Jun. 2004
Volume 3, No.6 (Serial No.12)
C h i n e s e B u s i n e s s R e v i e w, I S S N 1 5 3 7 - 1 5 0 6
China B usiness Review (Journal),Inc.,USA
Analysis of China’s Convention Industry: Problems and Countermeasures
Wei Feng 
Abstract: As a new tourist product that can generate large expenditure to economy, convention industry is
highly regarded by the government and enterprises of different countries. In China, convention industry develops
steadily and has brought great economic benefits for national economy. However, compared with those countries
in which convention industry is much developed and mature, the convention industry in China still faces great
challenges when competing in world market. Based on the analysis of the current situation of development of
convention industry in China, the paper focuses on the main problems of convention industry in China and then
put forwards some countermeasures of how to develop convention industry in a sound and scientific way.
Key words: convention industry meeting planner countermeasure
1. Introduction
The meetings, incentive travel, conventions and exhibitions (MICE) industry is one of the fastest growing
sectors of the tourism industry today. According to a report of Successful Meetings (2001), the total meetings
industry expenditure in 2000 in the U.S. alone amounted to $122.1 billion, which includes the spending of
meetings and incentive travel market segment. Besides, Meetings and events greatly impact the $1.3 trillion U.S.
travel and tourism industry because revenues significantly influence business travel partners such as airlines,
hotels and resorts, convention centers, ground transportation, food service and entertainment companies. In
Asia-Pacific region, the convention market also increased by 124% during the period of 1980-1996 (Hutchinson,
1997). Australia’s meetings and exhibitions are estimated to have generated around 7 billion Australian dollars in
direct expenditure to the Australian economy. In China, the convention market increased by 20% each year, which
has promoted the development of regional economy and has become the highlight of the tourism industry. World
–class facilities, excellent services, innovative programs and a well-developed infrastructure system make Hong
Kong an ideal destination for conventions, exhibitions, corporate meetings and incentive groups. In 1999, 3500
events including conferences, meetings and incentive travel were held in Hong Kong, this attracted a total of
407,000 visitors to Hong Kong and brought revenue of HK$1.5 billion (Hong Kong Tourist Associations, 1999).
The central government and local government in China have realized the economic significance of the
convention industry. Since 1990s, the big cities in China have hosted many international conventions and
exhibitions among which are Guangzhou Import and Export Fair, Dalian International Costume Festival, “APEC”
meeting held in Shanghai. Besides, the 2010 shanghai World Exposition and 2008 Beijing Olympics Games will
also bring many opportunities for the development of the convention industry in China. In order to support the
convention economy, local governments have built up large-scale convention centers. The largest exhibition center
is Guangzhou International Convention and Exhibition Centre which has an exhibition capacity of 186,000 m2 .
According to the statistics provided by CNTA (China National Tourism Administration), until 2002, more than
Wei
Feng, female, research fellow of the Academy for Hubei Tourism Development; Address: Dept. of Tourism and Hotel
Management, School of Business, Hubei University, Wuhan, 430062, P. R. China; Tel: 027-88662990, E-mail: fw@hubu.edu.cn.
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Analysis of China’s Convention Industry: Problems and Countermeasures
200 convention and exhibition centers have been built in order to boost the development of convention industry in
China. According to the statistics of ICCA (International Convention and Congress Association), China ranked
14th with 164 conventions held in 2000. Thus, China held 1.74% of the total 9433 international conventions held
in 2000 around the world.
The reason that the convention industry produces great economic impact can be summarized as following: (1)
the number of delegates for one convention is large; (2) the number of stays stayed in a city or country is longer
than pleasure travelers with other purposes; (3) international convention delegates are large spenders; (4)delegates
who attend a convention are likely to take certain tours (for sightseeing or pleasure); (5)convention brings much
profits for other related industries like transportation, accommodation, entertainment and restaurant, advertising
and leisure industry. Therefore, since international conventions have a great economic impact on hosting city or
country, many countries or cities make great efforts in promoting convention industry.
