ISE 2020 has opened its doors for the last time at the Amsterdam RAI, with organisers insisting that the show will bow out of the venue in style.
Flights were grounded across Europe due to hazardous weather conditions and some companies have pulled out of exhibiting on account of growing fears over the Coronavirus, yet ISE Mike Blackman was keen to emphasise that, with all necessary precautions having been taken, “everyone who is coming can still expect a phenomenal show.”
With the show making its final outing at the RAI, Blackman also reflected on the sense of togetherness it has fostered over the years and how some of the issues facing this year’s event have helped bolster the sense of community felt across the sector.
Meanwhile, Innovation speaker Duncan Wardle explained that creativity, imagination, curiosity and intuition are the key skillsets needed in the workplace in the next decade, during his ISE 2020 Opening Address.
He also argued that customer data can only go so far and so deep: “You need to apply a child-like curiosity to find out what really excites your customers,” he said. “If you run analytics on why you go to Disney Parks, the number one answer you are going to get is for the rides. That tells me to spend a couple of hundred million on a capital investment strategy – but pause for a moment and act child-like and ask the question ‘why’, and that’s when the innovation starts to happen.”
The Smart Building Conference kicked off at the Hotel Okura with an insight into the impact better buildings can have on their occupants and the environment, while the CEDIA Cybersecurity Workshop also made its debut, raising awareness among both residential and commercial integrators of the challenges and opportunities around cybersecurity.
The role of virtualisation in delivering more immersive audio experiences, and the impact of the individual’s sound perception on their engagement with different content and real-world scenarios, were among the themes addressed in the AudioForum, which took place at the Amsterdam RAI yesterday.
End users, integrators, distributors, manufacturers, consultants, design firms and live event producers will all find much to pique their interest as ISE holds its final show at the RAI before relocating to the Fira de Barcelona from 2021.