COLOGNE, GERMANY--(Marketwire - September 14, 2012) - When it comes down to digital solutions, visions and innovations, the dmexco ranks number one worldwide. This was underlined by the new records set in all areas, as reported at the end of the second expo and conference day of the dmexco 2012: From a new attendance record with 22,200 trade visitors from all over the globe, to the sold-out expo with 578 exhibitors -- with a 20 percent share of foreign exhibitors -- a further increase in floor space up to over 50,000 m², through to more than 400 international top speakers with an over 160-hour Conference programme. "As the leading meeting point for all of the international marketing, media and advertising industry players, the fourth edition of the dmexco has firmly established itself as a 'must-attend event' for the entire digital industry," commented Gerald Böse, Chairman of the Board of Directors, Koelnmesse GmbH. The dmexco 2013 will be held in Cologne again on September 18-19.

Echoing the opinion of the 22,200 trade visitors from all over the world and the 578 international exhibitors, Antonio Hidalgo (Philips) summed up the dmexco 2012, which had been completely sold-out for weeks, as follows: "I'm very impressed about what I see at dmexco. I call it a diversed ecosystem, it's like a melting pot." As a combination between the world's largest expo and most significant conference for the entire digital industry, over the last two days the dmexco has once again been the hub of a rapidly advancing digitalization, which already encompasses nearly all areas of the value chain and which continues to gain significance for the entire digital industry. The international standing of the dmexco is furthermore reflected by the new visitor attendance and expo records set: About 25% of the dmexco visitors travelled to Cologne from foreign countries, in order to profit from the biggest ever overview of current industry trends, growth strategies, product innovations and the creative diversity of the entire digitalized world of marketing, advertising and media. And the growing internationalisation is also extremely noticeable at the expo grounds: The dmexco 2012 registered a 20% share of international exhibitors this year -- with the total number of exhibitors increasing by an impressive 30% compared to last year.

Thrilled by the dmexco 2012, Ilya Segalovich, whose company Yandex is the first exhibitor from Russia, said: "It's huge, it's beautiful, it's shiny -- I'm impressed." More and more companies from the USA are making use of the dmexco as a door opener for their international business. "I'm seeing my global counterparts from Asia, from Europe, from the United States congregating here around innovation, around new things. Fantastic -- it's a 'must', I'll come here every year. It's overwhelming in a good way," was how Greg Coleman (Criteo) summarized the international relevance of the dmexco. "During the many discussions at the dmexco it is noticeable that people are frequently no longer talking about 'online', but about 'digital' instead. This marks the start of a new phase, in the course of which the deployment and the contents will be distributed across multiple platforms in a wide range of formats. In this connection the dmexco is the ideal place for local heroes from Germany to discuss the future of digitalization with regards to the development of structures and contents with their fellow international players," is how Matthias Ehrlich (United Internet Media) underlined the significance of the dmexco.

Under the motto "The Digital Transformation: Shaping Models - Creating Business" this year's dmexco conference once again covered all segments of the digital industry as well as all important trends and innovations -- from multiscreen commercialization, to ambient intelligence, through to the new consumer engagement. An absolutely first-class line-up of over 400 international top speakers provided a programme lasting in total over 160 hours spread over five innovative formats -- the Congress and Debate Halls, the over 90 Seminars, the Speakers´ Corner and the new Work Labs, which were extremely well-attended in their debut year. Leading personalities such as Lisa Utzschneider (Amazon), David Sable (Young & Rubicam), Nick Emery (Mindshare), Pete Blackshaw (Nestlé), Surjit Chana (IBM), Roelant de Waard (Ford) and Paul Gunning (Tribal DDB) held lectures and debated issues in visionary panels. The numerous UBERCLOUD sessions, which transferred the spirit of last year's successful pre-day event into the core programme of the dmexco, proved to be a real highlight in the 2012 conference agenda. Emphasised by successful case studies and exciting showcases like the social media live act, Riot !n Paris, the growing significance of digital creativity became more than tangible.

