Report on the Future of Conferences

TL;DR

This paper reevaluates the future of conferences post-pandemic, analyzing virtual conference dynamics, economics, historical successes, and attendee attitudes based on a 2022 survey.

Contribution

It provides a comprehensive analysis of virtual conferences' advantages, disadvantages, and historical context, informing future conference planning.

Findings

Virtual conferences offer cost savings and accessibility benefits.

Attendee attitudes towards virtual and hybrid formats vary.

Historical virtual meetings have been successful in industry.

Abstract

In 2020, virtual conferences became almost the only alternative to cancellation. Now that the pandemic is subsiding, the pros and cons of virtual conferences need to be reevaluated. In this report, we scrutinize the dynamics and economics of conferences and highlight the history of successful virtual meetings in industry. We also report on the attitudes of conference attendees from an informal survey we ran in spring 2022.