Delivered primarily through a network of internationally hosted biannual conferences and online through social and mobile media, Social Media Week brings hundreds of thousands of people together every year through learning experiences that aim to advance our understanding of social media’s role in society.
Social Media Week was held for the first time in February 2009 in New York City, and was launched as a “distributed conference,” with events taking place in locations throughout the city with organizations such as the New York Times, Wired, Razorfish and Nielsen. Over 2,500 people attended over forty individual events, and thousands more participated online.
In February 2010, we expanded SMW from one to six cities, reconvening in New York while adding London, Berlin, San Francisco, Toronto and São Paulo. The multi-city evolution of Social Media Week attracted more than 7,500 attendees across 200 events, nearly all of which were made available for free to attendees thanks to sponsorship from a number of global brands, including Meebo, Motorola, Vodafone and PepsiCo. View past speakers.
In September 2010, we made the conference biannual, adding Los Angeles, Milan, Bogotá, Mexico City, and Buenos Aires.
The February 2011 edition of Social Media Week was the biggest yet, with five cities returning from February 2010–New York, London, San Francisco, Toronto and São Paulo–and four new cities taking part: Istanbul, Hong Kong, Paris, and Rome. With over 30,000 attendees worldwide attending 600+ events, Social Media Week became a truly global experience connecting people all over the world across eight countries and four continents.
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