Prolight + Sound, the international fair of technologies and services for events, installation and production took place from 12 to 15 March this year.
The innovative power of the event-technology sector and the investment potential for perfectly staged events were evident at the Prolight + Sound fair this year, with a total of 897 exhibitors from 42 countries demonstrating their innovativeness, versatility and dynamism with the latest products from the worlds of audio, lighting, theatre and stage technology, AV media technology and visual communication and systems integration. It was almost on par with last year’s 901 exhibitors from 41 countries.
Combined with Musikmesse, the two events drew a total of 2 242 exhibitors from 57 countries, with a grand total of 107 629 visitors from 142 countries. Prolight + Sound as always featured a wide array of conferences, presentations and workshops and informal networking opportunities for the live events industry.
Prolight + Sound Director Michael Biwer comments: “This year’s fair was characterised by an all-embracing image of the sector and a mood that is improving all the time in the live and event sector. Eighty percent of exhibitors rate the economic climate in the sector as being at least satisfactory to good. This represents a solid foundation for the development of new and future-oriented technologies – and therefore, for the future of Prolight + Sound.’
The exhibitors gave the fair a positive rating in all respects with almost 80 percent said they were satisfied to extremely satisfied with the course of business. The response from visitors was even better as 98 percent declared they had achieved their goals for the fair.
Prolight + Sound also underscored its status as an international source of impulses with a comprehensive spectrum of seminars, lectures and workshops. The Eventplaza Conference offered numerous information events on trends, strategies and expertise for the live-entertainment and theatre sectors with particular attention being paid to the subject of event safety.
Also speakers from the media-technology sector passed on their knowledge about sound and event technology at the Prolight + Sound Conference. The significance of Prolight + Sound as an information and training platform was emphasised by Detlef R. Schulz, Head of the National Politics and Communication Division of the Association for Media and Event Technology (Verband fur Medien- und Veranstaltungstechnik): “Prolight + Sound is a very important platform for us. In particular, the seminar programme is a relevant part where the focus is on training for specialist personnel, a subject of great importance for our sector, because the demands on events and, therefore, on specialist staff who continue to grow.’
New to the Prolight + Sound fair this year was the Prolight + Sound International Press Award (PIPA). Under the auspices of MM-Musik-Media-Verlag publishing company, a jury of international trade visitors met in Frankfurt and gave out the PIPA awards for the first time this year. The awards were presented to the winners for outstanding products in the recording, pro-audio and lights / video categories at a grand event with over 300 representatives of international manufacturers and distributors.
The next Prolight + Sound will be held in Frankfurt am Main from 15 to 18 April 2015.
