Associations Focus: Membership Grows with Industry
Oct 1, 2005 12:00 PM
Membership numbers for ICIA have risen significantly in the first half of 2005, mirroring the growth of audiovisual applications in business, government, and higher education. Since the beginning of the year, the number of organizational members who are users of AV technology in these and other vertical markets has grown 50 percent.
The Primary Uses of AV Products for State and Local Governments from ICIA’s 2005 AV Trends & Opportunities Study: State & Local. The increasing reliance on AV products in vertical markets mirrors the growth in ICIA membership.
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“Our membership growth is a reflection of what we’re seeing in the professional audiovisual industry: Companies, colleges, and government at all levels are placing a greater reliance on AV technologies to communicate and teach,” says Randal A. Lemke, ICIA’s executive director. “There is clearly a rush to keep current on AV technologies as IT and AV converge.”
According to ICIA’s 2005 AV Trends & Opportunities Study: State & Local Government, state and local government spending on AV systems is projected to grow as much as 12 percent each year over the next three years on purchases of flat-panel displays, projectors, videoconferencing products, and AV recording devices for education, public safety, emergency services, homeland security, and IT initiatives. More information on the growth of the AV market in higher education will be available in November 2005, when ICIA publishes 2005 AV Trends & Opportunities Study: Higher Education.
ICIA also attracts a significant number of military companies and private contractors involved in homeland security and defense, including Northrop Grumman and Boeing.
“I plan to benefit from membership in ICIA by networking with other AV professionals and taking educational courses,” says Jacqueline Crowder, information services/video operations, Boeing. “AV and IT are converging. I would like to improve my technical skills and eventually earn ICIA’s Certified Technology Specialist credential.”
Further validation for growth in AV comes from ICIA’s annual industry tradeshow, InfoComm. At a time when many industries are suffering from reduced attendance at tradeshows, InfoComm 05 broke all previous records for attendance at its June conference and exhibition in Las Vegas with attendance surpassing 26,000 for the first time in the tradeshow’s history.
Membership growth and InfoComm attendance reflect increased interest, as well as increased need, for today’s technology managers to integrate IT systems with AV systems for a wide range of communications that shape how everyday business is conducted.
“It was clear coming out of InfoComm last month that there is a driving force for new audiovisual technologies to make it easier and more effective to use the power of sight and sound to motivate, educate, entertain, protect, and inspire,” says Lemke.
In February, ICIA’s Market Forecast Survey found that growth in the industry is derived primarily from the business and government markets, followed by the higher education market. These three markets account for more than half of the AV business generated, and the importance of these markets is predicted to remain high over the next three years.
If you would like more information, visit www.infocomm.org/marketintelligence.
infoComm Academy
For more information about ICIA and InfoComm, visitwww.infocomm.org.
