Olivia Powell
German Convention Bureau gets deeper with the PlanetIMEX programme
The German Convention Bureau (GCB) has announced that it will be partnering with virtual PlanetIMEX, and will be contributing several sessions to the event’s programme. Matthias Schultze, GCB’s managing director, said: “IMEX and the GCB German Convention Bureau have been trusting partners from the very start. In challenging times like these, we are more than happy to support team IMEX in fur...
Undiscovered Italy tour sees 20 event planners explore Calabria
The latest Undiscovered Italy Tour recently took place in Calabria from 21-24 September. The tour was conceived and created by Daniela Corti Events with the patronage of the Italian tourism board (Enit), in collaboration with Canadian tour operator Susan Barone of Luxury Weddings A group of 20 wedding and meeting planners as well as Italy-based journalists took part in the tour, which aimed to sho...
gamescom asia announces digital miniseries
gamescom asia, an event for those within the South Asian gaming industry, has announced the launch of GameDev Talks, a digital miniseries with monthly episodes of webinars and information sessions on the gaming industry. GameDev Talks is scheduled to commence in January 2021. The series consists of two segments over a period of eight months titled Games Market Bootcamps and GameDev Talks. The sess...
EICC marks 25th anniversary and looks back on ‘best ever year’, 2019
The Edinburgh International Conference Centre (EICC) has marked its 25th anniversary this week while reporting record annual results for 2019. The venue had its ‘best ever year’ in 2019 and produced an economic impact of over £720m (US$926m) since opening its doors in September 1995. To date, almost 3,500 events have been held at the EICC with total delegate numbers standing at 1.5m. R...
Corporate Travel Management goes on the TMC acquisition trail Stateside
Australia’s Corporate Travel Management (CTM) has agreed to acquire Travel and Transport, Inc. (T&T) including its Radius Travel business for AUD$274.51m (US$195.36m). T&T is a US travel management company while Radius Travel is a global network of corporate travel agencies in more than 100 countries, with a hotel programme that offers corporate rates across 44,000 hotels in 160 coun...
Event wheels keep turning in Copenhagen, as city wins bid to host BMX World Championships 2025
Copenhagen has announced that it has won its bid to host the 2025 UCI BMX World Championships. The Danish capital will also be hosting the first stage of cycling’s Tour de France in 2022 and the UCI Track World Championships in 2024. Frank Jensen, lord mayor of Copenhagen, said: “As the world’s best cycling city and Grand Départ for the Tour de France in 2022, it makes perfect sense th...
Meet in Reykjavík doubles up to Promote Iceland for MICE
Meet in Reykjavík, the official convention bureau for Reykjavík city and the capital area, has announced a partnership with Promote Iceland and Icelandair which will see it operate independently as a national convention bureau also. Reykjavík’s city council executive committee, Promote Iceland and Icelandair have agreed to the new structure for the bureau with the stated aim being to “streng...
Australian tourism industry welcomes new government funding but urges more for ITOs
The Australian Tourism Export Council (ATEC) has welcomed the government’s announcement of additional funding for the tourism industry but says it is “concerned by a lack of specific funding to support the businesses which deliver international visitors to Australia”. The support package announced will bring support to major tourism businesses across regional Australia, ATEC says...
Austria Center Vienna provides new impetus for industry with 10-minute Covid tests
From 16-17 September, the Austria Center Vienna conducted around 2,000 rapid Covid-19 tests in a pilot project in partnership with the Vienna University of Economics and Business, Arbeiter-Samariter-Bund and medical products wholesaler Alpstar. The Austria Center Vienna will make the key insights from the pilot project publicly available, to “create a repository of information which can be u...
Meetings Mean Business Coalition announces new co-chair
The Meetings Mean Business Coalition (MMBC) board of directors has announced the appointment of Michael Massari (pictured), chief sales officer for Caesars Entertainment, as its next co-chair. Established by the US Travel Association in 2009, the MMBC is comprised of organisations across the meetings and travel community who came together during the last economic crisis to “bolster appreciat...
UK chancellor confirms furlough replacement and ‘pay as you grow’ plans
The UK’s chancellor of the exchequer, Rishi Sunak, has unveiled new support measures for UK businesses. The ‘winter economy plan’ will see the British government and businesses top up workers’ wages covering up to two-thirds of their normal hours for the six months from November, the chancellor told the House of Commons on 24 September. The new Jobs Support Scheme will replace the furl...
Poland Convention Bureau launches new self-certification programme
The Poland Convention Bureau, in conjunction with The Polish Tourism Organisation, has launched a new ‘safe MICE venue’, self-certification programme aimed at conference and congress venues operating in Poland. The programme was officially launched on 16 September, at this year’s edition of Meeting Week Poland. The ‘Safe MICE venue’ programme aims to “provide busines...