Thinking of Barcelona, late February or early March, of the latest novelties, of public transportation, full hotel occupancy, of next generation mobiles, business meetings, innovative companies is to speak about Mobile World Congress.
For 11 years now, and hopefully for many more, Barcelona is the world largest gathering for the mobile industry, the pretty girl with whom everyone wants to dance.
During, before and after the days of the event it is an impossible task to find accommodation, to book in a restaurant, rent a car, or take a taxi without breaking the bank or perishing in the attempt. The first GSM World Congress (as it was then called) was held in Rome in 1990. The following editions were held in different European cities passing through: Nice, Berlin, Lisbon, Athens, Madrid and Cannes where it stayed for a decade.
But 2006 was the farewell of the Mobile World Congress for the French city. Relocation came in response to rising attendance and growing demand for exhibition and conferencing space as Cannes reached full capacity. After a sibylline and formal clash of titans among Munich, Milan and Paris, the Mobile landed in Barcelona (and not just visiting). 50,000 people attended the fair leaving about 100 million euros for the city. Nine years later the number of visitors already amounted to 93,000 injecting into the economy the far from negligible amount of 436 million euros.
Under the theme: The Next Element ‘, this year’s Mobile World Congress hopes to bring together 2,200 exhibitors that will showcase the latest technology developments around mobile phones attracting professionals from around the world. Furthermore, executives and policymakers will debate and shape the future of the mobile industry. 2,200 exhibitors, about 101,000 professionals gathered in 110,000 square meters of fairgrounds, pretty cool, right?
101,000 people for 4 days, that is 25,000 people between visitors and exhibitors per day. And what exactly 101,000 people look for in a Congress where the cheapest entry squeezes 700 euros? Have the news at first hand? Close Big Contracts?
The answer is Networking, creating a professional network of contacts that allows us to get to know ourselves and our business, listen and learn from others, find potential partners, partners or investors, and lay the foundation stone of what can be a good Agreement or contract.
The MWC is the business meeting point par excellence, the ideal place to interact, to make yourself known, to introduce your latest services and solutions, and to hand out business paper cards (paper cards, unbelievable but true).
And at 19.00 when the official activities are over and the Mobile closes its doors until the next day, networking takes off the tie and merges with the after working. Barcelona La nuit gets ready to receive the off congress unofficial networking parties and side events that bring together executives with contacts. Take note: in restaurants and nightlife, 120 million euros are expected to be raised
Mobile World Congress 2017 will be held one more year in Barcelona, February 27 – March 2 and Lleidanet team,being a young and innovative enterprise will be present , not only, in the networking but also in the after working and side events.
See you around!