Virtual Events Provider Hopin Moves To In-Person Events With Boomset Acquisition

The virtual events provider Hopin is moving into the real world. The company on Wednesday (June 16) announced its acquisition of Boomset, a global provider of onsite event services, allowing it to become “the single solution for producing events, period.”

Hopin said the past year has shown that events can take on many different forms. “As the world reopens, in-person events will return, hybrid events will emerge and virtual events will remain,” the London-based company said in a blog post. “Our goal is to empower event managers to succeed with any event format.”

Hopin said the acquisition will allow it to expand its services with on-site event management tools like badges, self-service kiosks and QR code check-in, as well as access to new technology, cashless payments and data insights.

“Looking ahead, more than half of event organizers plan to host hybrid events in 2021 and beyond, according to Hopin data. Hybrid events offer the best of both worlds — the advantages of in-person and online events,” the company said.

The announcement comes a week after Hopin announced a partnership with LinkedIn, which became an investor and partner in the events firm. It also followed the news from March that Hopin had raised $400 million in an effort to expand its operations, valuing the company at $5.6 billion.

“LinkedIn is more than just an investor,” said Johnny Boufarhat, CEO and founder of Hopin. The goal is “to help LinkedIn members and Hopin users engage with more people and discover immersive experiences,” he said.

Hopin’s other recent acquisitions include the video streaming studio StreamYard in 2020, and the video hosting provider Streamable and video technology company Jamm earlier this year. They also recently acquired the mobile app development company Topi as part of a larger mobile platform tech investment strategy.