Attendance at GSMA Mobile World Congress Shanghai 2018 Tops 60,000 Visitors

Business-to-Business Attendance Surges 14 Per Cent over 2017 Event; Nearly 8,800 Additional Consumer Attendees Participated at Migu Health and Fitness Festival

Hong Kong: The GSMA today reported that more than 60,000 unique visitors1 from 112 countries and territories attended the 2018 GSMA Mobile World Congress Shanghai, held 27-29 June in Shanghai. The three-day event attracted executives from the largest and most influential organisations across the mobile ecosystem, as well from companies in a range of vertical industry sectors. In addition to this business-to-business audience, nearly 8,800 consumers from the greater Shanghai metropolitan area attended the Migu Health and Fitness Festival, which was held in the Mobile World Congress Shanghai halls at the Shanghai New International Exhibition Centre (SNIEC).

We are extremely pleased with the results for the 2018 Mobile World Congress Shanghai, particularly the very strong growth in our business-to-business segment, said John Hoffman, CEO, GSMA Ltd. Attendees were able to truly Discover a Better Future , from the thought leadership conference to the exhibition and everywhere in between. With more than two-thirds of the world's population as subscribers, mobile is revolutionising industries and improving our everyday lives, creating exciting new opportunities while providing lifelines of hope and reducing inequality. Mobile truly is connecting everyone and everything to a better future.

Covering seven halls at the SNIEC, the 2018 Mobile World Congress Shanghai hosted 550 exhibitors, nearly half of which come from outside of China. The conference programme attracted nearly 4,000 attendees, with more than 55 per cent of delegates holding senior-level positions, including nearly 320 CEOs. Nearly 830 international media and industry analysts attended Mobile World Congress Shanghai to report on the many industry developments highlighted at the show.

Mobile World Congress Shanghai officially opened on Wednesday, 27 June with a ceremony attended by representatives from the International Telecommunication Union, the China Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, the Cyberspace Administration of China, Shanghai local government authorities and the Pudong New District Municipal Government, among other distinguished guests.

Industry Leaders Headline Conference Programme

Held over three days, the Mobile World Congress Shanghai conference programme featured keynotes from leaders of organisations including AngelHack, AsiaInfo Technologies, AT&T Business, Benefit Vantage, Bharti Enterprises, China Mobile, China Telecom, Crown Infrastructure Partners, Dentsu Aegis Network China, Ericsson, FREE MEE, Huawei, Jazz, LightBee, SenseTime, Shell Retail China and Viacom International Media Networks.

The conference addressed a range of topics, from 5G and artificial intelligence (AI) to the Fourth Industrial Revolution and immersive content and media, among others. A new element this year was the Leaders Stage, which explored wide-ranging trends that are impacting citizens' everyday lives, including digital society, blockchain, cyber security, big data and mobile payment technologies. Alongside the conference, Mobile World Congress Shanghai included many partner programmes and workshops, as well as GSMA forums and seminars.

The Women4Tech Programme made its Shanghai debut, following its success at Mobile World Congress events in Barcelona and in San Francisco. The centerpiece of the programme was the Women4Tech Summit, which was held on Thursday, 28 June on the Leaders Stage, and attendees also had the opportunity to participate in speed coaching and networking sessions.

Showcasing the Latest in Mobile Innovation

The Mobile World Congress Shanghai exhibition showcased hundreds of companies from across the mobile ecosystem as well as adjacent industry sectors. Notable participating companies included AsiaInfo Technologies, BYTON, China Mobile, China Telecom, China Transport Telecommunication Information Group, China Unicom, Datang, Dell, Ericsson, Gemalto, HTC Vive, Huawei, Intel, Lenovo, Nokia, OnStar, PwC, Qualcomm, Samsung LSI, Visa, vivo and Volkswagen, among others. New for 2018, the NEXTech Hall put the spotlight on cutting-edge technologies such as virtual reality and augmented reality, AI and robotics, and was also home to Connected China and the Device City, while the AutoTech Zone and the IoT Zone featured in other industry halls.

The GSMA Innovation City was again a highly popular destination on the exhibition floor, highlighting how intelligent connectivity - leveraging 5G, the Internet of Things, AI and big data - can deliver a smarter and more sustainable future. Visitors experienced these technologies and others through a range of hands-on demonstrations that illustrated the positive impact of mobile on virtually every aspect of life, in sectors such as transport, health, agriculture, industry, home and retail. Leading brands participating in the City were BICS, Continental, Huawei, Internet Finance Authentication Alliance (IFAA), Migu, myFC, PwC, Ratta, SI-TECH and Zhejiang Panshi Information Technology.

In its third year in Shanghai, the 4 Years From Now (4YFN) startup event hosted more than 130 international and local startups, including large delegations from South Korea, Spain and others. In addition to the exhibition, the 2018 4YFN programme delivered unique connecting initiatives, including inspirational talks, technical workshops, networking activities, community outreach and the 4YFN Summit and 4YFN Awards.

Co-Located and Partner Events Broaden Experiences for Attendees

Mobile World Congress Shanghai was held concurrently with a number of co-located and partner events. Attracting nearly 8,800 consumer attendees, the Migu Health and Fitness Festival highlighted the intersection of sports, enterta

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