The International Communications Industries Association, Inc.® (ICIA®) recently reported record participation at InfoComm 04, the professional audiovisual (AV) conference and exhibition held June 5-June 11, 2004 in Atlanta, Ga.
Attendance figures were released mid-Show, at which time it was clear that there was an increase of at least 12%; ICIA now offers final figures and specifics on demographics of attendees. In a strong increase of 16% over 2003 attendance, 22,894 AV professionals from more than 75 countries attended this year’s show.
A record 647 AV and IT systems companies exhibited at InfoComm this year, representing a 15.3% increase over the previous record of 561 in 2003. Exhibitors occupied 263,610 paid sq. ft. of space, compared to 263,600 nsf in 2003. A record 180 companies were new to InfoComm. While many new exhibitors were entrepreneurs hoping to establish a foothold in the burgeoning professional systems market, some were well-known brands such as Hewlett Packard, Gateway, and Cisco, companies that see InfoComm as an important avenue to new markets. Leading display, projection, audio and control systems manufacturers such as AMX, Barco, Bose, Canon, Christie, Crestron, Extron, Hitachi, JBL, JVC, Meyer Sound, Mitsubishi, NEC, Panasonic, Philips, Pioneer, Polycom, Polyvision, Samsung, Sanyo, Sharp, Shure, Sony, Tandberg, Telex, and Yamaha continue to support InfoComm as the key AV systems buying opportunity for end users as well as their key professional channels.
Approximately 70% of the attendees were dealers, consultants, and integrators, while 30% comprised IT and AV buyers and high-end users. AV service provider attendance increased by 14%, while end-user attendance increased by 55% over 2003. Attendance from business and industry as well as the worship market almost doubled, while attendance from the education sector increased by 48% and from the government sector by 12%. InfoComm is recognized as an opportunity for the professional market to explore communications technology advances and place orders for the coming year, and this year was no exception. More than 88% of attendees authorize or recommend buying decisions. Over 43% of attendees have technology budgets of $1 million or more, with approximately 9% in the spending category of over $10 million annually. Educational sessions were extremely well attended, exceeding last year's numbers by 15% at 5,962 registrations for InfoComm Academy educational courses. Super Tuesday, a first-time program consisting of day-long courses held prior to the exhibition opening, attracted 589 registrants, many of whom also attended one of six three-day Institute for Professional Development (IPD) courses as part of their InfoComm Conference Package registration. The new format of a day-long in-depth themed program responded to attendees who had expressed the desire for more advanced education without losing time on the Show floor. The IPD registration reached an unprecedented record of 227, exceeding the 2003 IPD registration level of 136 by 67%. The InfoComm Academy Design School Level 1 was taught at InfoComm for the first time, attracting 82 participants to the three-day course held Saturday June 5- Monday June 7. Other IPDs taught included AV Sales, Teleconferencing Lighting, University Facilities Design, Streaming Media, and Selling and Integrating Networked Systems. Illustrating the importance of the InfoComm 04 theme, courses on IP networking, controls and streaming media were among the top draws. Exhibitors on the show floor expressed their excitement about InfoComm 04, giving enthusiastic comments about booth traffic, the high buying quality of attendees, and the professionalism of the Show. By the end of the Show, ICIA sold more than 80% of the exhibition to be booked for InfoComm 05, which will take place June 8-10 in Las Vegas. The International Communications Industries Association, Inc.® (ICIA®) is the premier trade association for the professional audiovisual communications industry. ICIA is the founder of InfoComm, the conference and trade exposition for audiovisual communications professionals who come to learn about the latest technologies and available services as well as new and alternative applications. ICIA serves its worldwide membership as the pre-eminent provider of education, training and certification.