Stream FAQ

Stream is the WPP (un)conference that brings together WPP agencies, clients and partners to debate the future of technology and creativity. Over the last 10 years it has gained a reputation as ‘one of the worlds best technology conferences’ (WIRED) or as ‘TED meets TECH’ (SABMiller).

When you attend an “unconference”, none of the usual rules apply. Crowd-sourcing determines the content of the event, which begins with an empty whiteboard to be filled by attendees with ideas for discussions. Everyone is expected to participate and contribute. Tim O’Reilly, one of the pioneers of the format through Foo (Friends Of O’Reilly) Camp, describes it as “the wiki of conferences”. It’s democratic, at times anarchic and everything your standard “speeches followed by drinks and networking” conference is not.

There are now a number of Stream events held worldwide: Stream India, Stream Asia and Stream Indonesia in Asia, Stream Global and Stream Cannes in Europe, Stream SXSW in the US and Stream Africa in South Africa. Each event takes place over three-days in a basic, but scenic resort, with many of the discussions taking place outside. Our SXSW edition is a large drinks party and our Cannes event, designed for just 30 CMOs, takes place over the course of a day.

At each Stream event we have just 300 people join us, which is divided equally between WPP agencies, WPP clients and friends and partners from the industry. This includes WPP partners such as Google and Facebook, through to start-ups, VCs, media owners, publishers, creatives and so on. The nominations process for each group is slightly different:
 
If you are a client of WPP: If a WPP client would like to attend it is nearly always possible to accommodate the request. Please speak to your agency lead, or email us.
 
If you work for a WPP agency: Each Global CEO is invited to nominate who should attend. If you work for a WPP agency and would like to be nominated to attend Stream you should speak to your line manager or Global CEO.
 
If you part of the broader technology and media industry… We actively scout for new participants as well as inviting a number of previous Streamers to recommend new names. Nominate yourself, or someone else here.
 
Outside of the normal rules, we run a WILDCARD competition with four tickets to Stream to be won. See the event pages for details.
 
Each year we have as many as 70% new people, but Stream remains a small event, with just 300 people at each event. This means we can’t invite everyone we want to invite every time. We are growing, but please be patient if your nomination doesn’t go through first time. The final decision remains the right of the WPP Digital team.

It is free to attend Stream, which covers 3 nights’ accommodation, food and drink. Participants are expected to cover their own travel costs. If your company has a gifting rules, we can invoice you for the ticket price, which is approximately $1000 depending on the event.