The deal includes the Event Production Show, Event Production Awards, well-respected event industry title Access All Areas, and The White Book. Financial details of the transaction have not been disclosed.
The portfolio will be incorporated into the Exhibition Division of Mash Media, which includes flagship UK exhibition industry title Exhibition News; Exhibition World, an international publication endorsed by UFI, the global association of the exhibition industry; Exhibition Bulletin, the complete resource for the global exhibition industry; and FaceTime Magazine, a new quarterly title focused on the power of face-to-face marketing and produced in association with promotional agency, FaceTime.
Mash Media Group’s Managing Director Julian Agostini said the Event Production Show, Event Production Awards, Access all Areas and The White Book are highly complementary to its existing products and add a new dimension to the company’s brand portfolio. Mash Media also produces two titles for the meetings and conference market: Conference News and Conference & Meetings World.
“I am delighted to be acquiring the event production portfolio. We had enquired about buying these products several times over the years and it is very exciting that the time is now right,” Agostini said. “There is so much synergy between this portfolio and our existing products that growth will be inevitable – certainly a case where the whole will be greater than the sum of the parts.”
The Event Production Show launched in 1992 and celebrated its 20th birthday in the Grand Hall of London Olympia on 1-2 February 2012. The annual trade show has established itself as the annual meeting place for the event production industry, attracting more than 200 suppliers and nearly 4,000 visitors in 2012. The event is also home to the Access Sessions, which feature key industry personalities including Live Nation’s John Probyn, Glastonbury’s Michael Eavis and the Ministry for Sport/Licensing’s Gerry Sutcliffe.
The Event Production Awards launched on 1 February 2012 at the Hilton Hotel in Park Lane and attracted 600 individuals from the events sector including promoters, event organisers, production companies and suppliers. The annual awards ceremony has already carved itself a niche and loyal industry following by highlighting the achievements of those producing and working behind the scenes at events.
Access All Areas is the voice of the event industry and focuses on concerts, festivals, sport, outdoor and temporary events. The monthly magazine will continue under the authority of Editor-in-Chief Nic Howden, who has edited the publication for over a decade.
Mash Media is now planning the relaunch of the Event Production Show in 2013 and is devising improvements to the show format and features including an exciting expansion of its content programme. The venue and dates of the show will be revealed shortly.
