Active Network Expands Event Technology Footprint into Asia-Pacific

In addition to Sam Renouf’s post regarding our presence at AIME , here is our press release regarding our expansion into the Asia-Pacific region.

Active Network Powers Professional Events Industry
with Expanded Footprint in Asia-Pacific

Experienced Staff in Hong Kong, Singapore and Sydney Help Global Customers Manage Events and Source Venues in Region 

MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA – February 21, 2012 –Active Network (NYSE: ACTV) announced today at the Asia-Pacific Incentives & Meeting Expo (AIME) that it is expanding its presence in Asia-Pacific with offices in Hong Kong, Singapore and Sydney. Through the recent acquisition of StarCite®, a leader in corporate strategic meetings management, Active Network now provides a comprehensive suite of event technology solutions for meetings of any size—from small, local events to global user conferences. Having successfully powered events in the Asia-Pacific endurance market through partnerships with well-known customers such as the Singapore Sports Council and Triathlon Australia, Active Network is now positioned to deliver local expertise and customer service to the professional events industry in the region.

Active Network is already a trusted event technology provider for industry leaders such as Cisco, American Express, and other global customers with a strong presence in Asia-Pacific. Rather than cobbling together multiple point solutions, through Active Network professional meeting planners can rely on a single source to handle all elements of event management and engagement technology. Furthermore, meetings and events professionals have access to StarCite’s global supplier marketplace to more efficiently and cost-effectively source local venues and hotels for their meetings.

“We are excited about growing our presence in the broader professional events industry in Asia-Pacific, building on the successes we have had to date in the strategic meetings management and endurance markets,” said JR Sherman, senior vice president and senior general manager of the Business Solutions division at Active Network. “Our value proposition lies in our ability to help event organizers drive deeper personalization and engagement with their attendees, while helping event organizers contain corporate spend and focus on maximizing ROI.”

For more information about how Active Network can help you manage your meetings, events, conferences and tradeshows, visit booth #4018 at Melbourne’s Asia-Pacific Incentives & Meeting Expo (AIME) or visit: www.activeevents.com.

About The Active Network, Inc.

The Active Network, Inc. is the leading provider of organization-based cloud computing applications with over 47,000 global business customers and 70 million annual transactions reported last year. Our technology platform, ActiveWorks®, transforms the way organizers manage their activities and events by automating online registrations and streamlining other critical management functions, while also driving consumer participation to their events. Our flagship media property, Active.com®, is the leading online community for people who want to discover, participate in, and share activities about which they are passionate. Headquartered in San Diego, California since 1999, the company has over 25 offices worldwide. To learn more, visit www.ActiveNetwork.com or www.Active.com. Follow Active Network on Twitter @ActiveNetwork, @Active and on Facebook.

About Forward-Looking Statements

The Active Network, Inc. cautions you that the statements included in this press release that are not a description of historical facts are forward-looking statements within the meaning of the federal securities laws. Any such statements are subject to substantial risks and uncertainties, and actual results may differ materially from those expressed in these forward-looking statements. More detailed information about The Active Network, Inc. and the risks and uncertainties that may affect the realization of these forward-looking statements is set forth in its filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).These filings may be read free of charge on the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov. You are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date hereof. All forward-looking statements are qualified in their entirety by this cautionary statement and The Active Network, Inc. undertakes no obligation to revise or update this press release to reflect events or circumstances after the date hereof.

Media Contacts:
Mona Klausing, Active Network
Mona.Klausing@ActiveNetwork.com
858-964-3813

        ###

© 2012 The Active Network, Inc. All rights reserved. Active.com and ActiveWorks are registered trademarks of The Active Network, Inc. Active Network, is a trademark of The Active Network, Inc. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners

What is Your Event Technology Resolution?

By: Eric Olson, General Manager, SMB Events
Active Network | Business Solutions

Eric Olson is general manager of SMB Events at Active Network | Business Solutions. He is responsible for driving global strategy and P&L for the company’s business-to-business events solutions serving small to medium sized businesses, associations and tradeshow and expo companies. These include event management and marketing technologies. During his tenure, Olson has grown the SMB Business Solutions business by more than 200%.

