News

First annual IFA on course for success (17/7/2006)

IFA 2006 from 1 to 6 September gains wide international support

Eight months after announcing their decision to hold the IFA on an annual basis, the early conclusions of its organisers, Gesellschaft fŸr Unterhaltungs- und Kommunikations- elektronik (gfu) and Messe Berlin, are positive. Over 80 per cent of the display area on the Berlin Exhibition Grounds occupied at the IFA 2005 has already been rented out. COO Messe Berlin Dr. Christian Gške: "It is particularly worth noting that numerous exhibitors have approached us to request larger stands. What is more, there has been an increase in demand from the telecommunications and IT sectors to attend the IFA. Overall, the decision to hold the IFA annually has boosted the international standing of this trade fair venue".

In recent years the CE industry has grown considerably. This development can be attributed to the large appeal of innovative, digital products and services which drive innovation in the CE market along at high speed. Chairman of the Supervisory Board of gfu Dr. Rainer Hecker: "The IFA 2006 will mirror the lively pace of these developments. Two months before the fair opens its doors the number of registrations received shows that the international CE industry is also backing the decision to hold the IFA every year. The IFA 2006 is on course for success".

Governing Mayor of Berlin Klaus Wowereit made his support for holding the IFA annually well known early on, and welcomes this development: "Berlin and the IFA are one, and as such I was convinced from the very start that the decision to hold the IFA annually was correct. I am delighted that international exhibitors have supported this decision, and that their high attendance is turning it into reality. An industry as innovative as the consumer electronics business needs an annual trade fair to showcase its products and services. Holding the event annually benefits not only Berlin, it is a boost to the economy that extends far beyond the local region. I am certain that the IFA 2006 will once again provide a valuable impetus that will have a worldwide effect".

The tried and tested, and unique, IFA concept has been advanced with thorough attention to detail, resulting in the IFA with its incomparable blend of innovation and events gaining an even greater appeal. The IFA attracts more international visitors, is more entertaining, is devoted more to media and politics and focuses even more on trade visitors.

An outstanding international opening gala will mark the start of event, attended by leading international decision-makers from the CE industry, the retail trade, politics and the media. Federal Chancellor Dr. Angela Merkel will open the IFA 2006. Federal President Horst Kšhler will also be visiting the first IFA to be held on an annual basis.

This year there will be numerous performances by stars and starlets to underline the IFA's standing as an entertainment trade fair. Among the highlights are a performance by international chart toppers a-ha, daily concerts in the IFA Summer Garden and a top act with Dieter Thomas Kuhn.

In addition to entertainment media politics is a regular fixture of the IFA. As part of Medienpolitik@IFA, a format undergoing major enlargement at the IFA 2006, there will be roundtable discussions on current media politics issues attended by high-ranking industry representatives; chief among them is Minister President of the State of Rhineland Palatinate Kurt Beck in his capacity as Chairman of the Broadcasting Commission of the German Federal States.

The IFA is the number one meeting place of the international CE retail trade. It is the industry's most important place for doing business early in the CE season, in the autumn months of the year. There will be a special focus on trade visitors as the IFA's VIPs. 2006 will witness the first-time holding of an international trade forum dealing with the latest in market developments and business opportunities from the point of view of the retail trade. Once again, leading figures have agreed to attend the International Keynotes, where senior executives from the world's CE industry will be reporting at the IFA on the latest product developments and strategies of the future. Last but not least, with an agenda of up-to-the-minute issues and outstanding international speakers the IFA Convention, the convention and seminar programme accompanying the fair, will set a new tone at the event.

Dr. Rainer Hecker: "Attractive innovations and outstanding events such as the FIFA World Cup bring the CE industry centre stage and into society's focus. This is an opportunity for both the industry and the trade to give a successful display of themselves at this annual event that is the IFA".

www.ifa-berlin.de