o   On October 17th, we officially launched our HERITAGE LIX program to scale up ambitious & impactful immersive projects for European cultural heritage. the participants were coached by Marialya Bestougeff (Le CENTQUATRE -Paris), Nathalie Pichard (Arttech foundation- Lausanne) Laure PRINTEMPS (Tourisme innovation Lab - Angers) and Alain Gallez (XR4europe) who represent, with Amélie Richard (HUB MONTRÉAL) and Abla benmiloud- faucher (LE CENTRE DES MONUMENTS NATIONAUX), the detection jury of the HERITAGE LIX international competition. 

o   October 18th started with the SUCCESS STORY of Mario Iacampo, founder and artistic director of Exhibition Hub. It continued with the advice of coaches specialized in business models and UX strategies such as Julien Boeur, DELOITTE digital. The day ended with the INVESTORS DRY RUN session co-hosted by Alok Nandi and Eloi Gerard: An introduction to the art of pitching reserved for the 11 winners of the HERITAGE LIX contest.

• The 19th of October was the D-day for the 11 participants of the HERITAGE LIX contest who had 7' to convince the jury of the European potential of their immersive experience of heritage enhancement.  In the end, 9 prizes were awarded in 3 categories by the Brussels Challenge Jury composed of 12 members from the cultural, institutional, tech and media industries. The announcement of the winners opened the evening of the GALA CRYSTAL OWLS organized by STEREOPSIA. Check out the HERITAGE LIX page to see the list of winners & jurors. 

The forum allowed us to identify the needs and expectations of museum and tourism operators involved in the digital transformation of their offer :

• FUNDRAISING : We organized on October 17th 2 round tables to advise and encourage project leaders in their search for funding (with a particular focus on interdisciplinary initiatives linking heritage, tourism and new technologies). Exchanges to explore the potential of CREATIVE EU, HORIZON Cluster 4 - Digital EU programs but also to explore the possibilities of bilateral funding (Francophonie) fed by the interventions of Marion Perrin (Hub Brussels), Laure Marique (ICHEC), Thomas Michelin (French Embassy), Nathalie Marchal (FWB), Giancarlo Caratti di Lanzacco (Cross Media EU) & Géraldine Bueken (XR4Heritage) & Delphine Jenart (Technocité).
•  CONTENT : Thanks to the speed dating sessions, museums, event organizers and tourism managers had access to the XR stories (documentaries and fictions) of the BOOSTER NARRATIVE winners as well as to the solutions (software, hardware, installation) of the HERITAGE LIX winners. A cure of inspiration to help them define their digital priorities and expand their network of contacts.
• TERRITORY: XR4heritage supports the development of GLOCAL phygital strategies - i.e. anchored in the reality of the local territory but turned towards the international. To increase the impact and influence of the Flemish, Walloon and Brussels heritage offer, Howest, XR Valley and Visit Flanders, organized the Culture & Tourism workshop which took place on 18/10 at STEREOPSIA with Tuya Beyers, Jelle Demanet, Bruno Koninckx, Ben de Vriendt en Hans Vandamme, Steven Stumpf, Jim Zandieh, Lotte Kusters, Sam Versele, Vincent Buyssens, Thierry Jourquin, Géraldine Bueken, Nathalie Pichard & Mario Iacampo.

DISTRIBUTION NETWORK: How to reach the general public on a massive scale if we don't first build broadcast and distribution networks? To discuss market, network and IP issues related to digital practices in the museum sector, we organized on October 19 the conference entitled: DISTRIBUTION OF IMMERSIVE EXPERIENCES FOR CULTURAL INSTITUTIONS. An event fed by the interventions of Lieven Bertels, BARCO, Mehdi Mejri, ATLAS V, Alexandre Roux LUCID REALITIES, Eloi Gerard E.N.D. Entertainment & Roei amit - GRAND PALAIS IMMERSIF – moderated by Géraldine Bueken XR4heritage.

• The participants of our track were invited to the drink organized by the ART NFT GALLERY  a unique opportunity to exchange with WEB3 artists, galleries and collectors engaged in a digital transformation with impact on a European scale.
• On October 18, the round table entitled "The impact of new technologies on public service media: how to use them to engage viewers in new ways in content creation" took place. 1h30 of exchange to unveil the XR and Web3 strategies of 3 European public service TV channels: RTBF represented by Patrice Hardy, Arte by Gilles Freissinier and FRANCE TV by Jeanne Marchalot. A discussion enriched by Isabel De Peuter-Rutten, co-founder of Gatherverse EU, who wishes to put the metaverse at the service of general interest (health, education, culture...).