Last year I spoke more than a dozen times on event technology, and every time I encountered the same experience.  A nervous, overwhelmed event planner pushes her way to the front of the room, thanks me and says, “What do I do first?”

It’s maybe the single best question to ask about technology.  Yet, there is only one person in the room brave enough to ask it.

As digital tools flood into corporate and association events, it’s easy to get overwhelmed and it’s even easier to overwhelm your audience.  So, my response is always the same.

“Make sure you have a very clear list of business objectives for your events. Then focus on implementing ONE piece of technology to better achieve those objectives; Do that one thing really, really well.”

It’s really that simple. And since January is a time for diligently penning resolutions to drop a few pounds or drink a few less cocktails, I think it’s also time for every event planner to make a technology resolution.

Three Steps to Creating Your Technology Resolution:

1. Create a measurable, stack-ranked list of goals for your event or events in 2012. Whether the goals are to increase attendance or improve post-event sales, create a prioritized list of goals that you can control and measure.

2. Make a list of the technologies your audience uses most often in their daily lives. For example, I noticed a recent technology conference that 80% of the room was using an iPad to take notes and interact during a session. Yet, the event had no connection between the live experience and those mobile devices. Instead the event had a single microphone in the middle of the room. Think about the technologies your audience uses in their everyday life to 1) find content and 2) interact and collaborate with each other.

 3. Identify one technology from the list in #2 that will better help you achieve one of your goals from #1 and create a specific goal to implement it in 2012. For example, if your goal is to increase attendance and your audience is filled with LinkedIn lovers, your goal may be to implement a LinkedIn group to drive attendance at your event. Remember, technology doesn’t always have to hit your budget.

This exercise can be as simple or as complex as you need it to be for your organization. But, the hardest part is getting started. So, start with one thing. Make it measurable. And focus on doing it really, really well.

If you do it right, this isn’t just a resolution you can keep. It’s a resolution that can grow, expand and continue to benefit your business for years to come.

Cheers to good technology and great events in 2012 and beyond.

Data Center Migration Update

Earlier today we completed our database migration, and RegOnline is fully functional. We’re excited to be in a cutting edge data center environment, providing our clients with the best performance and data security available.

If you have any questions about how this move affects your accounts, please check out previous blog entries. And, as always, our support team is here to help you during business hours.

We appreciate your patience during this important improvement, and we look forward to helping you put on amazing events in 2012 and beyond.

Data Center Migration Update

After a long night of hard work we are pleased to announce that we have reached a major milestone in our datacenter migration and the site is back online in our next generation data center!  There is a small number of customers that are taking a little longer to complete, and may experience the maintenance page, but we expect to have those users back on line before 8:30 a.m. MST.

8:40 A.M. MST Update

Progress continues on those customers having difficulty accessing the system: We are now anticipating that we will have the few customers still having issues resolved by 10:30 A.M. MST. We apologize for the inconvenience this may have caused.

10:30 A.M. MST Update

We have resolved most issues with customers and expect to have full resolution in the next few hours.  We’re running late with this resolution and we want you to know we’re working non-stop until it is resolved.

Thank you all for your patience and continued support. Have a wonderful weekend!

Data Center Migration Scheduled for TONIGHT, 9:30PM, MST

UPDATE: Data Center Migration, January 20, and New IP Address Information

The Active Network Data Center Migration will occur on FRIDAY, January 20, 2012 beginning at 9:30PM Mountain Standard Time. Please note the system will be UNAVAILABLE for approximately 8 hours, meaning registration forms will be inaccessible. 

IMPORTANT NOTE:

In order to ensure no interruption in service, if you are using a custom or third party gateway integrated with RegOnline, you may need to update your settings. If your payment gateway restricts transactions to certain IP addresses, you need to verify that you allow traffic from the following RegOnline associated IP addresses:

74.120.127.1 and  74.120.127.3

**IMPORTANT UPDATE: We have added the additional 74.120.127.3 IP address. Please make the necessary accommodations to verify access for this additional IP address (details can be found here).

