GSMA Outlines New Developments For Mobile World Congress 2012

LONDON, August 16, 2011 /PRNewswire/ --

- CEOs of Industry's Leading Companies to Headline in Expanded Keynote Programme; GSMA Introduces mPowered Brands Programme to Accelerate Mobile Marketing

The GSMA today revealed details of the 2012 GSMA Mobile World Congress, which will be held 27th February - 1st March 2012 at the Fira de Barcelona Montjuic in Barcelona.  The GSMA announced that CEOs from companies including Alcatel-Lucent, AT&T, Bharti Airtel, Deutsche Telekom, Ericsson, HTC, NTT DOCOMO, Telecom Italia and Telenor will deliver keynote presentations at the Mobile World Congress, which is expected to attract more than 60,000 visitors. The company also introduced new elements of and enhancements to the conference programme and exhibition, further cementing the Mobile World Congress' position as the mobile industry's "must-attend" event.

"Mobile is transforming our world in unprecedented ways, changing the way we work, live and interact," said Michael O'Hara, chief marketing officer, GSMA. "At Mobile World Congress 2012, we'll highlight the cutting-edge technologies, solutions and services that are redefining mobile today and into the future."

Industry CEOs to Take the Stage at Mobile World Congress

The GSMA today announced that CEOs of many of the world's leading mobile companies will be speaking in the newly expanded keynote programme at Mobile World Congress.  The 2012 conference programme will feature 10 keynote sessions, including the Mobile World Congress opening keynote, which will officially kick off the event on the morning of Monday, February 27th, and Mobile World Live keynote sessions, which will conclude the conference programming each day and will be streamed live to tens of thousands of viewers globally via the Mobile World Live portal.  

Executives who are confirmed to speak at the 2012 Mobile World Congress include:

• Ben Verwaayen, CEO, Alcatel-Lucent
• Ralph de la Vega, President and CEO-AT&T Mobility and Consumer Markets, AT&T
• Sunil Mittal, CEO and MD, Bharti Airtel
• Rene Obermann, CEO, Deutsche Telekom
• Hans Vestberg, President and CEO, Ericsson
• Peter Chou, CEO, HTC
• Ryuji Yamada, President and CEO, NTT DOCOMO
• Franco Bernabe, Chairman and CEO, Telecom Italia Group
• Jon Fredrik Baksaas, President and CEO, Telenor Group

In addition to the keynote programme, the 2012 conference will also feature dedicated tracks on applications, embedded mobile, mobile advertising, mobile health, mobile money, next-generation technologies and OSS/BSS, as well as sessions exploring business strategy, cloud computing, developing markets, devices, network capacity, regional issues and social media, among other topics.

mPowered Brands: Accelerating Mobile Marketing

At the 2012 Mobile World Congress, the GSMA is introducing mPowered Brands, a new, multi-faceted programme which focuses on building marketers' knowledge and accelerating their use of mobile as a marketing medium. The mPowered Brands programme provides an indispensible opportunity for professionals across the mobile marketing ecosystem to gain important and timely insights, practical knowledge and innovative solutions from the companies at the forefront of mobile marketing today.

The mPowered Brands programme comprises three key elements:

• mPowered Brands Zone - a dedicated mobile marketing-centric exhibition featuring mobile advertising solutions providers including advertising research, ad networks and mobile operator ad solutions;
• mPowered Brands Theatres - an environment for marketers, ad agencies, media companies and advertising technology companies to host clients and prospects and provide company and solutions updates, product and service demonstrations, case studies and workshops related to mobile marketing; and
• mPowered Brands Mobile Ambassadors - designed as an exclusive, first-class mobile industry learning and tour programme to help marketers and brand leaders share perspectives and make connections for achieving business objectives.

App Planet: The Centre of the Apps Universe

For the third year, the GSMA will host App Planet, its award-winning developer-focused "event within an event", providing a unique venue to explore the many dimensions of the ever-changing and critically important mobile apps market. App Planet presents opportunities for the developer community and mobile professionals, from operators to value-added service providers to equipment and device manufacturers to expand their knowledge as well as connect with other major apps influencers.

App Planet is open to all Congress attendees and will feature:

• Exhibition - focusing on the latest technology from the fast-moving mobile application industry with more than 200 app-specific exhibitors;
• App Developer Conferences (ADCs) - sessions with partner-led keynotes, guidance and go-to-market knowledge on successful app development;
• Networking - an ideal place for the developer community to connect, network and explore how to redefine mobile; and
• App Challenges - competitions designed to engage the application community in creating cutting-edge mobile apps.

The Generalitat de Catalunya is the sponsor of App Planet and Samsung is an ADC partner in App Planet.  For more information on App Planet, please visit http://www.mobileworldcongress.com/appplanet.

Mobile's Leading Players to Showcase Innovation

More than 1,400 leading companies from across the broad mobile ecosystem will be highlighting innovative products, services and solutions at Mobile World Congress. At the 2012 event, Nokia will exhibit in a 2,300 square metre space in App Planet.  Other significant exhibitors at Mobile World Congress include Alcatel-Lucent, AT&T, Ericsson, Fujitsu, Google, HTC, Huawei, IBM, Intel, LG, Microsoft, Motorola, NTT DOCOMO, Qtel, Qualcomm, RIM, Samsung, SK Telecom, Telefonica, Telenor, Vodafone and ZTE.

For more information on Mobile World Congress 2012, including details on how to attend, exhibit or sponsor, please visit http://www.mobileworldcongress.com.

The Mobile World Congress is the cornerstone of the Mobile World Capital, which will be hosted in Barcelona from 2012 to 2018. The Mobile World Capital also includes the Mobile World Centre and the Mobile World Festival, programmes and activities that will span the entire year and will benefit not only the citizens of Barcelona, Catalonia and Spain, but also the worldwide mobile industry. For more information on the Mobile World Capital, please visit http://www.mobileworldcapital.com.  

About the GSMA

The GSMA represents the interests of mobile operators worldwide. Spanning 219 countries, the GSMA unites nearly 800 of the world's mobile operators, as well as more than 200 companies in the broader mobile ecosystem, including handset makers, software companies, equipment providers, Internet companies, and media and entertainment organisations. The GSMA also produces industry-leading events such as the Mobile World Congress and Mobile Asia Congress.  

For more information, please visit Mobile World Live, the online portal for the mobile communications industry, at http://www.mobileworldlive.com or the GSMA corporate website at http://www.gsmworld.com.