Cologne will remain the home of DMEXCO over the long term
Cologne and Berlin, January 29, 2025 – further solidifying a robust partnership: Koelnmesse and the German Association for the Digital Economy (Bundesverband Digitale Wirtschaft e.V. / BVDW) are renewing their collaboration and will therefore continue to organize DMEXCO together over the next years. As the host of Europe’s leading event for digital marketing and tech, Cologne will remain the hub for marketing, data and technology and the driving force of game-changing innovations in the industry. President and Chief Executive Officer of Koelnmesse, Gerald Böse, and BVDW President Dirk Freytag met in Cologne for the signing of the contract.
DMEXCO has had firm roots in Cologne since it was founded in 2009 and has evolved into a key international destination for the digital sector. Held on September 18 and 19, 2024, last year’s event presented the latest developments and featured a line-up of over 850 international speakers and 680 exhibitors and partners. The long-term extension of the partnership emphasizes the mutual confidence in the course followed to date, which both parties will continue to pursue as part of an even closer collaboration going forward. The digital economy is becoming ever more significant, and the array of topics it encompasses continues to expand. DMEXCO reflects this and brings together the relevant stakeholders in Cologne.
Dirk Freytag, President of the BVDW, emphasizes the importance of this enduring commitment: “First the future, then history. As the brand owner and both the ideational and professional partner of DMEXCO, we look back on 15 successful years of partnership with Koelnmesse. Together, we have established DMEXCO as a leading event for the digital economy. This long-term contract extension underscores our shared commitment to further evolving the event, refining its content, and shaping a successful future.”
Gerald Böse, CEO of Koelnmesse, is also excited to embark on the next chapter of this partnership: “The contract extension is a sign of trust and lays the foundation for a successful future. It is also a positive signal for Cologne as a location, reinforcing its position as a key hub for the digital economy.”
DMEXCO serves as a vital strategic catalyst, with digitalization acting as an overarching theme across all industries – and their respective trade fairs.
“DMEXCO is a key driver of innovation for us. We adapt its content in a targeted way for other major events, ensuring valuable cross-industry synergies. This thematic networking will continue to be an effective part of our strategy moving forward.”, Böse emphasizes.
The signing of the contract represents another milestone in the collaboration between Koelnmesse and the BVDW. The 2025 edition of DMEXCO will take place in Cologne on September 17 and 18.
About DMEXCO
DMEXCO is Europe’s leading digital marketing & tech event. We are the meeting place and a community for key players in digital business, marketing, and innovation. We bring together industry leaders, marketing and media professionals, and tech pioneers to set the digital agenda. Both globally informed and locally focused, DMEXCO offers an ecosystem with seminars, debates, expositions, and masterclasses outlining the future of the digital economy and driving market value.
The German Association for the Digital Economy (BVDW) – with the special participation of the Circle of Online Marketers (OVK) – is the ideational and professional partner of DMEXCO and owner of the DMEXCO brand. DMEXCO is organized by Koelnmesse.
Images from DMEXCO are available online at https://go.dmexco.com/press-downloads-dmexco.
About the BVDW
The German Association for the Digital Economy (BVDW) represents the interests of companies that operate digital business models or whose value creation is based on the use of digital technologies. With its members from the entire digital economy, the BVDW is already shaping the future today – through creative solutions and state-of-the-art technologies. As an impetus, guide and accelerator of digital business models, the association relies on fair and clear rules and advocates innovation-friendly framework conditions. In doing so, BVDW always keeps an eye on the economy, society and the environment. In addition to DMEXCO, the leading trade fair for digital marketing and technologies, and the German Digital Award, BVDW also organizes the CDR Award, the first award ceremony in the DACH region for digital sustainability and responsibility, as well as a large number of specialist events.