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The Active Network has opened a state of the art datacenter and will be migrating all of their customers to this new site.  In January 2012 RegOnline systems will be migrated to this center which requires new IP addresses to be issued as part of this move.  The new datacenter provides RegOnline customers with improved stability, monitoring, and systems that we anticipate will lead to a more predictable user experience.

The migration process will take approximately eight (8) hours and will be conducted over a weekend during the first half of January although these times may change based on a more detailed schedule that is being prepared. Please expect additional communication regarding this migration over the next few weeks.

What Does This Mean For Our Customers?

Our IP addresses will change meaning that anyone who has made changes to their firewall or has a custom third party gateway implementation will have to update their records.

Who Does This Impact?

-Customers with a 3^rd Party Gateway with IP restrictions

-Customers who have firewall rules in place for API calls

-Customers who work in highly secured environments

If you are one of these customers please continue reading for important information

3^rd Party Gateways Integrated with RegOnline
If you are using a custom or third party gateway, your gateway may require you to specify which IP addresses are allowed to process transactions.  If this is the case, make sure to add the following IP address to your gateway configuration in order to ensure no interruption in credit card processing.

IP Address
74.120.127.1 and 74.120.127.3

Firewall or Network Exceptions to Access RegOnline
If you have firewall exceptions for RegOnline for either workplace rules, API calls or other security reason to access RegOnline, please contact our support department.
Exceptions on Receiving Email from RegOnline (Whitelisting)
If you have an exception added to allow email from RegOnline please make sure you add the following IP addresses (all port 25) added to your whitelist

IP Addresses
74.120.127.72
74.120.127.73
74.120.127.74

Still have questions?

1. Make sure that the appropriate IT or Network staff within your organization is aware of these changes, as they can help to determine if any changes are required.
2. Still need help? Please do not hesitate to contact our Support department for more information: https://customerportal.activenetwork.com/NewCase.jsp  Stay tuned to the blog for more updates.

We’ll keep you posted about the details, but for any additional questions, please do not hesitate to contact our support department directly.

PCMA 2012: A Decision Point for Meetings and Events.

One of the general sessions at PCMA 2012 Convening Leaders Conference.

Last week, a promising college basketball player had to make a decision. It wasn’t a career altering decision. It was simply the noble question of whether he should “do the Dougie” at the team’s first home game.

The Dougie, for those who don’t know (I didn’t), is a dance that has reached notoriety with teenagers online. And the player, who, by the way, DID the Dougie, was one of the hottest prospects in college basketball. His decision to dance on the biggest stage of his career prompted one sports radio host to make the statement:

“Leaders,” he said, “don’t do the Dougie.”

Leaders, he argued, choose to lead. They stand out. They don’t do what others do. They exhibit maturity beyond their years. And, on the biggest stage, leaders shine. They perform. They get results.

So, as we convened our leaders in the meetings and events industry last week in San Diego for PCMA and Virtual Edge Summit, this story stuck with me and it occurred to me that our industry is at a similar decision point.  

We can decide to lead. Or, we can decide to Dougie.

Convening Leaders. Converging Ideas.

The meetings and events industry has reached a point of convergence. This could not have been clearer than at PCMA’s traditional live events conference, combined with the Virtual Edge Summit, a progressive digital show. There we saw the convergence of ideas from our industry’s leaders, who badly want to elevate the reputation of events.

Talk in the hall centered on driving engagement, delivering ROI and building the value of events, while the discussion on stage relayed the findings of a recent survey, showing that just 38% of planners use the most basic attendee management technology.

So, while there’s a convergence of thinking and a clear opportunity to change, there is a gap in action and risk taking. And we, as an industry, are left with some importance choices.

Five Lessons From PCMA. Five Choices To Lead.

Throughout the weekend there were hundreds of examples of organizations that did choose to lead. Cisco demonstrated leading the way in virtual events by fully integrating digital and live environments to drive measurable value from their meetings. My employer, Active Network, announced its plans to forge the way for full technology integration by announcing the pairing of its engagement and logistics technology with StarCite’s leading strategic meetings management platform. And PCMA itself chose to embrace technology as the backbone of Convening Leaders, catapulting the association’s event to the front of this industry.

