Throughout 2005, S.D.M. will carry out a promotional plan to divulge the advantages that e-business investors may find operating through the International Business Centre of Madeira (IBCM). That plan, among other events, includes the organization of business missions to Madeira which, according to S.D.M.’s expectations, will bring to the island companies and investors who are interested to see in loco the high standard support services and infrastructure, the operative advantages of the IBC and the high level of Madeira’s support services, such as the quality of life, security and social stability.

Recently, American investors were in Madeira, precisely to study the opportunity to set up operations in the IBCM. During the visit, they had one-to-one meetings with S.D.M., Portugal Telecom and with some of the companies already operating in the IBC of Madeira. Considering the opportunities of investment that the e-business sector provides, S.D.M. will also organize promotional activities directly in the markets, as it is the case, for example, of the United States of America.

Madeira is well positioned as a competitive location for e-business given that it has one of the most advanced networks in Europe, having become a hub for fibre optic cables, with a high availability of bandwidth, offering, as such, a very competitive package of benefits.