Connected Impact – the digitization push in the context of the Covid-19 pandemic is reflected in the motto of the MWC 2021. (Source: GSMA)

In contrast to IFA and other trade fairs, the GSMA sticks to a face-to-face event. However, the Mobile World Congress 2021 suffers from numerous cancellations. A number of important players in the mobile communications industry only want to participate digitally and are not represented on site. The hybrid character of the mobile communications trade fair is now being strengthened. An overview of the mobile communications trade show, which again brings numerous news on 5G.

The Mobile World Congress 2021 will open its doors in Barcelona on June 28th. After the cancellation last year and the postponement due to the third corona wave in March, the organizers now hope to be able to welcome at least some of the usual visitors to Fira Gran Via. According to estimates by the GSM Association, 30,000 to 40,000 participants should take advantage of the significantly reduced presence offer.

However, since there are great reservations about long trips and major events with several thousand visitors, the MWC 2021 will be organized as a hybrid event so that trade visitors can also take part online. The speakers will also only be partly on site. Around a third of the 350 keynotes and presentations will be played via video conference. Microsoft Teams is established as an official video conference and meeting solution that is also integrated into the digital MyMWC platforms and offers additional functions, for example to provide meeting and contact recommendations tailored to iLeaders, executives and VIP users.

Prominent retreats

The fair will be weakened again this year by a series of prominent cancellations. They had at least refrained from being present on site, but are mostly involved as virtual exhibitors at MWC 2021.

  • Cisco
  • Deutsche Telekom
  • DJI / Hasselblaad
  • Ericsson
  • Facebook
  • Google
  • Intel
  • Lenovo
  • Nokia
  • Oracle
  • Qualcomm
  • Sony Mobiles
  • Xiaomi

Samsung had initially withdrawn completely, but now wants to show its colors with a virtual event on the opening day. However, it is likely that only consumer issues will be dealt with there. The focus could be on the Galaxy ecosystem of networked devices.

The presence cancellation of Deutsche Telekom came only at the end of May. It caused quite a stir because Telekom is a member of the GSMA mobile communications association, which organizes the MWC.

Tours, workshops, lectures

In addition to live streaming of keynotes and lectures, online trade fair visitors can also take part in virtual tours of the trade fair. A series of “themed tours” sponsored by Dell Technologies, Orange, Royole, ZTE and Kaspersky will cover topics such as 5G and the Internet of Things. Exhibitors such as Orange and TelcoDR also offer exclusive company tours to present their latest products and innovations.

Events at the fair are partly in a hybrid format, so that participation is possible both on site and via the web. Others take place purely virtually. GSMA refers to events from AWS, Braze, Facebook Connectivity, Huawei, IBM, KORE, Lenovo, Nvidia and Snapchat, among others.

Quelle: GSMA

Source: GSMA

“For the first time, brand new hybrid event features will allow attendees and their organisations to create a bespoke experience for MWC Barcelona, embodying the theme of this year’s event, Connected Impact.”

John Hoffman, CEO GSMA Ltd

There will also be virtual workshops tailored to managers and specialists in various industries, including areas such as automotive, FinTech, manufacturing, mobile IoT, Telco Edge and drone applications. These online workshops are intended to help ensure that networking, which is important for trade visitors, is not neglected even in times of corona.

MWC contributions from Germany

There are also some providers from Germany to be found. These include, for example, Rohde & Schwarz, which will be presenting its test solutions for the mobile connectivity of today and tomorrow at MWC 2021 in Barcelona.

The cyber security and threat intelligence specialist Infotecs from Berlin will be presenting the LR100Gen load generator for mobile 4G / 5G networks for the first time. This allows weak points in networks to be identified very quickly, for example when additional components such as switches or routers are integrated into the network.

The Competence Center 5G.NRW, on the other hand, will also only be represented digitally as part of the NRW joint stand at this year’s Mobile World Congress in Barcelona and will offer several virtual events together with four partners. For example, on June 29th, the FIR at RWTH Aachen. exciting 5G use cases in the industry and offers a digital tour through the demo factory in Aachen. The Technical University of Dortmund presents on June 30th. their current research results with a view to mmWave, machine learning and other industry-related research topics.