads, multimedia services, video calls and mobile TV.

Hong Kong is a major test-bed market for new smartphones. Leading smartphone brands such as iPhone, Blackberry, Nokia, HTC, Samsung, LG, Motorola, consistently choose Hong Kong as one of the first markets in Asia to launch their new phone. A recent survey (TNS) revealed that 50 % of mobile phone owners in Hong Kong carrry a smartphone. With a sophisticated telecommunications infrastructure and a highly tech-savvy population, the smartphone market is poised to grow at an even higher rate in the coming years.

To capitalize on the increasing popularity of smartphones, major smartphone manufacturers and mobile operating systems are encouraging development of mobile content and applications. Smartphone brands and operating systems currently active in Hong Kong include:

Blackberry – applications are being developed on Java, convertible to Blackberry platform and available for download from Blackberry App World. RIM has established an Asia Pacific alliance team in HK. One of the key functions of this team is to co-ordinate with mobile content/applications developers and promote Blackberry mobile content and applications in the Asia market.

iPhone – content and applications are being developed on iPhone platform and available for download on its dedicated App Store.

Nokia – content and applications were being developed on Symbian, but have now moved to open source Java; applications are available for download from its dedicated Ovi Store. Nokia is leading the market share in offering Chinese language applications with a flavour of local culture.

Android – a Google operating system; despite being a late comer to the market, its open source platform and free usage make Android OS increasingly popular for smartphone manufacturers such as HTC, Motorola and Samsung.

Windows Mobile – a Microsoft mobile operating system; similar to the desktop version of Windows and supported by business users.

The success of smartphones depends largely on the availability of content and applications that are user-friendly. While smartphone manufacturers and operating systems are increasing their downloadable content and applications through collaboration with local developers, some mobile phone value-added service providers in Hong Kong are acting as content providers and seeking to collaborate with Canadian developers of mobile content. Types of content that are of interest include: travel, games and entertainment, lifestyle, social networking and videos.

For more information on opportunities for mobile content in Hong Kong, please contact Eunice Wong, Trade Commissioner, Consulate General of Canada in Hong Kong.

For BC Developers: The British Columbia Ministry of Small Business, Technology and Economic Development is organizing a BC Pavilion at Province of BCG-STAR 2010 in Busan, Korea this November 18-21, 2010.

G-STAR is Korea’s largest international game exposition and convention, and is endorsed by the Korean Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism. Last year’s event drew over 240,000 attendees and featured 198 exhibitors from 21 countries. The annual exhibition will feature a wide selection of local and international gaming presence, including PC and online gaming, console, and mobile. It is a largely consumer-facing event with its own mini-conference and B2B section for those looking to make deals.

Currently, Korea’s game industry is among the top in the world and is constantly expanding. In this year alone, Korea’s game exports created revenues of about 1.09 billion US dollars. G-STAR is Korea’s largest international game exposition and convention, and is endorsed by the Korean Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism. It also features a concurrent International Content Creator’s Conference (ICON 2010).

Booths will be divided into two main sections B2C (where companies will exhibit their new
games and future projects) and B2B (where the BC booth will be located). The B2B section
booths will cover about 9,000 sq. m. inside the Bexco exhibition hall and will be the location where companies hold business meetings and consultations. These booths give companies the opportunity to collaborate and consult with other companies for possible business deals. It also provides the companies a better understanding of the gaming industry by previewing other company’s products and technologies and having a chance to speak to other company’s representatives. This event could be the perfect opportunity for companies to expand their businesses and possibly create new business partners.

Last year, approximately 240,000 people attended G-STAR 2009 during the 4-day-run. 198 companies including overseas exhibitors from 21 countries participated in this largest gaming trade show in Korea. Show organizers reported that the B2B component resulted in 1,591 trade negotiations, and resulting deals worth $437 million US dollars.

This year, G-STAR 2010 will be offering a 1:1 business matching system for use by all
participants in the B2B program at the exhibition, with the goal of facilitating even more on-site meetings and business outcomes.

Benefits and Value-Added Services Associated with Participation In The BC Booth:

*Booth dedicated to your company at G-Star (Value: USD $1,300/booth)
* 1 Free Internet Line, 1KW electricity, 4-person meeting table with chairs at your booth
* Presentation opportunity at BC Networking Seminar for 100 Korean decision-makers, influencers, and media.
* BC Networking Seminar support, including A/V, equipment, food & beverages (Value: USD $3,500)
* Complementary deluxe hotel accommodation (Supported by G-STAR, Max. 3-4 nights, TBA)
* Bilingual staff from the BC Trade and Investment office on-site to facilitate meetings (Korean and English)
* Interpreter assigned by the G-STAR host (if required), 1 person for 1 company
* On-the-ground support for business matching (for private meetings in your dedicated booth)
* Assistance with logistics in planning your trip, inc. Seoul – Busan air shuttle service

If you are interested in participating, the BC Ministry of Small Business, Technology and Economic Development needs to hear from you at your earliest convenience. The official registration deadline is October 15, and there are currently six booths designated for BC companies.

Please contact Ken Ewan at 604.660.5873 for more information, including costs related to this event. Please visit the Trade British Columbia web site for information about other upcoming international events and opportunities.

This entry was posted on Friday, September 24th, 2010 at 9:41 am and is filed under Business News, Events, Government, National News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

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