Yesterday and today (October, 11th and 12th) a huge IT event takes/took place at the Munich M,O,C, near the Allianz Arena.
It was all paid for by sponsors and exhibitors. Besides a number of mobile phone and communications firms, the (platinum) sponsors were made up of the typical material, such as Microsoft, SAP and Siemens.
“The IT Representative of the Bavarian Government“, however, was also on the precious metal list. I am sure he had to cough up a considerable sum..
According to the Website, you had to pay 128.- € (before taxes)/152.32 € (total) for a day ticket at the COMMUNICATIONWORLD – that is the title of the fair/conference -, a permanent ticket costs 198.- € (before taxes) / 235.62 € (total). What an interesting “Pricing Policy”.
Who can buy a ticket before taxes? Maybe it was a hint at the fact that business persons can deduce the added value tax and thus pay less.
The slogan – which, in my mind, told exactly nothing – was
ITelligent mobility
It was probably meant as witty wordplay. You distort an English title and add a green “IT“. I guess the otherwise also often used colour green is meant to suggest that it is a green event. Presumably, the conference was about “intelligent mobility based on IT “.
Since someone had offered me a VIP ticket (which was probably true for most of the other visitors, as well) and since I also like to go out once in a while in order to meet old acquaintances and make new friends, I put yesterday to good use and went there.
Here is how it went down with me:
It was a huge event in nice surroundings with elaborate catering. Just like we know it from the golden days.
And many presentations were given synchronously. Among the things I had the opportunity to attend, however, nothing exciting happened. Many “olle Kamellen” (yesterday’s news) were re-introduced and the topic ”advertising“ was far too often of main interest. I think the new world probably only has one purpose: to sell even more to the consumer. Or else, to simply get hold of our money.
Some presentations were such that all a “digital native” could do was either be surprised at what the people are talking about, or else understand nothing. Once in a while, it was really rather banal.
In some way or other, you can clearly see how the ”new digital world“ is just too much for many people. I also have a problem with “mobile” IT versus “normal” IT. In fact, I really do not know when I am acting as a “mobile” and when as a “normal” user. Well, you know, sometimes I use larger screens and sometimes smaller screens, sometimes a mechanical keyboard and sometimes a virtual one …
Neither did I understand all the fuss some people made in their presentations about the Apps. Well, computers do execute applications, don’t they? And how these applications get into the computers is basically not important, is it? And if you have a connection with a computer, either “air” or “wire”, then this is just less complicated than loading the software on CD, DVD or stick. And what is new about the fact that you have to pay a licence fee for the programs? In fact, there was a time when InterFace AG lived on it.
But one of the speakers said it quite correctly: now we even have Apps with “augmented reality”. In other words, the uploaded program will use the camera of the “mobile device”, as well as current GPS data, and then do some pattern recognition and data access. What is so spectacular about that? In my book it is just some natural further development in the software sector.
I sadly missed presentations where someone might have pointed out the social relevance of the “digital revolution”. How about the question if, perhaps, in five years the first-grade pupils will walk to school equipped with their xPad? Or what it means that, when I sit in the S-Bahn train, nine out of ten fellow passengers sitting around me start fumbling with Laptop, iPad or Smartphone? What will it mean that books in the future will not be printed on paper, but instead available on reading devices?
What will be the legal situation of their content? What does really happen in the play market and what consequences will it have…
To make up for it, there was plenty of marketing (advertising), along with a little data protection. And, of course, plenty of Cloud. Incidentally, I remember a quote from another presentation: the true “public cloud” is a lot better than the “cloud in the basement”.
I start getting the impression that these kinds of “let-knowledge-Iinput-rain-on-us events“ no longer what our modern times call for. Well, I certainly prefer free “anti-conferences“, “barcamps” and “Open Spaces“, where fresh knowledge is interactively exchanged with passion.
Due to another appointment yesterday, I had to sacrifice the well-advertised evening event “Bayerischer Abend” (Bavarian Evening). But I am sure those who went were very much pampered. And I am sure I missed a lot of beer and Leberkäse.
RMD
(Translated by EG)
P.S.
I also found it nice that the Bavarian CIO had smuggled a small gummy-bear pyramid into my fair documents. I definitely prefer it to a Trojan virus.
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