FuturePrint Virtual Summit grows attendance for second edition

3,908 people from over 80 countries attended digital event

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FuturePrint
A panel hosted by Karis Copp, 'Women in Print' (Image: FuturePrint)

Once again bringing the industry together at a time when the opportunity to connect face-to-face is extremely limited, the second edition of the FuturePrint Virtual Summit saw attendance by over 3,908 people from over 80 countries, and the international profile of the visitor base grew with a larger attendance from outside UK and US this time. In fact, all areas of visitors grew compared with the June event which registered 1,550 from 65 countries, demonstrating the value delivered by this event and the importance the industry places on having a platform where businesses, peers, and friends can engage and learn in these challenging times. Top ten countries were UK, US, Netherlands, Germany, Finland, France, Belgium, Japan, Italy, and Austria.

FuturePrint
Frazer Chesterman and Marcus Timson

The visitor demographic profile remained similar to the June event with a more youthful profile and a better gender balance than is typical with a live event in the print sector. According to website analytics, this included approximately 57% between the age of 18-35 and 45% female.

The most popular sessions were Nick Clements from Landa Digital Printing and John Mills of Xaar, both with over 700 people and many applauding the quality and level of content delivered at the event.

According to results from the event survey, 100% of respondents regarded the event as helpful, and 78% considered its content between very good and excellent. Replays are now available with access to 79 talks from across the print spectrum.

Popular talks included technology sessions presented by content partners including Landa, ACTEGA Metal Print, ACTEGA North America, Agfa, Bobst, Canon, DodXAct, Epson, HP, Hymmen, Inca Digital, Industrial Inkjet, Integration Technology, Kavalan, LMNS, Memjet, Meteor Inkjet, Mutoh, Phoseon Technology, Profile Recruitment, Ricoh, Roland, Sihl, Solimar Systems, VPress, and Xaar.

Graham Kennedy, director of Industrial Print Business at Ricoh Europe and content partner, concluded, “Once again the summit was a positive platform to be part of, and the content across the board has served to provide inspiration going forward. Our recent survey conducted with FM Future also reveals a market that is resilient and adapting confident of the future, and in some cases innovating more. As a result, it’s reassuring to know that despite the challenges we all face now, innovation remains a critical component of leadership, and we are doing our best to continue to encourage that through platforms such as the FuturePrint Virtual Summit.”

Marc Graindourze, business manager Industrial Inks at Agfa, said, “Agfa participated at the FuturePrint Virtual Summit in October, and we were very happy to be a part of this positive initiative which featured an abundance of inspiring and helpful content. Being a part of this kind of platform is incredibly important at the moment so we can continue to communicate the key benefits of our technology to a global audience and deliver insight, which helps the market to innovate in the right areas by solving problems through collaboration.”

Jonathan Malone-McGrew, senior director Engagement, Solimar System, said, “The second edition of the FuturePrint Virtual Summit, as expected, provided a fantastic opportunity for those involved, giving an insight into various areas of the print industry in its current climate. The event provided a growing audience with interesting discussions and views around the ‘next’ normal, given today’s challenges. Once again, we have really enjoyed being a content partner for the event.”

All talks are available until December 20 on the event website for free. Register here

2023 promises an interesting ride for print in India

Indian Printer and Publisher founded in 1979 is the oldest B2B trade publication in the multi-platform and multi-channel IPPGroup. While the print and packaging industries have been resilient in the past 33 months since the pandemic lockdown of 25 March 2020, the commercial printing and newspaper industries have yet to recover their pre-Covid trajectory.

The fragmented commercial printing industry faces substantial challenges as does the newspaper industry. While digital short-run printing and the signage industry seem to be recovering a bit faster, ultimately their growth will also be moderated by the progress of the overall economy. On the other hand book printing exports are doing well but they too face several supply-chain and logistics challenges.

The price of publication papers including newsprint has been high in the past year while availability is diminished by several mills shutting down their publication paper and newsprint machines in the past four years. Indian paper mills are also exporting many types of paper and have raised prices for Indian printers. To some extent, this has helped in the recovery of the digital printing industry with its on-demand short-run and low-wastage paradigm.

Ultimately digital print and other digital channels will help print grow in a country where we are still far behind in our paper and print consumption and where digital is a leapfrog technology that will only increase the demand for print in the foreseeable future. For instance, there is no alternative to a rise in textbook consumption but this segment will only reach normality in the next financial year beginning on 1 April 2023.

Thus while the new normal is a moving target and many commercial printers look to diversification, we believe that our target audiences may shift and change. Like them, we will also have to adapt with agility to keep up with their business and technical information needs.

Our 2023 media kit is ready, and it is the right time to take stock and reconnect with your potential markets and customers. Print is the glue for the growth of liberal education, new industry, and an emerging economy. We seek your participation in what promises to be an interesting ride.

– Naresh Khanna

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