The Mobile World Congress 2016 was held at the Fira Gran Via and Fira Montjuïc venues in Barcelona, Spain from 22 to 25 March. The 2016 edition surpassed the 100,000 mark for the first time in the event’s history, with nearly 101,000 attendees. This is an increase of more than six per cent over last year.
There were over 2,200 exhibiting companies showcasing cutting-edge products and services across 110,000 net square metres of exhibition and hospitality space. More than 3,600 international media and industry analysts attended the event to report on the many significant industry announcements made at the Congress.
The four-day conference and exhibition attracted executives from the world’s largest and most influential mobile operators, software companies, equipment providers, internet companies and companies from industry sectors such as automotive, finance and healthcare, as well as government delegations from across the globe. Over 55 per cent of this year’s Mobile World Congress attendees hold C-level positions, including more than 5,000 CEOs and 21 per cent of attendees for the 2016 show were women. Preliminary independent economic analysis indicates that the 2016 Mobile World Congress will have contributed more than €460 million and over 13,000 part-time jobs.
Industry Leaders Take the Stage in Barcelona
The 2016 conference programme featured 12 keynote sessions and 48 in-depth track sessions over four days. Among the highlights of the conference were keynotes with CEOs, and senior execs from organisations including ARM, AT&T, BT Group, BuzzFeed, China Mobile, Cisco, Digital Legends, Ericsson, Facebook, GE Digital, Getty Images, Huawei, Intel Corporation, MasterCard, MERCEDES AMG Petronas Formula One team, PayPal, Publicis Groupe, Qualcomm Incorporated, Stripe, Telefónica, Telegram, Telenor, Turkcell, UNICEF and Vodafone.
Record Attendance to GSMA Ministerial Programme
Running alongside the main event was the GSMA’s Ministerial Programme, which also saw record attendance, with delegations representing 137 countries and 31 international organisations. The Ministerial Programme brings together governments, regulators and industry leaders to discuss the specific regulatory issues relating to the development of mobile around the world. Intel was the Official Sponsor for the 2016 GSMA Ministerial Programme and Mobile World Summit.
Innovation City Showcases Connected Living
An estimated 28,000 attendees visited the GSMA Innovation City, which showcased the impact of mobile-connected products and services on consumers and businesses, with demonstrations from partners AT&T, GMA, Jasper, KT Corporation and Sierra Wireless. Covering 2,000 square metres, this unique space hosted numerous cutting-edge interactive demonstrations spanning a diverse range of sectors including industry, transport, health, home and retail, amongst many others. Highlights included a virtual reality experience on board the Innovation City airliner, a virtual ski jump and demonstrations of how mobile connectivity is helping to track pets and keeping cyclists safe.
Event Awarded Guinness World Record For Carbon Neutral Footprint
The 2015 Mobile World Congress was recently awarded a Guinness World Record, confirming its position as the largest carbon neutral trade show in the world. Mobile World Congress was certified in July 2015 as carbon neutral by BSI (British Standards Institution), verifying that the GSMA successfully completed the certification process under the PAS 2060 international standard and that Mobile World Congress had achieved a carbon neutral footprint. For 2016, the GSMA focused on further reducing the environmental impact and carbon footprint of the event, offsetting any outstanding emissions as necessary and will pursue carbon neutral certification following Mobile World Congress 2016.
The 2017 Mobile World Congress will be held 27 February – 2 March 2017 at Fira Gran Via.
