Taipei Times: Last week CETRA rescheduled this year's Computex Taipei for Sept. 22 to Sept. 26, just a day after Cebit Asia in Shanghai finishes. Is that the major reason CETRA chose that date?
Chao Yung-chuan
About two months ago, Taiwan Machinery Association officials asked us if it was possible to postpone the Taipei PLAS Show until March next year because machine makers said they needed more time to prepare samples and exhibits. CETRA will give a 10 percent rental discount for Taipei PLAS exhibitors.
The organizer of Taipei PLAS initiated the plan and we think the slot is suitable for Computex. July and August are usually vacation months for international buyers, therefore September is the best time. The Taipei World Trade Center is fully booked in October and nearly full in November. And if we run the show in late November, that will be too late for the Christmas orders. So, September will be the best time and luckily Taipei PLAS is content to shift its show to March next year.
TT: Some exhibitors complained that these two major shows -- Computex Taipei and Cebit Asia -- are too close and they will have difficulty attending both?
Chao: This should not be a problem for them. Local workers or contractors can be in charge of setting up booths and decorations, while company officials can come from Cebit Asia and attend the show immediately. I believe that by that time SARS will be under control and no quarantine will be needed. For foreign buyers, coming to Computex right after Cebit Asia will be very convenient. But if we were to begin the show two days later, buyers may not know where to go. Therefore, I think starting Computex Taipei on Sept. 22 is a very good time for both buyers and exhibitors.
Originally 1,100 exhibitors were expected to set up 2,800 booths at Computex Taipei in June, however, as CETRA just announced its new schedule on Wednesday, we are not sure how many exhibitors will attend the show in September. Now we are working on recruiting exhibitors. We are not worried about that because there were over 100 companies on the waiting list interested in joining the show. We hope we can still maintain the same size show as in June.
TT: Will the number of foreign buyers decrease because of the date change?
Chao: Last year the Computex attracted some 23,000 foreign visitors and most first-tier hotels in Taipei and even Keelung or Taoyuan county were fully booked. Therefore the show brought in a lot of business for restaurants, hotels, as well as the transportation and entertainment sectors. Computex Taipei creates business opportunities not only for information technology industries but also related sectors. Therefore we can't afford to cancel Computex Taipei. CETRA will lose at least US$2.7 million in rental income due to the show cancellation.
This year we don't expect to attract as many foreign visitors as before, because we changed the date and many buyers may have already decided their schedules and finalized orders.
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