InfoComm International changed its name to the Audiovisual and Integrated Experience Association—AVIXA. “The change reflects AVIXA’s broadening mission to be an industry hub, while also acting as a catalyst for market growth beyond what has been considered traditionally as professional AV,” the association said when announcing the change.
AVIXA’s trade shows, including the North American show, which will be held June 2-8, 2018 in Las Vegas, will continue to operate under the InfoComm name.
David Labuskes, executive director and chief executive officer of AVIXA, commented, “This is an exciting time for our industry and for the advancement of audiovisual solutions across a wide range of customer experiences. Thanks to the innovative, creative efforts of so many members, partners, and their customers, we have collectively grown far beyond what InfoComm International could do to promote AV around the world. AV experiences have become so ubiquitous, and they’ve come to include so many more technologies, and touch so many more personal and professional lives, that we felt compelled to embrace a new identity that more accurately reflects this industry’s excitement and welcomes a far more diverse community of professionals.”
The association further explained that in recent years, its members have evolved to offer much more than audiovisual products and systems. “Their innovative and attention to customer requirements has led to an industry of solution providers that use audiovisual technology to create outcomes,” it said. “AVIXA membership has grown to include experiential designers, content creators, IT companies, and users of AV solutions across a growing cross section of markets. AVIXA’s 2017 InfoComm show in Orlando last June attracted a greater share of AV customers than in any other year.”
"We felt compelled to embrace a new identity that more accurately reflects this industry's excitement and welcomes a far more diverse community of professionals." -David Labuskes, CTS, CAE, RCDD, executive director and chief executive officer, AVIXA
The specific name choice—AVIXA—reflects what the association’s members do (AV) and what they create for customers (integrated experiences; IX).
Gary Hall, president of AVIXA’s board and a federal strategy, planning, and operations leader at Cisco Systems, said, “The AVIXA board of directors has set out an ambitious plan to grow the association, increase awareness of AV experiences, and reinvent our brand in order to propel this industry into the future. With new and different people and technologies coming into this space, we are thrilled that AVIXA will be home to all of them.”
AVIXA was founded in 1939 as the National Association of Visual Education Dealers. In 1949, NAVED merged with the Allied Non-Theatrical Film Association to form the National Audio-Visual Association. NAVA changed its name to the International Communications Industries Association in 1983, which became InfoComm International in 2005.
“Organizations evolve,” said Labuskes. “AVIXA’s core programs remains the same—training, certification, standards, community, market intelligence, trade shows—but the industry has changed in exciting ways, and the opportunity to grow the market for audiovisual experience is so vast, it was important that the AV industry’s leading association change with it.”