Manuel Mataré, director of digi:media says, “It was a hard decision for us to cancel digi:media 2013 but, given the current state of registrations and the unlikely prospect of a radical turnaround in registration patterns, it was time to pull the ripcord.”

The first digi:media was held in 2011 and was aimed at the German speaking market, so made little impact on the international stage. The digi:media name was then applied to a cross media area within the big drupa international print show in May 2012. The 2013 event was intended as another standalone show but with somewhat more international ambitions. It was supposed to combine the subjects of publishing and digital printing in a mix of exhibits and conference programmes. However, the organiser said: ‘the indications are that participation by the industry will not be sufficient to truly mirror the sector.’

The organiser said,that, “cancellations, cutbacks of exhibition space – but above all the pronounced reserve shown by representative players in the sector do not let us expect a digi:media which will do justice to its own quality claims and the interests of the industry.”

Mataré says, “We carefully analysed the pros and cons – especially because of the particularly strong commitment of our partners. But one thing is clear: Messe Düsseldorf always has been and always will be a reliable and responsible partner of industry. In this context, it was also important for us to give planning certainty to the exhibitors who have registered already and not to confront these companies with short-term decisions.”

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