SVP, JR Sherman, announces the launch of Active Network | Business Solutions and the acquisiton of Starcite, at the PCMA 2012 Convening Leaders Conference.

Some of the best are choosing to lead. But, most are still years behind the needs of their businesses and associations – not to mention their members and attendees.

How can we glean from the best and choose to lead as a group? Here are five choices PCMA and VES should inspire YOU to make in 2012: 

1. Choose to Embrace Digital Convergence

With VES fully co-located with PCMA, the world of digital events has changed. Virtual now includes all digital content, leaving behind hard-to-understand virtual worlds for new extended definition of content. And numerous case studies showed that good digital strategy can extend the reach of events, and provide content that adds value to live experiences.

Digital content is proving to be highly measurable, interactive and directly responsible for driving interest and attendance for live events. In fact, many of the people I met had been exposed to VES through free digital content before deciding to attend.

So, good planners are left with a choice. We can decide to embrace the convergence of live and digital content – and use it to drive more value through events. Or, we can continue to ignore it and lose attendees as they choose to spend their time elsewhere.

2. Choose Technology Integration

As technology floods into live events, most organizations have purchased it a la carte. Marketers tend to choose technologies focused on engagement while meeting planners choose solutions to solve logistical problems and control spend.

With Active Network’s announcement of the StarCite acquisition, the company is showing that the events world is ready to embrace the benefits of integrated technology solutions that meet the needs of both marketing and procurement. And it makes sense because technology is designed to improve experiences, create efficiencies and drive measurable value. So, if that technology doesn’t work together and support the whole attendee journey, organizers sacrifice experience, lose valuable data, spend too much money and lose efficiencies.

Technology is only important if it drives result. So, in the maze of new technology and cool ideas, integration just may be the most important feature we choose to elevate our industry.

3. Choose to Give Up Control

The way we communicate has fundamentally changed. Attendees make buying decisions based on friends’ recommendations. They want to learn from each other. And they want content built to support their objectives.

So, the best things we can do – although tough for event people – is to hand over the reigns to our attendees whenever possible.

The Active Network Educational Pod, in the Learning Lounge of PCMA's 2012 Converging Leaders Conference.

PCMA introduced interactive “idea” areas and learning lounges this year. I heard more comments about the value of these self-guided experiences, than about the sessions. With access to people and information becoming free and easy, event-focused organizations need to drive value in new ways, like facilitating attendee-driven content and leveraging it to drive engagement.

4. Choose to Commit to the Value of Events

We hold events to sell products, services or ideas. Yet, most planners spend most of their time managing logistics trying to save costs. While that approach got us by for years, and as digital technologies open access to people and information, our industry needs to focus on improving value.

One of the saddest stories I heard this weekend was of the British government’s massive cuts in events. In a time when it’s more important than ever to share information and bring people together, the government eliminated its event’s focused department and slashed tens of millions of dollars from its programs.

And despite the fact that it could now demonstrate the value of its events, it was too late.

While it may seem difficult at times to measure engagement, there were plenty of good examples at PCMA and VES of orgs that do it well. It’s important to set value-driven goals, implement measurement tools and leverage data to drive more value to events-driven organizations.

Data is the new currency of events. It’s time to commit to treating this discipline like other marketing and sales areas that have long embraced tactics to drive value before anything else.

5. Choose to be an Architect of Engagement

It’s becoming very clear that in order to accomplish everything – and in order for meetings and events to become a thought-leading industry – the definition of a planner needs to change. And the skill sets we bring in to our organization need to expand. It’s time to become architects of engagement.

It will require more education. But, we’re an industry built on learning. It will require restructuring. But, we’re an industry built on restructuring things.  

We’ll need to add skills and technologies in community building, marketing, data analysis and the psychology of learning. It’s a new challenge. But, it’s a new opportunity for our industry, steeped in a tradition of building and monetizing relationships, to once again lead the way for corporations and associations.

These aren’t easy decisions to make. And they aren’t always comfortable. Yet, if events and meetings are going to thrive, we all need to commit to growing up. We need to commit to redefining our role and our value. And we need to commit to leading.

