Skift Take
Event registration may not be sexy, but it is a crucial part of how business events work. This acquisition reveals that the market recognizes the value of delivering smooth and powerful registration experiences.
Event technology company Meeting Play + Aventri announced today the acquisition of event registration company Eventcore. The announcement follows the $75 million private equity investment from Sunstone Partners in MeetingPlay in June 2021, and the merger of MeetingPlay and Aventri in January. Aventri had previously acquired NFC pioneers in ITN International in 2018.
Financial details of the acquisition were not made public. This is one of the few acquisitions announced this quarter following a comparatively busy first quarter and the event tech investment peak in 2021. Investors are clearly reacting to the return of in-person events that are less reliant on technology compared to virtual events.
Seattle-based Eventcore is not a household name in event tech, but it is known for delivering bespoke event registration services for large and complex events. Supporting the complex registration needs for the virtual-only CES 2021 show is one of the company’s main calling cards.
“There’s a huge gap in terms of where tech has grown and where it has become sharp, but the on-property experience is stuck where it was in 2019,” said MeetingPlay co-founder and now chief product / innovation officer, MeetingPlay + Aventri Joe Schwinger. Registration is a key area of event tech that is relevant regardless if an event is virtual, hybrid or fully in-person. Despite this, it has not developed at the same rate as how other areas of event tech did over the last two years.
Speaking with Skift Meetings, Schwinger discussed the greater need to deliver connected experiences for employees and customers in this post-Covid environment. “Clients are seeking to implement the benefits of virtual and hybrid gatherings in their return to in-person events,” said Schwinger, something that starts with a smooth and engaging event registration process.
MeetingPlay + Aventri is now looking to offer a fully bespoke registration solution with custom logic to what Schwinger calls Tier 1 clients. At the same time, the company wants to improve the solutions on offer for SaaS clients, those looking for a more price conscious off-the-shelf solution.
Under Schwinger’s leadership, MeetingPlay has worked with Eventcore for the last 5 years, so this acquisition seems like a logical step. “[We’re] finally getting married after working together for a long time,” said Schwinger.
MeetingPlay and Aventri have now been one company for six months. Despite not yet finalizing their rebranding, the company has since released a new product, ExpoPRO. It now plans to incorporate Eventcore into the soon-to-be-revealed brand.
MeetingPlay + Aventri expect to integrate Eventcore very rapidly with current leadership and staff being folded into the now parent company. New products and solutions can be expected over the coming months.
