ISE audiovisual fair will stay in Barcelona if city ‘keeps reasonable prices’

The ISE audiovisual trade show in Barcelona is willing to continue its relationship with the city if hotels, airlines, and organizations “keep reasonable prices.”

Currently, the trade show has a contract until 2025, and organizers are in talks to see how the future of the fair develops in the Catalan capital.

“We are influencing industries, when it is busy, hotel and flight prices go high,” Mike Blackman, managing director of ISE, said to media outlets after a presentation in Barcelona on Thursday. 

“As an event, we influence that,” he added when explaining that many visitors travel to Barcelona for the fair, therefore making sure prices do not increase drastically are things that are being taken into “consideration.”

Activities throughout city

The trade show will take place in Barcelona from January 31 to February 3, and while this is only business to business event, its managing director "always feels sorry for the people of Barcelona because they hear this big exhibition in the city and they cannot go," he said.

This is why there are also different activities throughout the city during those days, such as digital mapping at Casa Batlló or projection mapping in Plaça Espanya square. For the next edition, "ISE has become a sponsor of Llum lights festival, which is taking place starting on the Thursday of ISE," Blackman said. 

The goal is to highlight the other activities around the city that are related to the trade fair. Organizers "are not here to take, but we are here to give as well," the managing director added. 

One of the most important things for ISE as organizers is "to leave a positive impression," something that does not only apply to trade fair attendees, "but for the city as well," he added.

ISE still feeling effects of Covid

The audiovisual fair landed in Barcelona after being in Amsterdam for years. The first edition was supposed to take place from February 2 to 5, 2021 but had to be postponed due to the pandemic.

Now, accreditation sales are "running almost parallel to where we were on this day in December 2019, when no one was talking about the pandemic yet," Blackman said. 

The fair is "still suffering" from Covid and travel restrictions from Asia, but they believe attendance to be "as much or even better than what we had in 2020 in the last show in Amsterdam."

Barcelona's first ISE fair saw around 43,000 visitors a "good attendance" with around 800 exhibitors based on the circumstances. 

For next year's edition, organizers expect around 1,000 companies to showcase their products in "a proper size show."

Holograms and interactive displays

The fair gives audiovisual and tech companies the opportunity to showcase their new products and services, as well as the opportunity for networking.

In 2022, visitors were greeted at the entrance by a holographic image of the event’s managing director, Mike Blackman.

From there, they entered the main thoroughfare through the venue, where companies ranging from some of the world’s most recognizable brands, such as Microsoft and Google, to startups hoping to get their feet off the ground, showcased the latest in audiovisual technology, such as virtual meeting rooms, laser displays, immersive experiences, and even a lego city.