SOFTWARE INDUSTRY -New regional organisation created

http://www.nationmultimedia.com/2008/11/25/technology/technology_30089326.php

By Asina Pornwasin
The Nation
Published on November 25, 2008



Parks in Asia-Oceania pool strengths to tackle global market

In a bid to expand its global marketing strategy for the local software industry, Software Park Thailand has joined 16 other software parks from eight countries and territories to form a collaborative organisation called the Asia Oceania Regional Software Park Alliance.


The ultimate goal is to put the region's industry on the world software map.


"We want the Asia-Oceania region to become a single window for global software outsourcing in the future," said Software Park Thailand director Suwipa Wanasathop.


Suwipa was elected as the first president of the new alliance, which consists of 16 parks from nine initial country and territorial members, including Thailand, China, Malaysia, Hong Kong, Brunei, Taiwan, Nepal, Burma and Singapore.



"Collaboration between the parks will play an important role in bridging the gap between markets across the Asia-Oceania region. From now on, instead of each country entering another country alone, networks will be pooled to form a single window, allowing software companies from one country to easily penetrate the market in another country," Suwipa said.


She said the alliance's mission was to enable the different parks to share infrastructure and domestic information. The initial goal will be to add value to the software industry of the entire region through business matching among country members.


The alliance will use a social networking model through its cyber infrastructure at www.softwarepark.asia to link members so they can share and exchange resources such as park facilities and infrastructure.


It is hoped that in the first year various regional software industries will begin "third-market penetration", involving collaboration between two countries to penetrate a market in a third, Suwipa said.


This will enable a combination of strengths from two countries, for example a water management solution from Thailand combining with Hong Kong's marketing expertise to tap a market in China.


Moreover, the alliance aims to encourage the IT growth cycle in member countries. It will build bridges between the software industries in member countries so each can be fulfilled through strategies such as business matching, marketing exchanges, the integration of IT-related events, partner programmes and solution centres.


It will also demonstrate best practices among country members, including incubation centres, park management, cooperative training and on-the-job training programmes.


"Each park will complement the others. This will help strengthen the IT-growth cycles in each country. A major problem of local software companies in the past has been a lack of local partners in other markets. To create their own marketing arms in different counties is costly. The alliance will address this issue," Suwipa said.