Although convention industry in China develops steadily and has attained certain competitive strength in the
world market, however, compared with those countries in which convention industry is much more developed and
mature, the convention industry in China still faces great challenges when competing in world market. Take
exhibition for example, in 2003, more than 2500 exhibitions were held in China, which brought a revenue of 7
billion RMB, accounting for 0.07% of GDP in China, the average production value per convention is 2.8 million
RMB; while in Germany, nearly 300 exhibitions were held that year, which generate 1% of GDP in Germany.
Therefore, the average production value per exhibition is in Germany10 million EUROS. This shows that the
production value of the convention industry in China is much lower than that in Germany. The competitive
strength of China’s convention industry still lags far behind those developed countries.
The purpose of this study is to analyze the current situation of development of convention industry in China,
and identify the main problems of convention industry in China. Also, this study aims to put forwards some
countermeasures of how to promote the development of convention industry in China.
2. The Main Problems of Convention Industry in China
Due to the less developed economic situation, the convention industry in China lagged behind those
developed country like USA, France, England, Germany, and Italy. According to a report of the Union of
International Associations (UIA), the total number of conventions held in 2000 was 9433 and the top five
convention-hosting countries include US (1303; 13.8% of world convention market), France (632; 6.7%), England
(613; 6.5%), Germany (591; 6.3%), and Italy (430; 4.5%). These five countries accounted for 54.7% of the world
convention market, while China ranked 14th with 164 conventions held in 2000.
Compared with those countries in which the convention industry is much specialized and internationalized,
the convention industry in China still needs to overcome some problems before becoming leading convention
destination country in the world. The most prominent problems are as following:
2.1 The limitation of venues for holding conference and exhibition
The major limitation of the Chinese venues is lack of venue space. Compared with the top convention destination
countries, the exhibition area of venues in China is much smaller. Table 1 shows that the venue space of convention
and exhibition centre in China is much smaller than that of the leading convention and exhibition countries. The
largest exhibition centre is Hanover exhibition center in Germany, which has the exhibition area of 497,730 m2, three
times the venue space of the largest exhibition center in China (186,000 m2). The venue space in European countries
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Analysis of China’s Convention Industry: Problems and Countermeasures
like Germany, France, and Italy are very large which can meet the needs for international convention and exhibition.
There are some 12 million square meters of exposition space currently available worldwide that meet international
standards. Europe holds a share of 60%, with 2.3 million square meters in Germany.
Table 1 The Venue Space of Convention and Exhibition in China and in the Leading Convention Countries
Country
Convention and exhibition centre
Venue space
(m2)
Germany
Italy
Germany
France
USA
Canada
Japan
China
China
China
China
Hanover exhibition center
Milan exhibition center
Frankfurt exhibition center
Paris-Porte de Versailles
McCormick Center in Chicago
Toronto Exhibition Center
Tokyo International Exhibition Center
Guangzhou International Convention and Exhibition Centre
China Export Commodities Fair Ground (Guangzhou)
Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Center
China International Exhibition Center( Beijing)
497,730
375,000
290,000
219,000
204,000
100,440
80,000
186,000
160,000
64,000
60,000
Sources: International Conference and Convention Association Statistics
2.2 Ineffective management of convention industry
In China, most convention and exhibition are sponsored and organized by local government, enterprises or
institutions that operate independently without coordination. The management of convention and exhibition is
ineffective and the service quality is low due to incomplete convention organizing and reception system. The
following are some details:
Firstly, there is no specific government administration that can adjust and regulate the convention market,
thus resulting in some problems like repeated sponsoring of exhibition, low-quality exhibition and disorder
competition market. Secondly, there is no industry association that can undertake the responsibilities of promoting
the smooth competition of the industry and providing instruction and education for the industry. In those top
convention destination countries, there are many associations related to the convention industry. For example, the
Convention and Visitors' Bureaus (CVBs) of different cities act as a nonprofit organization with a mandate to
attract and organize international conventions. The Professional Convention Management Association (PCMA)
founded in Philadelphia, America is a nonprofit international association of professionals in the meeting industry
whose mission is to deliver breakthrough education and promote the value of professional convention
management. ICMS is Australia's leading meetings management organization; it pioneers the industry with the
most complete meetings management service available. Thirdly, the management and service of the industry is
not standardized. Since there is no uniform criterion for the management and service procedure of the convention
industry, the quality of the reception service of the convention industry cannot be guaranteed.
