I’m told that the joint venture electronics show organised by Reed and EE Times Group (formerly TechInsights) will soon have a new name (I’m betting it will include “ESC” and “Live”). The two companies have already been working on the show, which thankfully will move from Farnborough to Earls Court, and I was particularly interested in the plans to encourage exhibitors to take seminar rooms to run presentations, tutorials and labs. ESC has always has a good conference, and if vendors can run their own tutorials, hopefully this will not only encourage higher attendance, but also mean that more visitors spend time on the show floor.

Tags: Electronics, Electronics Weekly, ESC, ESE, Reed, Shows and Events, TechInsights, UK

At last night’s Elektra Awards, Paul Briggs, Group Publisher for Reed Technology Group, announced that Electronics Weekly and UBM are to form a strategic partnership for the Embedded Systems Conference and Exhibition, to be held on October 20-21st 2010 at Earls Court. A couple of months ago this partnership would have been almost unthinkable, but with the sale of EE Times, it seems almost anything is possible.

Of course it is good news that there will be two major companies behind the event next year, and I really hope it works. It does, however, need some radical thinking. Neither company generated large attendances at events this year, and more worryingly they didn’t appear to be able to attract big name exhibitors who must sign up early to encourage smaller exhibitors and visitors to attend.

The move will presumably see National Electronics Week refocus on its core electronics manufacturing sector, which may even increase the quality of the visitors, although they will have to work had to secure strong support from the media.

Overall it’s a good thing that we have commitment to ESC2010, but if it is to be a success the organisers need to think radically. Today exhibition success is not about achieving a particular revenue per square meter of booth space. It’s all about getting big-name companies who will not only attract visitors, but also proactively market the event to their databases, and provide compelling reasons to attend, such as running classes on the show floor. I hope that EW and UBM can see the benefit of this, and are able to announce commitments to exhibit from several major manufacturers.

Tags: Awards, EE Times, Electronics, Electronics Weekly, ESC, National Electronics Week, Reed, Shows and Events

Don’t they know there is a worldwide recession? The organisers of SPS/IPC/Drives have announced that this year the event attracted 48,595 visitors. This represents a 1% increase on the previous year, and the largest visitor numbers on record for the show.

It is hugely impressive that SPS/IPC/Drives was able to deliver record visitor numbers in the current climate. It follows on from some disappointing attendance at shows such as ESC UK and productronica, and I’m delighted that SPS managed to buck the trend. Hopefully this is not only a result of a great show, but also a sign of the electronics industry beginning to show tangible signs of recovery.

Tags: Electronics, ESC, ESE, Germany, productronica, Shows and Events, UK

ED Europe is a purely digital publication. So does this mean print is dead?

Absolutely not. In my opinion print publications will never be redundant. We humans read for many reasons such as pleasure, education, information-gathering and business requirements and for many people there is considerable enjoyment in reading a well-written, well-designed magazine or newspaper that is traditionally printed. There is also for some a desire to own well-produced books that perhaps form part of a personal collection.

I see no future print scenario that will emulate Ray Bradbury’s novel, Fahrenheit 451. ….now there’s a book worth owning.

From a B2B information perspective I think traditional print and electronic media can co-exist. The only proviso I would mention is that free circulation B2B print publications face sharply escalating costs on paper, printing and postage and therefore it is financially logical that B2B media companies will increasingly use electronic media to reach existing and new audiences

What are the benefits your readers see from a magazine that is delivered digitally?

Convenient delivery to their computer desktop, easy storage for reference purposes, easy to print if required. Individual pages or the whole thing can be emailed to colleagues, customers, etc.

ED Europe is delivered only as a PDF, whereas most other titles have some online system with animated pages and an option to download a PDF. Why haven’t you offered an online reader?

