ASIA : Auditors were still checking the attendance figures from last week's CeBIT Australia 2006 last night. The numbers should be back in the local office by today, says Jackie Taranto, MD of the Hannover Fairs organisation — part of Deutsche Messe, jointly owned by the State of Lower Saxony and the City of Hannover. The target was to beat 30,000, which would top last year's 28,000 figure — and maybe turn the first profit for the Down Under show.

On Friday, the 700 exhibitors packed up after the threeday event. "Feedback from exhibitors has been very positive," Taranto said. She noted the amount of business done, the level of networking and the creation of new business relationships.

CeBIT Australia's awards to exhibitors with outstanding products and services went to China's Huawei, for its HSDPA — mobile broadband (best product/ service for communications); ELO, which is not — alas! — the Electric Light Orchestra, but an organisation said to be involved in document management and archiving (best product/service for business processes); and Research in Motion, for the new-ish Blackberry 8700g (best product/service for digital equipment).

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