Mike Blackman urges the industry “to reconnect and turn on the future AV at ISE Barcelona 2022”

The CEO of Integrated Systems Events, Mike Blackman, analyzes and advances to Digital AV the business prospects for Ise 2022, of the 1 to the 4 February in Barcelona, at a time of digital transformation for the industry, in which the reunion in fairs is vital to start opportunities and grow, whose countdown has begun for a promising edition.

“Integrated Systems Europe 2022 (Ise) takes place at a very important time for the industry. It has become the beginning of the year: there are many product launches, many ads, fits into the sales cycle for integrators, in budget cycles for many companies. So it's ideal in terms of time of year. Obviously, last year we had to postpone the event due to the pandemic, But what is happening is that many companies have missed the launch of new products.”.

With these arguments, Mike Blackman, CEO of Integrated Systems Events“, does not doubt that the edition 2022, that will take place of the 1 to the 4 February in Fira de Barcelona, It's more necessary than ever. “Our slogan ‘Get Up and Reconnect’ is in line with what the industry tells us; that we have to do something to get everyone back into business to get up and really prove that we're not dead.; that as an industry we have survived this pandemic, So what, as an industry, Let's grow and learn from it”.

An appointment for digital transformation

After a complicated period and a first edition at Fira de Barcelona last year in hybrid format, business must continue stronger than ever and with a legacy of positive learning.

“In terms of Exhibitors we have some seven hundred confirmeds for the fair in February, and there are many more who have signed up. The normal ISE has always had up to 1.300 Exhibitors, we will not reach that number, but we will have a very big fair in terms of space. It will probably be the same size as the last fair in Amsterdam in 2020″, explains Blackman.

With an upward trajectory from 2004, ISE has achieved a unique international position to bring together the entire AV and systems integration industry ecosystem low the same roof, So this manager emphasizes that “ISE will continue to be the largest audiovisual fair in the world. All major display manufacturers, control undertakings, audio, and more will participate in it”.

Organization and exhibitors at the service of the industry

The core of ISE growth has been precisely the creation of an ecosystem in which organization and exhibitors form a tandem of effective collaboration. “There are two things that happen at ISE in terms of what you see and what you learn and what you hear.. Part is what our exhibitors present and display (new products, Solutions, ideas,...) And the other is what we do as organizers.”.

In this generation of assets for the event, Blackman offers a clear example: “I always try to relate a fair like a newspaper or a magazine.. One part is advertising, and that is the case of our exhibitors; but the wording is needed, independent advice and presentation of what our industry is, And that's what we do”.

As for the novelties that the organization has designed for ISE 2022 in Barcelona, Blackman advances more details in the attached video, with more information at Digital AV.

Training and inspiration as a basis

The training proposal, ISE conferences and certification 2022 remains one of the backbones of the contest, in collaboration with Avixa and Cedia. After the success of the online and hybrid format of the last edition, Blackman stresses that the fair offers one of the best online and face-to-face offers in the industry.

In this sense, this manager affirms that physical interaction, personal connection is essential. “We know people are still nervous, "We know people are still nervous. the safety and health of people to come to the fair, Because the reality is that everyone wants to get back together”.

Mobile platforms versus AV solutions

At the same time, Blackman stresses the importance of mobile platforms and, in particular, of the 5G, “that are enabling a platform or transport system for audiovisual solutions, since the ability to send video and audio over mobile networks with good quality makes a game-changing difference in the way AV solutions are presented”.

Although these are different markets in terms of channel operation, Blackman points out that after eighteen months of pandemic, the importance of UC has become clear, of videoconferencing systems..., “and many AV solutions work on mobile platforms, while we can see that the mobility industry is employing AV solutions”.

Other articles on Avixa, Cedia, Fira de Barcelona, Integrated Systems Events, ISE2022, Mike Blackman