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This June, BIO brings the biotechnology industry’s annual convention back to Philadelphia for the first time since 1996. Back then, the convention attracted 3,000 people; this year, more than 17,000 are expected to pack the city’s convention center in a four-day showcase of the best of biotechnology. The June 19-22 event features:
- daily breakfast and lunch plenary sessions with world-renowned speakers;
- more than 175 educational sessions on everything from manufacturing and regulatory requirements to financing a biotech business;
- a full business development forum capable of accommodating hundreds of business presentations and thousands of partnering meetings;
- a full day of international events;
- the industry’s largest recruiting event; and
- the BIO TV studio, capable of sending TV or radio feeds anywhere in the world.
BIO’s state affiliates in Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Delaware are co-hosts of the convention and will be seizing the opportunity to highlight their region’s impressive contributions to biotechnology and pharmaceutical development. In Pennsylvania alone, the industry has a total economic impact of $15.8 billion per year, according to a recent report from the Milken Institute.
BIO 2004 SETS RECORDS
In June 2004, BIO went “back to where it all began” with the BIO 2004 Annual International Convention in San Francisco, birthplace of the industry more than 25 years ago. BIO hosted a record 16,990 attendees over four days at the city’s Moscone Center. The convention’s direct economic impact on the city is estimated at $35 million, also a record.
Continuing a trend toward greater geographic diversity, the convention attracted attendees from 61 countries, 49 U.S. states (plus the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico) and 10 Canadian provinces.
For the second year in a row, the BIO convention welcomed a head of state—this time, the Hon. Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, prime minister of Malaysia—as well as high-level officials from the U.K., Australia, Germany, Thailand, New Zealand and India.
In addition, BIO welcomed then- Secretary of Health and Human Services Tommy Thompson, as well as six governors: Jeb Bush (Florida), Tom Vilsack (Iowa), Ernie Fletcher (Kentucky), Mitt Romney (Massachusetts), Tim Pawlenty (Minnesota) and Bob Holden (Missouri).
Also during the conference, BIO and the Chemical Heritage Foundation presented the 2004 Biotechnology Heritage Award to DNA sequencing pioneer Leroy Hood.
MEDIA COVERAGE
BIO 2004 drew 540 journalists, who filed thousands of stories on a wide range of topics. Business and finance accounted for the most stories—47.5 percent—dwarfing all other subject matter. Other topics garnering coverage included bioethics, biodefense, food and agriculture, and drug development.
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