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World Publishing Expo Closes on Successful Note

About 8,500 visitors from 90 countries attended the World Publishing Expo, the largest global trade fair for the newspaper and news publishing industry, which closed in Berlin, Germany, on Wednesday

by WAN-IFRA Staff executivenews@wan-ifra.org | October 9, 2013

The 43rd annual exhibition included 267 exhibitors from 35 countries, including printing press manufacturers, editorial and advertising system providers, new media providers and other suppliers to the industry.

The 8,500 visitors was an increase from 7,000 who attended the 2012 Expo, which was held in Frankfurt, Germany.

“We have very positive feedback from exhibitors and visitors, there is a positive feeling in the industry,” said Vincent Peyrègne, CEO of the World Association of Newspapers and News Publishers (WAN-IFRA), the organiser of the event.

“Berlin, more than in the past, showed there is no competition between digital and print, but they are working hand in hand,” he said. “Suppliers are reconsidering their roles, there is a good combination of the two worlds. And Berlin really made a difference – the innovative ecosystem in Berlin was a perfect match for the Expo.”

The World Publishing Expo brings together suppliers to the industry with its thought leaders and decision makers. In addition to the exhibition, which showcased the latest technologies, the event featured 200 speakers sharing their success stories, four Media Port stages focusing on developments in print, workflow efficiency, social-local-mobile and revenue generation, and five premium conferences on tablets & apps, newsroom issues, audience measurement, digital printing and new revenue streams.

Full coverage can be found at https://wan-ifra.org/expo_blog or on Twitter (#wpe13).

Next year’s World Publishing Expo will be held in Amsterdam, The Netherlands, from 13 to 15 October 2014, at the Amsterdam RAI exhibition centre, which has invested heavily in infrastructure and optimised exhibitor services.

Comments from participants:

Bobby Grauf, Global Marketing Manager Newspapers, Agfa:
“The Expo is indeed the annual meeting place of the industry. That said, as the industry is in change, we thought the attendance would be lower when in fact it has been quite good and we are happy with the turnout and who is actually coming to the stand.”

Steve Kirk, Head of Marketing, ABB: “Everybody talks about many different concepts for Expo, but for us what is most important is that Expo continues in whatever form. … ABB is a huge company, but what our division does is primarily focused on newspapers. So a newspaper-oriented event like Expo is much better for us than, say drupa. In just three days here we will see many more customers than we would see at drupa over 14 days.”

Massimo Barsotti, Chief Marketing Officer, EidosMedia: “Better than we expected – with a slightly different pattern from the past, at least for us – in the sense that we had most of the attendees pre-registered for attending demos or participating in the sessions and so on. We didn’t have too many surprise visits or people appearing without notice, so it was very organized on the visitors’ side.”

Noel McEvoy, Director, Sales & Marketing, Printing Presses, Wifag:
“The show fulfils our expectations. We made appointments for the three days that keep us busy. We use the World Publishing Expo to talk with our clients and for networking.”

Roel-Jan Mouw, CEO, Woodwing: “I think the show was productive for us. The quality of the audience coming here was high-level.”

Dramdal Erichsen,  Production Editor, Dagens Næringsliv, Denmark: “When I visited the World Publishing Expo a couple years ago, everyone was interested in new print solutions. Print here, print there. Much has changed since then. Today everyone is focusing on the newest digital gadget or the best online solution.”

Tom Weber, Sales Manager, Beil Reistersysteme: “The World Publishing Expo in Berlin was one of the best Expos I ever attended. The people, the potential clients, and all the stands – it was perfect.”

Oscar Yngwe, Managing Director, Anygraaf: “This year’s World Publishing Expo in Berlin is a full success. We met so many of our existing customers and maintained the contact with them.”

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