Less is more for InfoComm MEA
Published: MEA
UAE: The fourth edition of InfoComm MEA got off to an encouraging start at the Dubai World Trade Centre. Exhibitors were generally happy with the quality and quantity of people who passed by their stands to view a number of new releases on show for the first time in the region.
The key difference between this year’s event and previous iterations is the reduction to four days. The extra day back in the office after Eid certainly made the first day of the show much more encouraging than in previous years. While it could never truly be described as busy, waves of people came throughout the day leading many to describe the show as having made a good start.
Support for the event also seemed to be evident by the number manufacturer representatives available on the various stands. This year’s event has seen a notable rise in international reps making the journey to Dubai to help their distributors making manufacturer staff on the booth the norm rather than the exception.
There was also plenty of new equipment for visitors to get to grips with. Many manufacturers and distributors had new products on their booths making regional debuts, such as Avolites’ Quartz compact lighting console on the Procom ME booth, and SiliconCore’s new 1.2mm pixel pitch display which was on show as a proof of concept.
There was also a global launch at the show. Bose used InfoComm MEA as the platform to unveil and demonstrate its new FreeSpace Configurator web application for the first time anywhere.
Education is always one of the highlights of any InfoComm show, and there are plenty of interesting examples from the Dubai edition this year. For example, beyerdynamic alongside its distributor AVL Electronics, is hosting a workshop covering its Orbis system and how it integrates into A/V projects, while Bose and Audinate have teamed up to present the first edition of a touring AV Networking Roadshow.
With the event hosted alongside Gitex, the perennial question is always which show to exhibit in. The likes of Christie, Shure and NMK all enjoyed busy booths in Hall 3 of Gitex, while Sony had some very interesting new laser-based projection technology on its partner booths in Hall 3 and Hall 8. By all accounts, the visitor quality has been good for the A/V manufacturers in Gitex with many seeing people they would not otherwise meet. The organiser of InfoComm MEA has to hope these people are also taking the trip across the busy corridors to visit the more focused A/V show.
The reduction in days and the much improved signage is showing that the organiser is listening to what its exhibitors want. And the volume of staff and high-quality stand build evident on the show floor shows there is support both in the region and internationally for InfoComm MEA. There are still issues for the organiser to address, but everything points to a show that is moving in the right direction.
InfoComm MEA continues at the Dubai World Trade Centre until October 16.