Convergence on show

Audiovisual and IT themes are converging ever further at the giant Integrated Systems Europe trade show each year, finds Fleur Doidge

Audiovisual technologies might remain obscure to many IT channel players, but there is increasing crossover and convergence with IT reselling, distribution and integration - making the ever-expanding Integrated Systems Europe (ISE) trade show in the Netherlands each year increasingly one to watch.

Eleven halls at the Amsterdam RAI Exhibition Centre were devoted to ISE this year, attracting integrators and audiovisual specialists from across Europe. According to organiser Integrated Systems Events, exhibitor numbers were up 15 per cent on 2011, and the gross square footage at the RAI was increased by 18 per cent. Pre-registrations were 21 per cent higher than in 2011.

Mike Blackman, managing director of Integrated Systems Events, said in a statement there were 36,702 pre-registrations. Actual attendee figures were not available at press time but, according to Blackman, typically, another 4,000 would register on arrival, suggesting that ISE this year could attract a record 40,000 visitors.

Such interest bodes well for audiovisual technologies at a time when the IT industry as a whole is weathering tougher times.

The opening keynote at the reception on 31 January was by Gerhard Schulz, senior vice president for Central Europe at IT distribution giant Ingram Micro. He said collaborative marketing, alongside packaging of the right offerings and skills, will prove critical.

Schulz said Ingram itself had managed to broaden its offering from box-building to become a valued partner of manufacturers as well as integrators and resellers around the world. This was "a blueprint for business growth in the digital age", he suggested.

"At Ingram Micro we are on a journey, evolving our business as we meet new manufacturers, add new technologies to our offering, and embrace new reseller and integrator channels. But this journey has only just begun, and we now see the emergence of a series of mega-trends that present fantastic new opportunities for our partners," concluded Schulz.

He said the Ingram Micro experience mirrored the changes happening in many AV and IT companies - the move from front-office, volume reselling to the provision of complete solutions that bring increasing numbers of technologies into the mix.

Integration in action

This year, ISE's new "Integration in Action" trademark was used to show if the offerings on display have been deployed in the real world, for example to showcase 3D and unified communications (UC) applications.

ISE's Blackman said: "There has always been more to ISE than exhibitors simply selling boxes from their stands. Every year, we see more companies enhancing their presence at the show by placing their innovations in a ‘real-world' context, so visitors can see how they can be incorporated into new project designs."

Blackman added that more end customers are coming to ISE every year, so it has become increasingly critical to engage them directly. End users, he said, require access to "tangible experiences" that show how they can benefit from audiovisual technologies and services. This meant being able to demonstrate rapid, substantial returns on investment.

This year, a hall was dedicated to UC for the first time - and sponsored by "affordable videocon-ferencing" provider Vidyo, and advanced conferencing integrator Verrex. Panel discussions also took place in the hall's theatre.

IP security had its own pavilion for the first time as well in 2012. For many audiovisual players, the area of IP security is relatively new, but it is becoming increasingly important as technologies converge. Exhibitors included Germany's videocommunications and automation vendor Visiomatic, building communications specialist Siedle, and surveillance products distributor SafeVision.

There was also a second residential solutions area, and more space devoted to digital signage than at previous ISEs.

As usual, the expo also hosted a technical and tightly focused education programme. For example, German film industry player White Light Consultations' founder Marcel Gonska gave a talk on how to deliver 3D offerings to customers.

Industry body InfoComm also held a Future Trends Summit the day before ISE opened. Robert Simpson, director of Electrosonic Group, led a session exploring the technology trends for high-resolution displays.

The Monday also saw ISE hold its inaugural Dynamic Events Conference, aiming to bring together leading lights in events production to exchange knowledge and network. This included, for example, a panel discussion on event lighting, hosting Durham Marenghi, who designed the lighting for the opening and closing ceremonies of the 2006 Winter Olympics and Paralympics in Turin.

The Professional Audio Manufacturers' Alliance (PAMA) also chose ISE as the setting for one of its regular meetings.

Club Maverick was back too, with the specialist distributor hosting 100 VIP resellers from around Europe. Jon Sidwick, director of Maverick Europe, said: "We see ISE as our most important stage to enable us to talk to key customers, suppliers and potential new partners."

ISE's organisers are undoubtedly serious about being pan-European and inclusive. It even partners airlines such as Air France and KLM to offer visitors discounted fares to the show; Amsterdam RAI Hotel & Travel Service for special ISE rates on accommodation; and tourism operator I Amsterdam to offer city guides and sightseeing excursions - whether to delegates or their guests, to such places as the famous red light district, the Heineken Brewery and the Genever Experience.

Being put on show

At least 1,000 new technologies were launched at ISE 2012, according to organisers, who also claim that manufacturers themselves now synchronise their R&D programme and production with ISE, to ensure their latest and greatest can go on display.

South Korean vendor Hyundai IT once again displayed its complete line-up of displays for both indoor and outdoor applications. In particular, the vendor highlighted its 46in screen with a transparent display layer that allows the user to look through the panel to see the physical environment behind it.

These see-through panels, according to Hyundai, should prove especially suitable for point-of-sale installations in stores, or perhaps bus shelters, where those using them need to see what is happening beyond the shelter. USB support and touchscreen functionality are optional.

Hyundai also showed its 55in, 65in, 70in and 82in interactive whiteboards, and a 55in HD LCD panel intended for videowall deployments, harnessing LED backlighting and with slender 5.5mm bezels.

UK cloud signage provider Signagelive was also in attendance, punting its new integration with Intel AIM to attendees.

Also new for ISE were Mitsubishi Electric's 7000 series large-venue projectors and interactive-pen versions of ultra-short-throw devices. The vendor claims its 7000 series uses an image processing algorithm that dynamically interpolates missing data from an input signal to improve image clarity.

Swedish company FlatFrog showed its range of unusual multi-touch screens, suitable for deployment at restaurant tables, for example, and other places where a screen might benefit from increased accuracy and sensitivity to touch. Light is transmitted into the glass panel, so each touch directly affects the light particles.

Ola Wassvik, CTO and co-founder of FlatFrog, said the screens use planar scatter detection (PSD), a technology that responds directly to the amount of light passing through the panel. "Light is the most scientifically accurate measuring tool known. The processing power available today, compared with when other multi-touch technologies evolved, is far greater. The PSD technology was designed by combining these facts," Wassvik said.

Mode Lighting showed its new laptop-controlled multi-sensors, which can be calibrated to automatically stay on while a room is occupied, and return to motion-sensor functionality when the room is empty.

US projector maker InFocus unveiled an all-in-one, 55in wall-mounted tablet PC - dubbed Mondopad - for HD business-class videoconferencing and collaboration, in partnership with cloud video services provider Vidtel. The idea, according to InFocus, is to "turn videoconferencing rooms into collaboration rooms".

AEG showed its TFT screens which can be cut to a range of shapes and sizes, and its screens that consume energy only when updating content.

Also on display were point-to-multipoint broadcast video systems from Teracue, enabling, for example, more students to be taught effectively across lecture theatres, using fewer staff and saving money.

ISE's Blackman said the future looks bright for the industry. "Our industry is defying Europe's financial climate. We decided to extend ISE to be more of an event, not just an exhibition. We feel our landscape is changing as AV vendors move more into IT," he said.

■ As CRN's magazine went to press, ISE announced its final registered attendance figure for 2012 was 40,869.