2.3 Lack of laws and regulations stipulating convention industry
Generally speaking, the convention industry market in China is in disorder state. The main reason is that
there are no specific laws or regulations that can stipulate the convention industry such as the examination and
approval of convention and exhibition, the integrated promotion of international convention and exhibition as well
as the pricing system of the industry. Until now the only policy made by Chinese government related to the
convention industry is Regulations on the Economic and Trade Activities Related to Introducing Foreign
Investment and Sponsoring Exhibition in Foreign Countries promulgated by the Ministry of Foreign Trade and
Economic Cooperation (MOFTEC) in 1995. Since Chinese government has made restrictive policy on convention
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Analysis of China’s Convention Industry: Problems and Countermeasures
industry due to the consideration of the nation’s safety, the procedure of examination and approval of convention
and exhibition in China is rather complicated which hinders the development of the convention industry.
2.4 Insufficient professional convention managerial and service staffs
The competition of the convention industry lies in the competition of the talents. Since the convention
industry in China develops less mature than major convention destination countries, the high quality professional
service staffs are insufficient, especially the interpreters, meeting planners, exhibition project managers, and
marketing managers, therefore, the service quality of the industry is low and management of the convention and
exhibition is not specialized. Compared with the rapid increase of the construction of convention and exhibition
centers, the quality of the professional service staffs is relatively much lower. As for the structure of the industry
organization, the development of the convention and exhibition organizers, destination management companies
cannot meet the demands of first-class international convention exhibition. Although there are many professional
companies dealing in convention industry, most of these companies are of small scale and have weak competitive
strength, which resulted in the excessive competition in low-level convention market.
3. Countermeasures of Promoting the Development of Convention Industry in China
3.1 Improve the Construction of Convention and Exhibition Venue
The space availability is the leading problem that should be solved. As large conferences often include both
the plenary and workshop sessions, there should be sufficient venues for holding the plenary and workshop
sessions for large conferences. First, there should be careful and scientific plan about the construction of the
convention and exhibition centers. The plan should be made on the basis of thorough examination of the location,
the resources and the market so that the construction of the venues can meet the demands of convention market
and the structure of scale of the venues can be balanced. Besides, the local government should exert rigid control
over the construction of convention centers to avoid the excessive venues built at random. Second, large
convention and exhibition centre with huge seating capacity should be constructed in order to lure more large
conferences. Besides, excellent conference facilities such as modern audio-visual equipment, square footage,
modern video-link teleconference and simultaneous interpretation facilities should be equipped. In a word, only
when there is enough convention and exhibition centre of international standard that can attract large conferences
and exhibitions, the image of the convention industry in China can be established.
3.2 Establish the Complete Convention Organizing and Reception System
Firstly, Industry association should be established. Industry association plays an important role in
establishing the complete convention organizing and reception system. For example, Meeting Professionals
International (MPI), is the world’s largest association for the $102.3 billion meeting and event industry, the
association is committed to position meetings and events as a key strategic component of an organization's success.
The MICE association can coordinate the function between government and corporations ， promote the
self-discipline of the industry and provide the instruction service for the industry.
Secondly, the convention professional certification system should be established. Through the certification
system, more professionals can be trained for this industry and the management for the industry can be standardized.
Only those who are Certified Meeting Professional (CMP) are qualified for the job. In this way, the management of
convention and exhibition can be improved and the service quality of the convention industry can be bettered.
Thirdly, the competence of professional convention service suppliers should be improved so that the
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Analysis of China’s Convention Industry: Problems and Countermeasures
reception system of convention industry can be better. Professional convention service suppliers include the PEO
(Professional Exhibition Organizers) and DMC (Destination Management Company). These professional MICE
service suppliers can provide efficient service for conventions and exhibitions of different scales. Since we are
facing the great challenges of the intensified competition, more and more enterprises and groups should be
established to build up a more sound and complete reception system, which will increase the core competitiveness
of the convention industry in China.
