LAS VEGAS
An expanding array of applications and technologies revolutionizing the AV/presentation market will be highlighted at Infocomm, to be held June 12-14 in Las Vegas.
Like most successful trade shows, Infocomm has had to respond to an evolving industry and recognize the fact that digital technology has allowed manufacturers to expand their business beyond traditional markets.
Streaming media, videoconferencing and digital cinema are just a few of the applications that barely existed 10 to 15 years ago. And while there's a perception that Internet technologies have fallen on hard times, you'd never know that at Infocomm - this year, streaming media and the concept of combining IT technology with AV are taking center stage in Las Vegas.
"Streaming media will be a very big component of what's going on at the show - within fixed installations as well as the staging market," says Randy Lemke, executive director of the International Communications Industries Association, which sponsors the annual show. "If you look at the biggest changes in the industry, it's really the connection to the IT and Internet world."
Responding to those changes, Infocomm has added a new Audiovisual IT Convergence Pavilion that focuses on companies that integrate AV with IT, along with a half-day seminar on the technology.
Concerns over safety and cutbacks in travel budgets have re-invigorated the videoconferencing industry since the last Infocomm. "We have more videoconferencing than we've ever had before," Lemke says. "More companies showing traditional ISDN as well as IT-based videoconferencing products will be at this year's show."
Evolving HD applications like digital cinema will also be a focus at this year's show, although Lemke adds that the technology will be emphasized more in the booths than in seminars. "It isn't just broadcast digital cinema, but all those other applications of HD that are interesting to people," he says.
Another addition to the show this year is the Projection Industry Summit June 10-11. The event, sponsored by Insight Media, will focus on the business, marketing and technology of the projection industry supply chain.
And while declining manufacturer participation has led to the temporary cancellation of Infocomm's popular Projection Shoot-Out, Lemke is confident that attendance at this year's show will compare favorably with past Infocomms. The show has grown 10 to 15 percent annually for the past decade and Lemke expects about 22,000 attendees and approximately 270,000 square feet of exhibit space, on par with last year.