Unlike many PDF-delivered publications that are really print publications that have been adapted for, or in some cases just shoved onto, computer screens, ED Europe was specifically designed for PDF delivery. This provides numerous advantages for recipients. It opens in a landscape format that fits computer screens. Readers do not have to zoom in to read it or scroll around the page trying to find the story they want. Reader navigation throughout the publication is quick and easy and because of some very smart compression techniques we can produce a 26-page edition with lots of colour graphics that goes out typically as a 3meg file.

Let’s not forget here that ED Europe was created back in 2005 so it’s not unreasonable to call it a pioneering success in digital B2B media terms. It has during that time won three major awards in the USA.

On the subject of Flash-related animations in digital publications Penton Media is fully aware of these and plans to make full use of them.

Can you explain the difference between writing for a print publication and writing for a purely digital title?

In the case of ED Europe, there really is no difference. Because of the way it is designed we can run short news stories, full-length technical features and opinion columns in exactly the same way as a traditional print publication.

Now ask me that question relative to writing directly online and that’s a very different journalistic proposition. Penton Media editors now write directly to websites and the way headlines and other related information is written has to be within certain parameters that suit web journalism.

So we now see a complete Penton Media portfolio where editors write for traditional print, digital and online media

ED Europe launched an HTML email newsletter. Why didn’t you simply create a shorter PDF magazine to cover the news? What are the advantages of the HTML delivery?

Three reasons for that. ED Europe’s NewsLine newsletters provide readers with a fast, convenient, easily absorbed information service. For Penton Media it has created an additional revenue source while also doing the valuable job of driving traffic to our websites.

You have been one of the pioneers of online video in the European electronics industry. Do you see video continuing to grow as a medium in our industry?

Penton Media are committed to online video in a big way and yes I do see the use of video as a B2B communication tool expanding. Penton Media has an Engineering TV department that works in conjunction with publications and editors to produce very high quality professional standard coverage. For me and many of my editorial, colleagues at Penton one of the major video innovations has been the way in which we report on exhibitions. To be able to shoot a three-minute interview with somebody that has been deeply involved in the development of new products and technology and have them explain it directly to our design engineering audiences has to be one of the most immediate and informative ways of communicating complex information.

In addition to our editorially created video coverage Penton Media is now looking at hosting vendor videos on our websites. Conceptually, these are videos produced by companies that want to promote their products and as such can considered as being a modern high-tech form of advertising. Penton Media will be hosting these videos for a fee and the number of weeks/months the video will appear for will depend on the level of fee paid.

What is the one thing you’d like to change about the way companies do PR in the electronics industry?

Generally speaking the successful PR executives and PR agencies do a pretty good job of presenting and distributing information to the media.

But while we are on the subject of PR agencies I will just release one particular bee-from-my-bonnet. PR agencies in a bid to do the best for their clients will often promote the use of editorial columns to publicise the client. And why not? Its a powerful form of promotion that contains that all important credibility ingredient called editorial integrity; although sometimes I wonder, and call me a tad cynical here if you wish, if the real attraction is more to do with the fact that editorial coverage is free.

Without going into a full scale, force 10 rant here let me put the point simply. There are agencies with foresight that appreciate magazines do need advertising income if they are to stay in business. Sadly, there are others that will soak up all the editorial support they can without thinking that in the long-term publications are a business and understandably need to turn a profit or otherwise face closure; a situation that benefits no publicity agencies.

If an industry feels there is a value to having B2B media circulating in its sector then it needs to consider supporting that media with advertising.

And let’s get one thing straight; I am certainly not talking here about a pay-to-play editorial approach. Clearly, that would ultimately denigrate the content of any journal and would not serve the interests of either readers or advertisers. What I am saying is that all industry clients and their agencies should recognise that in the long-term maintaining independent, well written and well produced business media is in everyone’s interests.

What do you enjoy doing in your spare time, when you’re not writing about electronics?

Wining and dining with family and friends, travelling in Spain, playing classical Spanish guitar (badly)

What’s your favourite gadget?

