Techies head to Austin for conferences.
SXSW Interactive kicks off in Austin this Friday.
Last year’s South By Southwest conference drew 14,251 “official” attendees interested in web technology, social media, and internet marketing. But probably just as many people attended events without getting a full conference pass. SXSW organizers estimate 33,200 attended the interactive/film trade show last year.
A number of domain name companies also attended.
SXSW is primarily known for its music festival. It drew 13,000 participants and close to 2,000 bands last year. But the Interactive festival usurped it in size in 2010 and will likely do so again in 2011. I expect Facebook to make an even bigger splash this year as it recruits people for its new Austin office.
The event is spreading across Austin due to its size. In previous years it focused around the Austin Convention Center. This year official sessions will take place at 10 Austin locations.
I always joke that SXSW week means 15,000 people from Silicon Valley come to Austin. As the show wraps up I’ll be doing the opposite — heading to Northern California for the ICANN meeting.
Another web conference will be in Austin before SXSW kicks off. PubCon South takes place this Tuesday and Wednesday. It typically draws 500+ web publishers, internet marketers, and social media experts. I’ll be there representing Media.net.
Coming to Austin for PubCon or SXSW? Feel free to leave a comment.
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