This past weekend the fifth iWeek event was held in Osaka, Japan. Over 20,000 people attended the event, which was held at the Osaka Business Park. This compares to approximately 4,200 attendees for the first event, iWeek 1999, and is the most ever for the show.
“This is a huge event in Japan for the Mac community (especially with no Macworld Tokyo this year),” Chise Majima, Apple User Group Liaison for Japan, told MacCentral.
Apple Japan offers a lot of support, but iWeek is mainly organized and implemented due to the contributions of the Japanese Apple user group community, local sponsors, and vendors (which include Adobe, Macromedia, and Microsoft). The Osaka Business Park, located in the shadows of the Osaka Jo Castle, is a good location as it’s highly visible to non-Mac users (potential “switchers”) who are on their way to Osaka Jo Park.
iWeek kicked off Saturday night with a party and concert. The expo opened to the general public Sunday morning at 10 a.m. to “long lines of enthusiasts eager to get a glimpse at the new iPod” and catch the keynote presentation by the president of Apple Japan, according to the iWeek Web site, which is provided by the Ticce Design Company.
iWeek, which is free to the public, offers hands-on tutorials in two “Digital Life Hands-on Zones” and two theaters, the Apple Zone and the Pro Stage. The latter features demos, presentations, and interviews with Japanese Mac celebrities. An Apple User Group Zone is manned by local user groups.
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