A corkscrew

Tags: Advertising, Awards, CIE, Clients, Digital Magazines, ED Europe, Editors, EiN, Electronics, Email, EPE, ESC, ESE, Europe, Interviews, Newsletters, Online, Penton, Print Publications, Spain, USA, Video

Although not the first title to have 100% digital circulation (Electronic Design Europe has been digital-only for some years), the decision by Reed to switch EDN Europe to all-digital distribution will have a major impact on the European electronics media.

It’s disappointing to see Reed make such major cutbacks at a time when the industry appears to be recovering, but at least EDN Europe has escaped the fate of EPN France. Reed has also taken a realistic look at advertising rates, slashing them by two thirds, although the title will charge a premium for rich media and video content in the advert.

Of course the cut in advertising price is initially demanded because the circulation will, at first, fall dramatically (the digital circulation is currently only around 11K), but Reed confidently predict the circulation will more than double by the end of 2010. The good news is that Reed will continue to invest in high-quality circulation, promising that they will retain a BPA audit.

If Reed can create a business model that provides a significantly lower cost-per-thousand than print titles – and they certainly should do as the cost of digital distribution is so much less than printing and posting a hard copy – the move to digital circulation could be a success.

Tags: Advertising, EDN Europe, Electronics, EPN, EPN France, ESC, Europe, France, Reed, USA, Video

It’s clearly not a good time for trade shows. ESC UK was disappointing, and now the big manufacturing show, productronica has announced a 30% drop in visitors compared with the last show in 2007 (28,000 vs. 40,514 in 2007). The fact that attendance fell is not a surprise, given the current economic climate, but the size of the drop is concerning.

Not surprisingly restrictions on travel had a significant effect on attendance, with around 11,700 foreign visitors, whereas 2007 saw around 18,200 non-Germans attend: a drop of 35%.

There was a little good news, with the fall in exhibitor numbers around 20% – dropping from 1,477 in 2007 to 1,150 this year. Clearly the trade show is not dead in Europe, and suppliers understand the benefit of meeting potential customers face-to-face at events. I’m sure that visitor numbers will recover in 2011, assuming that the economy is in better shape, but it will be interesting to see if visitor numbers approach the level of 2007. People, particularly in Germany, still use trade shows as part of the way that they do business, and this isn’t going to stop in the next few years. I’m confident that the show will return to its former glory, but with the number of exhibitors tied closely to the number of visitors, it is important that attendance jumps up significantly in 2011, otherwise the show could begin a period of slow decline.

Tags: ESC, Europe, Germany, productronica, Shows and Events, UK

Although I did find one or two exhibitors that were reasonably pleased with the event, I think it is fair to say that overall ESC UK 2009 was pretty disappointing. As always the conference provided quality, valuable technical content, but why were the conference attendees not encouraged to visit the exhibition? A packed programme, and a layout that meant the conference attendees did not walk past any booths on the way to lunch or drinks meant that exhibitors missed out – and with some great booths, the conference attendees missed out as well.

I understand that although the paid for conference attracted a respectable 81 delegates, the main exhibition only pulled in just over 520 visitors across two days, despite attracting a total of over 1600 registrations prior to and at the event. The figures haven’t been officially released, but I’m pretty confident that these are accurate numbers. With over 1500 attendees in 2008, it appears that the move to Farnborough was a disaster.

The show didn’t appear to attract committed support from exhibitors prior to the event, as many told me they only signed up when offered a special deal a week or two before the show, although it was good to see commitment on the days of the show as all the booths were well staffed.

Personally I really hope next year’s event is a success. I’m not convinced about the choice of venue – whatever the actual numbers it was clear to anyone at the show that engineers didn’t flock to Farnborough. But the UK does need shows, not only as a vehicle to market products, but also to educate engineers. Even if the economy improves, it’s a tough job, but hopefully TechInsights can convince engineers they should attend, and convince potential exhibitors that the show floor will be packed!

Tags: ESC, Shows and Events, TechInsights, UK

TechInsights has extended the deadline for abstracts until 17th April. All you “right up to the deadline” people, visit the ESC website to take advantage of this extension.

Tags: ESC, Shows and Events, UK