InXpo, Digitell, Unisfair and Altadyn know a good thing when they see it. The companies are using the Virtual Edge Summit 2010, February 22-23 at the Santa Clara Convention Center to showcase their expertise in creating virtual event environments.
“This year, there are several platform companies that are creating virtual events around the Virtual Edge Summit,” said Michael Doyle, executive director of the Virtual Edge Institute producers of the event. “The Summit is a hybrid event meaning we have a physical audience at the Convention Center but that is just the tip of the iceberg. The event will be available for thousands around the world to participate through several virtual event platforms. This allows attendees that otherwise could not make it to the physical event to still get access to the content, and networking while also being able to test drive multiple platforms.”
How are they doing that? By creating virtual events around the Summit.
According to Rich Hawkinson, executive vice-president and co-founder of InXpo, the Summit is a perfect fit. “Because we are committed to being a virtual events industry leader, we continually drive the advancement of virtual event technologies for connecting, engaging and educating audiences,” said Hawkinson. “The Virtual Edge Summit provides us an ideal forum to showcase these developments from the next generation virtual experience and custom games to integrations with social media technologies and live video feeds.”
Hawkinson said InXpo plans to demo four items at the Virtual Edge Summit, and InXpoLive@VirtualEdge, InXpo’s virtual companion to the Virtual Edge conference. The four items are:
*The Power of the Platform –InXpo will demonstrate the power of the company’s Virtual Events Platform. Built with an open architecture, it can easily integrate with any API, any third-party technology, and any content source.
*Interactive Virtual Experience – InXpo will provide a sneak peek of the next generation of virtual event interaction that bridges the gap between point-and-click virtual experiences and fully immersed game environments.
*Live Video Feed: Streaming live video from InXpo’s demo room, virtual attendees will have the opportunity to join a group chat that provides virtual attendees the option of participating via video or text chat.
Digitell will also be streaming selected sessions from the Virtual Edge Conference into its 3D virtual platform, VirtualU. According to Jim Parker, president of Digitell, users can create an avatar and immerse themselves into the environment where they can interact and engage with other Summit attendees.
Parker said users can chat with other users, ask questions of the speakers, and participate in Twitter feeds. In addition, some remote speakers will be giving their presentations through the 3D platform to the “Live” audience. Hundreds of users have already signed up to attend this event in Digitell’s VirtualU. To register to attend free, go to http://www.virtualedgesummit.com/registration.php. Digitell will also be capturing all the sessions in an audio and ppt format for those unable to attend. The entire conference will be available for $95 from www.prolibraries.com/virtualedge, approximately two weeks after the event.
Another company using the Summit to create a virtual event is Altadyn | 3DXplorer. According to the company’s CEO, Darius Lahoutifard, what his firm is offering is the best of two worlds. “It’s a disruptive technology which enables full 3D immersive spaces with simple browsers on any computer, with no download or installation required,” Lahoutifard explains.
Lahoutifard said the entire Summit will be streamed live in 3DXplorer virtual facilities during the 2 days. This will be the only platform where virtual attendees will be able to walk in a full immersive 3D space and watch the event, directly within their browser, and without having to install any software on their computer.
“Some platforms are easy to use and extremely accessible, although not offering full 3D immersion and interactivity,” Lahoutifard said. “Some others are true virtual worlds, immersive and interactive, but require thick client installations, high-end computers and longer learning curves. With 3DXplorer, Altadyn has brought together, the best of these two worlds: a highly interactive and immersive experience, within standard browsers, with no proprietary installation required, accessible to all, even from the most restricted corporate networks.”
Nearly a dozen Virtual Edge sessions feature speakers that are customers of Unisfair, along with partners. These speakers come from companies like Cisco, Intel, Planview Inc., George P. Johnson, Cramer Marketing and Carlson Marketing. Unisfair is a Diamond Sponsor of the event and will have a dedicated conference room for customers, partners and visitors to see product demos, learn about virtual engagement, and more.
Unisfair will provide live streaming videos of the sessions on both February 22 and 23. Virtual attendees will not only view the program in full from the convenience of their desktops, they’ll also receive a “sneak peek” of the latest version of Unisfair’s Virtual Engagement Platform. In doing so, they’ll learn first-hand how easy it is to leverage the Unisfair environment to build a virtual event in just one hour. What’s more, they can interact with experts at the virtual Unisfair Show Floor and visit the Unisfair Networking Lounge to chat and network among peers, colleagues and fellow attendees.
“Unisfair has a significant presence at the Virtual Edge Summit,” said Joerg Rathenberg, Senior Director of Marketing, Unisfair. “What’s more, the virtual portion of the event provides an ideal showcase for the newest version of our Virtual Engagement Platform, while allowing us to extend the Summit’s reach to marketers and meeting planners who are not able to travel to Santa Clara for the physical event.”
Stream57 will be providing all of the streaming to the virtual environments and will offer a streamed experience for attendees as well.