08.05.2012 Messe Frankfurt receives an international award for its mobile apps

Now it’s official: the world’s best smartphone apps for the exhibition industry come from Messe Frankfurt. In a competition held by UFI, the Global Association of the Exhibition Industry, to select the best new services provided by mobile apps for trade fair exhibitors and visitors, Messe Frankfurt won out over countless other submissions. In a final round that also featured entries from Messe München and ReedPop (USA), the international jury of experts found that Messe Frankfurt’s apps were far and away the best.

“We were particularly impressed by Messe Frankfurt’s basic concept, which allows for the continuous development of app functions on an interdisciplinary platform,” stated Maria Martinez, Chair of the UFI ICT Committee. This standardised technical platform is then used as the basis for customising each app to meet users’ specific requirements. It is a strategy that makes it possible to produce these apps at a low cost while maintaining maximum flexibility.  

Kai Hattendorf, Vice President of Digital Business at Messe Frankfurt: “We are particularly pleased by this award from the UFI association because it is based on the decisions of exhibition industry experts who have compared the best applications for mobile phones and smartphones and evaluated their benefits for trade fair customers. The fact that our Messe Frankfurt apps have beaten out strong international competition to win this award demonstrates that our products offer true added value for the exhibitors and visitors at our trade fairs.”

Not only do Messe Frankfurt apps provide practical standard functions such as exhibitor search and hall plans, but they can also be used to receive notifications of special live events on the trade fair programme or to obtain information on specific topics via QR codes. Another useful feature is the “Buddy Finder”. This makes it possible to share one’s current location during the trade fair and to find out where other users in the vicinity are located in order to arrange meetings. In 2012 alone, Messe Frankfurt apps have been downloaded 50,000 times. They are available for all of the company’s trade fairs held in Frankfurt.


Background information on Messe Frankfurt
Messe Frankfurt is Germany’s leading trade fair organiser, with 457* million euros in sales and 1,769* active employees worldwide. The Messe Frankfurt Group has a global network of 28 subsidiaries, five branch offices and 52 international Sales Partners, giving it a presence for its customers in more than 150 countries. Events “made by Messe Frankfurt” take place at more than 30 locations around the globe. In 2011, Messe Frankfurt organised 101 trade fairs, of which more than half took place outside Germany.
Messe Frankfurt’s exhibition grounds, featuring 578,000 square metres, are currently home to ten exhibition halls and an adjacent Congress Center. The company is publicly owned, with the City of Frankfurt holding 60 percent and the State of Hesse 40 percent.

* preliminary numbers (2011)

Background information on UFI
UFI is the global association of the world’s leading tradeshow organizers and exhibition centre operators, as well as the major national and international exhibition associations and selected partners of the exhibition industry. UFI’s main goal is to represent, promote and support the business interests of its members and the exhibition industry. UFI represents member organizations in 85 countries around the world. UFI members continue to provide the international business community with a unique marketing media aimed at developing outstanding face-to-face business opportunities.
For additional information about UFI, please go to www.ufi.org