It’s time to make a choice. Are we going to lead? Or are we going to Dougie?

Written By:

Eric Olson
General Manager, SMB
Active Network | Business Solutions

Data Center Migration Set for Friday, January, 20 at 9:30PM MST

UPDATED IMPORTANT NOTIFICATION:

At 9:30PM (MST) Friday, January 20, 2012, RegOnline will be migrating all existing data to the state of the art, Active Network data center. This maintenance will make the system unavailable for approximately four (4)- eight (8) hours.

In preparation, please reference the blog post below (originally posted on December 2, 2011), addressing important information regarding customer IP addresses.

*****************************************************************************************************************

The Active Network has opened a state of the art datacenter and will be migrating all of their customers to this new site.  In January 2012 RegOnline systems will be migrated to this center which requires new IP addresses to be issued as part of this move.  The new datacenter provides RegOnline customers with improved stability, monitoring, and systems that we anticipate will lead to a more predictable user experience.

The migration process will take approximately eight (8) hours and will be conducted over a weekend during the first half of January although these times may change based on a more detailed schedule that is being prepared. Please expect additional communication regarding this migration over the next few weeks.

What Does This Mean For Our Customers?

Our IP addresses will change meaning that anyone who has made changes to their firewall or has a custom third party gateway implementation will have to update their records.

Who Does This Impact?

-Customers with a 3^rd Party Gateway with IP restrictions

-Customers who have firewall rules in place for API calls

-Customers who work in highly secured environments

If you are one of these customers please continue reading for important information

3^rd Party Gateways Integrated with RegOnline
If you are using a custom or third party gateway, your gateway may require you to specify which IP addresses are allowed to process transactions.  If this is the case, make sure to add the following IP address to your gateway configuration in order to ensure no interruption in credit card processing.

IP Address
74.120.127.3

Firewall or Network Exceptions to Access RegOnline
If you have firewall exceptions for RegOnline for either workplace rules, API calls or other security reason to access RegOnline, please contact our support department.
Exceptions on Receiving Email from RegOnline (Whitelisting)
If you have an exception added to allow email from RegOnline please make sure you add the following IP addresses (all port 25) added to your whitelist

IP Addresses
74.120.127.72
74.120.127.73
74.120.127.74

Still have questions?

1. Make sure that the appropriate IT or Network staff within your organization is aware of these changes, as they can help to determine if any changes are required.
2. Still need help? Please do not hesitate to contact our Support department for more information: https://customerportal.activenetwork.com/NewCase.jsp  Stay tuned to the blog for more updates.

We’ll keep you posted about the details, but for any additional questions, please do not hesitate to contact our support department directly.

UPDATE: Data Center Migration Scheduled for January 20th!

An update from PCMA 2012: Press Conferences, Pedicabs, Blue Shirts…Oh My!

An Active Network sponsored pedicab waits to pick up some participants at PCMA Convening Leaders 2012.

We are halfway through the 2012 PCMA (Professional Convention Management Associations) Convening Leaders Conference in San Diego. What an experience it has been so far!

As the communication partner of PCMA, Active Network has a large presence at this event. Here are some highlights so far:

• The launch of Active Network | Business Solutions division, acquisition of Starcite, and formal  press conference led by SVP JR Sherman
• “The Journey Starts Here,” Active Network Educational Pod for participants to engage and learn
• Speaking sessions led by General Managers, Anthony Miller and Eric Olson
• Behind the scenes technology tours of Active Network technology supporting PCMA
• Active Network sponsored pedicabs transporting participants throughout the Gaslamp District of downtown San Diego

Check out our Flickr stream of photos from the first half of the conference! You’ll see our blue, Active Network shirts worn by our staff and the pedicab drivers. We certainly are getting noticed!

Are you at the conference or wish you were here?  Follow us on Twitter and on the blog for more updates as PCMA Convening Leaders 2012 continues. Or better yet, leave a comment below!

Written by:

Michelle Nikolayevsky
Product Marketing Manager
Active Network | Business Solutions