With its star-studded conference line-up and multifaceted expo the dmexco has demonstrated over the past two days the central business fields of tomorrow. Florian Haller (Serviceplan Gruppe) particularly accentuated the dmexco's holistic approach in all areas of the digital industry: "The dmexco has developed into THE platform for Internet contents. What especially distinguishes the event is the fact that it is not merely another technology show, it primarily occupies itself with the consequences for the brands, media and agencies." Brian O'Kelley (Appnexus) ventured an initial forecast for the coming years: "Not all media will be digital in five years, but the writing is on the wall -- this is the future. The dmexco should be the venue, where the world's leading thinkers on the future of digital advertising debate the path toward this inevitable outcome." Frank Cooper (Pepsico) also made it clear: "dmexco is great. I'm really excited to be here, I'll be here next year -- it's really an inspiring place to be." The next opportunity is going to be on September 18th and 19th, 2013, when the dmexco enters its fifth round.

The trade visitors were equally impressed with the dmexco 2012: Over 81% were totally satisfied with their visit and over 82% praised the overall range of exhibitors. Approx. 95% would recommend people to visit the dmexco. The new experiential worlds of the dmexco also reaped high praise from all concerned. "The success of the dmexco 2012 is overwhelming! In addition to the quantity, we have also increased the quality this year. In terms of the visitors a remarkably high amount of representatives from important FMCG sector brands visited the show. As such, the dmexco has in 2012 once again underlined its standing as the expo and conference of the decision-makers and guarantees the exhibiting companies a positive ROI on their expo participation. The advancing digitality of products, brands and environments together with the resulting intelligent, new interactive and marketing possibilities were very well depicted at the dmexco 2012 by our new experiential concept. Being able to profit from valuable know-how, the presented experiential worlds and ideas of the digital reality is a unique opportunity for the trade visitors, and this in turn presented the exhibitors with a completely new way of reaching their target groups more efficiently and above all directly via an authentic experience. This means we are contributing directly to the success of the companies and in turn to that of the entire digital industry. Because: Nothing promotes the business of the future better than convinced customers. Due to the extremely positive feedback and enormous success of the numerous showcases, we will be further expanding the area of vibrant experiential worlds next year. Our target for the dmexco 2013 is to once again set a clear sign for real, growth-oriented business. And of course we will further reinforce the dmexco's position as a worldwide unique digital industry event!" stated Christian Muche, Director Business Development, Strategy & International dmexco, and Frank Schneider, Director Marketing, Sales & Operations dmexco, revealing their initial outlook for next year.

Arndt Groth (BVDW) added: "Here at the fourth edition of the dmexco we have experienced an amazing onrush of visitors. We have never seen so many companies gathered together at the leading expo of the digital industry before. As the industrial partner of the dmexco, it is very important for our association to emphasize the high relevance of the digital value chain for the entire industry, as a clear signal for all market participants."

About dmexco

dmexco is the international leading expo & conference for the digital industry. Comprising of a unique combination between an exposition and a conference it stands for innovative and future-oriented marketing in the midst of a global growth market. Placing a clear focus on advertising, media and technology the dmexco in Cologne is the global no. 1 industry meeting platform for valuable knowledge transfer and direct business transactions. The dmexco, which is organised by the Koelnmesse, offers trade visitors the broadest range of business trends, growth strategies, product innovations and creative excellence in diverse forms and is furthermore free of charge. As the central hub for all thought leaders and minds from digital brands, advertisers and marketers, all types of agencies and media owners the dmexco is leading the global digital industry.

All further information on the dmexco 2012 as well as photos, videos and statements on the dmexco 2011 are posted at www.dmexco.com, www.facebook.com/dmexco, http://twitter.com/dmexco and www.youtube.com/dmexcovideo.

Contact:

Andre Hoffmann

Telephone

+49 40 679 446 53

Fax

+49 40 679 446 11

E-Mail

dmexco2012@faktor3.de