Event Success

CHAPTER 8With New Data Power Comes New Responsibility

The data revolution currently taking place in the events industry will offer organizers new capabilities to personalize engagement and curate experiences. But with this new capacity comes a duty of care—one that must be shared by organizers, their technology partners, and the industry as a whole.

Protecting User Data

First and foremost, organizers have a responsibility to protect the data and privacy of attendees. In some cases that might include abiding by international data standards, like the European Union's General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), and in others it may require surpassing them by prescribing privacy protections that have yet to be written into law.

In this context, the event industry is not unique. At a certain point all industries that have been revolutionized by data have had to address data privacy issues. The highly fragmented nature of the event ecosystem, however, can create some additional problems for event organizers when it comes to remaining compliant with GDPR and providing stakeholders with confidence that their personal information is being protected.

“Big organizers are not using one or two technologies on their shows; big organizers are using on average 15 to 20 different technologies per show,” says Marco. “That means each technology activation is a potential challenge, and organizers need to make sure that every one of those technologies is solid, serious, and respectful of data ...