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Mega hi-tech fair begins in Germany Wednesday

AFP, Berlin
The world's largest hi-tech fair, the Cebit, opens this week showcasing the gleaming new gadgets that will change the way we work and play in the coming years.
Cars that read you your e-mails while you drive, digital cameras that can play mini-compact discs -all the latest electronic tools and toys will be on display on the giant fairgrounds in the northern German city of Hanover.
Some 6,500 companies from 49 countries will be exhibiting their wares, organizers said -- around 750 fewer firms than took part last year, due to the prevailing gloom in the industry and international tensions.
"The sector needs a boost from the fair," said Ernst Raue of the host company, Deutsche Messe AG. "It's more important than ever."
More than 600,000 visitors are expected to swarm the four million square feet (363,000 square meters) of display and conference space during the March 12-19 event, down from 674,000 last year.
This year's event will focus on long-awaited UMTS services, the so-called third generation of cellular phones that allow consumers to transmit pictures, music and even small videos over their handsets.
Telecommunications operators have sunk some 190 billion dollars (172 billion euros) into UMTS licenses across Europe and are under pressure to finally turn their investments into profit with the roll-out of services later this year.
With potential "killer applications " such as mobile video conferencing in their grasp, the companies hope that consumers will be willing to boost spending to cover the massive development costs.
Although UMTS debuts are expected throughout this year from the telecommunications giants, analysts expect the services will not conquer markets until 2005.
The heady days of the late 1990s in the hi-tech industry, in which double-digit growth rates were the norm, are ancient history since the bottom fell out of the new economy market and the Internet bubble burst.
The technological vanguard hopes the worst is over.
The global market in telecommunications and information technology is expected to grow by 4.5 per cent this year to 2.25 trillion euros, and 5.7 per cent next year, according to a study by the European Information Technology Observatory (EITO).
China is expected to lead the expansion, followed by other Asian markets, eastern European countries and regions of Latin America.
But growth is expected to be much weaker in America and Europe, each of which currently accounts for about 30 per cent of the international pie.
European sales growth reached only 0.2 per cent in 2002 and is expected to expand 2.5 per cent this year to 607 billion euros.
Menno Harms of the German Information Economy, Telecommunications and New Media Association (BITKOM) has forecast a four-per cent boost in European turnover in the sectors in 2004.
The industry is counting on more investment by the public sector in areas such as healthcare services and "e-government" -where citizens are given the possibility of handling their bureaucratic needs online.
"The days of the huge upheavals will hopefully end," Harms said.
"An appearance at the Cebit is so important this year because it is the time to fight. If not now, when?" said Raue.