Empire Produces Spotify's Press Conference in NYC
Leading online music streaming service Spotify, which launched in the United States in July 2011, held its first ever press conference on November 30, 2011, unveiling the Spotify Platform, and announcing, “this is the beginning of something game-changing for digital music." The press conference introduced Spotify's new platform and a range of apps, created in partnership with some of the best and brightest brands in the world.
The fastest-growing and most popular music service of its kind, the Swedish-founded Spotify is quickly changing the face of the music industry; with more than 10 million active users, over 2.5 million paying subscribers, and now available in 12 countries. The press conference was delivered by Spotify Founder and CEO Daniel Ek, who was joined on stage by the CEOs of a number of the partner apps, including Jann Wenner, the iconic founder of Rolling Stone. CEOs from Last.FM, Tunewiki, and Songkick also shared the stage with Ek to discuss their respective apps, and answer questions from the audience on the impact the development of the Spotify Platform would have on the Spotify user experience, and on the music industry at large. Up and coming indie pop band, fun, gave a fantastic acoustic performance to cap off the stage presentation before guests were invited to interact with the custom-built partner installations Empire placed around the room, allowing guests to demo the new apps. To punctuate the initiative of accessibility, the event was live streamed to audiences in London and Stockholm as well as to individual media outlets around the globe – an idea that not only extended the reach of the event, but also resulted in the press conference becoming the number one trending topic on Twitter in real time.
For attendees in NYC, Empire layered and enriched the event experience with multiple elements that underscored the Spotify brand and created a much buzzed-about experience. Large-scale custom-designed graphics and Spotify visuals populated the room, while a guest-curated Spotify playlist emanated from the speakers. Unique and innovative catering offered additional fodder for the press blogs, while installations showcased the newly-announced Spotify applications designed to enhance user experience.
“As seems to be Spotify’s style, the event has unusually high production values: waiters are handing out espressos and bite-sized breakfast foods that I’ve never heard of (but are quite delicious). The company has a custom backdrop for the stage featuring music-themed illustrations.” -Jason Kincaid, Tech Crunch
“The platform was announced at a press conference in New York that bore all the hallmarks of Apple and Facebook's set-piece keynotes, with chief executive Daniel Ek outlining the news with the help of several partners.” -Stuart Dredge, Guardian.co.uk
Empire is a leading producer of innovative product launches and announcements and is a leading event marketing agency to some of today’s fastest growing Internet and media brands.
Guests received their first taste of technological innovation at registration, where they were welcomed by name on a reactive LED screen installation covering the full width of the entry wall. A large lunch café was created with a décor scheme that incorporated custom-built, ceiling-high steel LED frames draped with foliage to create smaller, intimate restaurant-style spaces that displayed both technology and nature.
A series of breakout sessions presented content targeted to attendees’ varied interests, while imagery displayed throughout the venue showcased real-life applications of how products designed to empower developers help to unleash the power of data and reimagine possibilities that will improve our world.
Every element of Microsoft Connect(); from registration, breakfast and keynote, to lunch and evening cocktails, were custom-designed to communicate exacting brand messaging and to deliver a high-touch guest experience to this important audience. The keynote and breakout sessions were livestreamed through an onsite studio built for this purpose and content was watched online by millions around the world.
Empire is proud to collaborate with Microsoft on this annual, top-tier business communication event.
To view excerpts of Connect(); 2017, please visit https://www.microsoft.com/connectevent
