Microsoft’s TechEd conference is one of the main tech events Lifehacker covers each year (I’m off to TechEd US in Houston next week). In recent times TechEd Australia has been held over four days on the Gold Coast, but that’s changing this year as the event turns 21.
Microsoft will now host two shorter TechEd events: one in Melbourne on 7 and 8 October, and one in Sydney on October 27-28. Registration for those events hasn’t yet opened. An email sent to past attendees says that the events will also become more frequent to reflect faster update cycles:
To align with the increasing speed of technology progression seen in the IT industry, additional dates and venues are already being planned for early 2015. With constantly evolving content based on up to the minute trends and issues, more frequent TechEd experiences equates to a superior learning opportunity for our partners.
Holding shorter two-day events in Australia’s two most populous cities may well mean more people attend, but also runs the risk of people not fully committing — if you work in Sydney, it’s easier for your boss to call you back to the office for an emergency. What’s your take on the change?
Comments
2 responses to “TechEd Australia Leaves Gold Coast, Splits In Two”
Welp, so much for me going. I’m from SE Queensland, so I could have just driven there. Now, not worth it.
Hrmm, might actually be worth me attending now, it’s in Melbourne. Just so long as they keep the content up to scratch, and tone down on the sales pitch.
I am quite disappointed. I enjoyed the gold coast, but think the locations should change on a yearly basis (excluding canberra).
I assume the Melbourne and Sydney events will be the same otherwise what is the point of splitting a 4 day event in one location to 2 x 2 day events in different locations. And IMO not worth the $$ for just 2 days, so I wont go, and I probably wont send my team either.
The cynical side of me thinks MS are doing it for revenue reasons more than anything else.