The 33rd Photokina held in Cologne, Germany, which ended on September 21, 2014, was a great success. Around 185,000 visitors from more than 160 countries attended the imaging trade fair. Action and lifestyle cameras, wearables, multicopters and professional film equipment supplemented the diverse array of photography and imaging products. The international visitors were able to take full advantage of the opportunity to try out new offerings and exchange news and views with other photo enthusiasts. The exhibitors accounted for 47.7% of visitors. Of these, 44.3% were from abroad. The growth in number of visitors from theUSA, Asia, South-east Asia and from the Oceania region was particularly strong. Gerald Boese, President and CEO of Koelnmesse GmbH (the organizer) said, “Cologne is the place to be for the photography and imaging industry. This is where the industry charts the future course of the business.”
The unanimous opinion on the stands was that Photokina 2014 will exert a strong bell-weather effect. Katharina C. Hamma, COO of Koelnmesse GmbH emphasized the trade fair’s importance as a trendsetter. “The industry is now benefi ting from the fact that Photokina has constantly embraced trend topics and developed product segments so that it constantly reflects the current market situation,” she said. This is also evident from the number of companies making their debut at the fair. This year saw around 180 firsttime exhibitors, the highest ever. They included companies like Google, GoPro, RED Digital and Blackmagic, as well as young companies like Lytro, Helipro and the start-up Panono.
For Christoph Th omas, President of the Photographic Industry Association, the way the trade fair turned out is confi rmation of the industry’s appetite for innov tion. He said, “Photokina 2014 has impressively illustrated that nowadays there is scarcely any walk of life in which visual information and communication does not play a signifi cant role. All the companies have demonstrated with new and fresh ideas, innovative products and fascinating technical developments, that the photographic and imaging industry has its finger on the contemporary pulse and is in fine fettle for the future.”