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Alex Abraham

THE New Economy thrives on knowledge, innovation, and entrepreneurship. It is shaped by new, rapidly evolving technologies. Its most crucial resource is talent. Its most crucial element is speed. It is creating a borderless world where goods and services are on offer, live, instantly, 24 hours a day, seven days a week, around the world. All this at the click of a mouse. That is the kind of credo that the Dubai Internet City is founded on; and delivering to such a mission is the task of its founders.

As enunciated by General Sheik Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai and Defence Minister of the UAE: "The mission of the Dubai Internet City is to create an infrastructure, environment and attitude that will enable New Economy companies to operate locally, regionally and globally out of Dubai, with significant advantages. The `attitude' component in our mission is an important element. It means approaching our customers and business constituents with a view to solving their problems."

Dubai enjoys a pre-eminent position within the GCC and in the Middle East Region, particularly in the world of business, with its quality infrastructure in the Jebel Ali Port, Jebel Ali Free Trade Zone, Port Rashid, and the Dubai International Airport. The phenomenal success of these world-class institutions within a very short period of two decades is truly noteworthy. The Jebel Ali Free Trade Zone, which was opened in 1985, had by 2000 a total of over 2,000 companies firmly in place and operating within the zone.

The Dubai Airport, which opened in 1971, had by 2000 handled 12.3 million passengers. The estimated traffic for 2001 is 14 million — that is comparable to the total traffic in all Indian airports. Ninety-six airlines fly through Dubai International Airport to 137 destinations. The Emirates Terminal, currently under construction at the cost of DH 5 billion is targeted to increase the passenger handling capacity to 45 million. All hard data and clear evidence pointing to the fact that what Dubai promises, it delivers.

That could well be the secret of this miracle in the desert. And of the creation of a new-age commercial and business metropolis in an area and environment that had no foundation, basis or birthright to be a modern-day megalopolis. But for the fact that it was blessed with vision, driving ambition, and the determination to create viable competitive advantages as the solid foundations to growth. Each success moved the vision further, and each advancement became a goad to further effort.

Just as trade was spurred by the building of Dubai's ports and airport, Dubai Internet City is designed to bring clients closer to the regional business and consumers. Neighbouring countries already sit on the same primary telecommunication backbone — Fibre Optic Link around the World (Flag) and Fibre Optic Gulf (Fog). Flag's operational headquarters, in the nearby Emirate of Fujeirah, makes instant access possible through the most advanced terabit data transmission system in the world.

The DIC is set in a vast green campus, on Sheik Zayed highway, with four massive glass-sheathed buildings set around a vast lake. Tall fountains send soothing sprays across expansive lawns and gardens as employees walk to and from their offices along curving paved pathways. Palms dot the countryside and shimmering streams of cool water add to the mirage of an oasis in the sands. Only, this is no mirage!

"We are creating a cluster economy, where we have all the software developers, multi-media businesses, telecommunications companies, remote service providers, logistics companies, venture capitalists, incubator companies and educators, all in one place," says Mohammed Al Gergawi, Director-General of Dubai Technology, Electronic Commerce and Media Free Zone Authority, and the chairman of the Dubai Internet City.

Dubai's Internet City's aim is to provide cutting-edge high-bandwidth, telecommunications infrastructure to support any level of service a client may require. The City has four mega-structures set in over100 acres of contoured gardens.

The infrastructure services are:

In-campus access with usage based accounting, giving access up to the broadband capacity of the Dubai Internet City Network. Quality of Service (QOS) is available at 1:1, 1:2, 1:4, and 1:8. Access can also be provided at a flat rate with the installation of lines between 64 KBPS and 2 MBPS.

Web hosting services: Hosting facilities provide full-text search engines, CGI directories for remote applications sitting on host servers, Java, and Active X programming languages support. Database connectivity supporting RDBMS systems such as DB2; Infomix; Sybase; Microsoft SQL; using data base access techniques like; ODBC; ADO and JDBC;

And support of web-site development tools such as FrontPage.

Server extensions, Netscape Composer and Web Publishing Applets File Transfer Protocol (FTP) facilities. Host reporting services, with detailed reports on web-server use including log files and statistics. Security tools such as Secured Socket Layer (SSL) and Public Key Infrastructure (PKI).

E-mail services: Full range of e-mail account services, including e-mail storage and administration, filtering, auto responding and virus scanning. Has facility for POP3, IMAP4, and Web Mail desktop variants.

Full Domain Name service available.

www-bundled services: Available at start-up, silver and gold categories. Gold includes Web Space of 200 MB; 5 Domain Names; FTP accessibility for uploading five ITP addresses; 50 e-mail accounts; log file; Internet traffic up to 5 Gigabytes; 1:8 access service quality and 5 dial-up access accounts.

Telephony services: Dubai Internet City is one of the largest integrated Internet Protocol (Voice Over IP) Telephony Centres in the world. This includes new-generation IP phone sets with state of the art unified messaging system starting with advanced voice mail, one-point access for fax, e-mail and voice messages. Also provided are standard ISDN telephone services.

Data centre services: A keen awareness and focus on security, protection and cost. The data centre is protected against fire, flooding, intrusion, and resilience to Category `A' Data Centre Specification.

Access is controlled by `Smart Card' systems for staff, workers, and visitors alongside CCTV monitoring and sophisticated Building Management Systems (BMS). All facilities have 100 per cent power supply back-up through on-site generators, bridged by a 400kVa uninterupted power supply (UPS).

Content and security network: The network is tightly secured by providing Public Key Infrastructure, as well as firewall and proxy security measures.

Network services include V-LAN for work groups; MPLS VPN secured global/local connections through the Internet. ISDN-LAN Connect Services from outside DIC to LANs inside the campus over ISDN lines. Data transport services giving point to point connection from external sites to DIC client offices. Leased lines, ATM high-speed data network technology, frame relay service, and circuit emulation service.

Also included are network operations centre (NOC) services; equipment co-location services; and back-up and recovery services.

Major companies that moved in within the first year, with operations at the Dubai Internet City, include Microsoft, Oracle, Clarendon Parker, Infosys, Penygon Business Systems, Commerce One, Axiom Telecom, Avaya Communications, DLJdirect-eUnion, Canon, Siemens, Comtrust and Wipro.

"Our aim is to be a facilitator. To provide an environment within which businesses can operate," says Ahmed Abdullah Binbayat, Dubai Internet City's Chief Executive Officer. "We have the largest concentration of broadband businesses in the region.

Our role is to be a catalyst for them, and to promote IT and Web-based businesses.Early indications are that the DIC will be yet another major winner in Dubai's thrust to be a dominant commercial hub in the new millenium. It understands that the key to creating competitive advantage is a sharp focus on customer needs. And the world is learning that Dubai delivers.

(The author is a Bangalore-based consultant and writer.)

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