Barcelona’s Mobile World Congress to generate €436 million for the local economy

Barcelona (ACN).- The Mobile World Congress 2015 will have an estimated economic impact in Greater Barcelona of some €436 million and create 12,627 jobs. The 2015 MWC, which is the world’s largest event of the mobile and cell phone-related industries, will take place in the Catalan capital from the 2nd to the 5th of March. It aims to attract 5,000 more visitors than last year and reach 90,000 attendees. For the second consecutive year, Facebook founder Marc Zuckerberg will participate in the event. Android creator, Sundar Pichai, and Wikipedia creator, Jimmy Wales, will also be some of the most outstanding speakers at this year’s edition. 100,000 square metres of exhibition space, 4,000 accredited journalists, delegations from 160 governments and 2,000 companies – 95 of which are Catalan (16 more than last year) – are some of the features that will define the 2015 MWC. 

According to the CEO of event organisers GSMA, John Hoffman, the Mobile World Congress, which takes place each year in Barcelona, is being billed as the “biggest”, “widest” and “the best” of all fairs in this sector up to now. 90,000 visitors are expected, 70,000 of them are not locals and need to find accommodation at hotels, “which are nearly full”, added Hoffman. The price of accommodation “is expensive”, he said, but “it is always too expensive everywhere I go”. Hoffman pointed out that the organisation is “satisfied” and “proud” of the economic benefits that the MWC has brought to Barcelona since its arrival in 2006. For these 10 years, the economic impact is estimated at €3 billion and 75,000 new jobs.

Marc Zuckerberg and Sundar Pichai, the MWC 2015 stars

Once again, the world’s mobile technology sector will focus all its attention on Barcelona due to the MWC. On the opening day of the event, on Monday, there will be speeches by the most highly anticipated figures including Facebook founder Marc Zuckerberg and the person responsible for Android for Google, Sundar Pichai. There will also be present, among other personalities, the creator of Wikipedia, Jimmy Wales, Mitchel Baker (Mozilla), Ken Hu (Huawei), Hans Vestberg (Ericsson) and Ajay Banga (Mastercard).

Connectivity and mobility will be the two focuses of this year’s edition. “Connectivity is as important at the beginning of the 21^st century as electricity was when the 20^th century started, we use it in every single thing we do, and this is the main point for all we are going to see”, said Shaun Collins, founder of CCS Insight and expert on the mobile sector. Other key aspects of this year’s edition will be mobile apps for cars and “wearables”, such as watches and bracelets, which this year arrive with “more interesting” designs, according to Collins.

At the MWC, there will also be a debate about regulation of the telecommunications sector in Europe, because “bandwidth will be more valuable than oil”, predicted Collins.