3.3 Regulate the Convention Industry Market
Firstly, special convention bureaus should be established to regulate the convention industry in a microscopic
way, the convention bureau can perform some tasks such as providing a variety of information to meeting
planners including site selection, transportation and local service, presenting both their product and the destination,
organizing familiarization trips for meeting planners interested in the destination. For a specific convention, the
convention bureau can provide referral services by suggesting reliable and appropriate service providers. Once the
meeting specifications are available from the planner, convention bureau, operating on a lead system, may
circulate the information to facilities that can accommodate the convention/meeting. Site reviews are arranged
once a meeting planner has selected specific facilities. Finally, the promotion of convention attendance,
convention housing assistance, on-site registration and information, and on-site registration staffing are CVB
activities pertaining to the servicing of conventions.
Secondly, laws and regulations of the convention industry should be made so that the disorder competition in
the convention market can be avoided. In order to regulate the MICE market and establish an open, fair, free
competition market, the regulations related to the approval of holding international convention and exhibition, the
cooperation between domestic professional convention companies and foreign companies and the pricing system
should be made so that the competition system in convention industry can be optimized.
3.4 Train More Specialized Professional Convention Talents
In order to promote the development of convention industry in China, it is quite necessary to cultivate
high-quality human resources who can meet the requirements to activate convention industry. The following are
the measures that should be taken:
Firstly, special training programs should be developed to increase the proficiency of meeting professionals in
any component or sector of convention industry. These training programs aim to: identify a body of knowledge;
establish a level of knowledge and performance necessary for the professional job; stimulate the advancement of
the art and science of meeting management; increase the value of practitioners to their employers; recognize and
raise industry standards, practices and ethics. Secondly, exchange program can be launched to introduce the latest
information and knowledge about the convention industry and provide participants with opportunities for
international cooperation and exchange. Executives of convention centers, hotels, professional conference
organizers and officials in charge of convention affairs of the government and public organizations will participate
in the program and exchange information with each other. Thirdly, colleges and universities in China should make
great efforts to train more qualified convention major graduate to meet the great demand of the convention
industry. The students may get some knowledge about meeting planning, trade show operation, special event
management, meeting and events coordination from college training programs. In addition, the colleges and
universities can cooperate with the world-famous MICE education and training institutions and professional
organizations on developing MICE certified programs and MICE training.
4. Conclusions
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Analysis of China’s Convention Industry: Problems and Countermeasures
Since China has joined WTO, the foreign enterprises think highly of the convention industry in China and the
international cooperation are strengthened in multifarious way. Many professional convention companies in developed
countries like America, Germany and England are trying to seek ways to cooperate with the Chinese companies,
which brought new concept of management and innovative operation to the convention industry in China.
Although convention industry in China is less developed than that in European countries, Chinese
government has realized the economic significance of convention industry, thus making great efforts to promote
the development of convention industry. Efforts have already been made to implement such program and regulate
the overall development in gradual paces.
First, the central and local government has organized competent conference centers, hotels, travel services in
forming the MICE Promotion Council for International Conference and Exhibition. Such organ is aimed to serve
as a guild for international conference bidding and coordinate efforts among airlines, travel services, hotels,
conference and exhibition centers, car service companies and all relevant supporting entities. All efforts can
promote the healthy growth of convention industry in China with regulated participation and guidance from the
governmental department. Second, the tourism bureau of different cities will allocate special fund to bidding
papers for international conferences and incentive programs, undertaking promotion activities and financing
bidders to host promotional shows in foreign countries. Efforts will also be made to unify the image of each
hosting city in MICE promotion. Finally, the Convention and Exhibition Bureau of different hosting cities, along
with airlines, railway operators, travel services, hotels and conference and exhibition organizers, will formulate
competitive pricing system in a bid winning market shares.
On the whole, Chinese government and the hosting cities are making great efforts to promote China as
preferable conference destination, but most current problems like lacking of convention and exhibition venues,
insufficient specialized MICE service staffs, incomplete convention organization and reception system and irregular
convention competitive market should be overcome .As long as China can overcome its limitations and continuously
take advantage of its strength, it will become an ideal convention and exhibition destination in the world.
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(Edited by Wanyong Liu, Junjie Tian, and Jumei Long)
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