March 23, 2004 -- The first Winter University of the Print Media Academy of Heidelberg took place in Dubai from February 21 to 28 2004. 18 managers of the media industry from Europe, Asia as well as the Middle and Near East were offered future-oriented management and trade-specific know-how as well as exclusive insights into top-class companies and pioneering future projects on site. On seven busy seminar days, renowned lecturers provided the participants with know-how from a total perspective. Among them were Professor Hartmann Liebetruth from the University of Wuppertal (Bergische Universität Wuppertal), Professor Ronald Schaul from the Stuttgart School of Media (Hochschule der Medien) as well as Professor Dr. Helmut Kipphan and Karl Kowalczyk from Heidelberg. The focus of the Winter University at the "Knowledge Village“ seminar center in Dubai was both on the benefits and the challenges brought about by the utilization of modern management techniques and new technologies in the printing and media industry. The timetable of the seminar covered central practical topics closely related to real-life tasks such as information management, productivity increase, optimal workflow, change management as well as the latest marketing and sales strategies. One of the topics the participants were particularly interested in was, for example, management information systems. "The program gave me an opportunity to absorb as much information as possible about managerial trends in the printing industry in as short a time as possible and therefore was an extremely profitable experience", was the résumé given by Amy Peterson from Dubai, the only female participant of the event. Outside the seminar rooms of the "Knowledge Village", the participants could have a close-up look at the concepts and strategies being translated into action by innovative companies as well as projects in Dubai. For instance, during a visit to "Motivate Publishing“, a publishing house with head offices in Dubai, which has successfully been producing English-language print media since 1979. "What’s up“ and "Emirates Women“, two products of this house, anyway belong to the most widely-read magazines in the gulf region. The message of the participants’ feedback about the exclusive on-site demonstrations was clear. "Unique and highly beneficial!“, commented, for example, the Indian participant Mangudi Nagajaran. The success of the Winter University in forward-looking Dubai gives the Print Media Academy a good reason to be optimistic about the coming events with an international orientation: After the traditionally more strategy-oriented Summer University in July 2004 in Heidelberg, the Winter University 2005 in Florida next spring will again bring together managers from all over the world for a professional dialog with a focus on technological aspects.