In a move designed to reshape how the professional audiovisual (pro AV) industry interprets market shifts, the Audiovisual and Integrated Experience Association (AVIXA) has announced a landmark strategic partnership with global market research firm Futuresource Consulting. By marrying AVIXA’s deep-rooted industry connectivity with Futuresource’s analytical rigor, the collaboration aims to provide a comprehensive, demand-side view of the pro AV landscape—a vital evolution from traditional supply-side forecasting.
The partnership focuses on two of the industry’s most dynamic sectors: education and corporate environments. By engaging directly with end users, technology buyers, and systems integrators, the two organizations intend to bridge the gap between product availability and actual market application, offering a level of clarity previously unseen in the sector.
The Core Objective: Moving Beyond Supply-Side Metrics
For years, the pro AV industry has relied heavily on supply-side forecasting—tracking shipments, hardware sales, and production capacities to gauge industry health. While these metrics remain essential, they often fail to capture the "why" behind purchasing decisions.
The partnership between AVIXA and Futuresource Consulting is intended to complement AVIXA’s established five-year supply-side forecast by introducing a robust demand-side layer. This shift is critical as the industry transitions from hardware-centric sales to experience-centric design. Understanding how a university procurement officer or a corporate IT director views the utility of a collaboration suite is now as important as knowing how many units of that suite were shipped.
"At a time when the industry is evolving to experience-centric design for pro AV solutions, understanding end-user demand is more critical than ever," says Michael Sullivan-Trainor, AVIXA’s senior industry analyst. By integrating data from AVIXA’s extensive member base with Futuresource’s global research framework, the collaboration will create a series of "landmark reports" designed to guide stakeholders through a rapidly changing technological landscape.
Chronology of the Initiative
The rollout of this partnership is structured in phases, beginning with a North American focus before expanding into broader, more complex technological inquiries.
- July 2026: The official announcement of the partnership, setting the stage for collaborative research.
- Q4 2026: The launch of the inaugural report. This study will focus exclusively on the North American education market. It will synthesize data from Futuresource’s annual decision-maker surveys with insights harvested from AVIXA’s membership.
- 2027: The initiation of a comprehensive corporate enterprise study. This report will look beyond standard hardware needs, delving into complex strategic areas such as AI implementation, enterprise-wide broadcast capabilities, and the future of hybrid collaboration spaces.
Decoding the Market: Methodology and Data Collection
The strength of this partnership lies in the synthesis of two distinct but complementary data streams. AVIXA brings a unique, "boots-on-the-ground" perspective. Its members—integrators, manufacturers, and service providers—are the pulse of the industry. When combined with Futuresource’s global research capabilities, the resulting dataset offers a 360-degree view of the market.
The Education Market Focus
The upcoming Q4 2026 report on the North American education market is expected to be a benchmark document. Education technology has seen a massive upheaval, driven by the need for high-fidelity remote learning, flexible classroom configurations, and the integration of accessibility features. By surveying the decision-makers—the school administrators and IT department heads—the report aims to move beyond simple "unit sales" to understand the investment priorities of educational institutions.
The Corporate Enterprise Deep-Dive
The 2027 corporate study promises to be even more ambitious. The modern office is no longer a static environment; it is a fluid space where AV is expected to facilitate seamless communication regardless of geography. The study will investigate:
- Collaboration Spaces: How room design is changing to accommodate hybrid work.
- Enterprise Broadcast: The rise of in-house studios and corporate communications platforms.
- Artificial Intelligence: A critical focus, the report will track how AI is moving from a buzzword to a functional tool in pro AV design, implementation, and daily operations.
Official Perspectives on the Collaboration
The leadership behind this initiative views the partnership as an "unparalleled opportunity" for the pro AV industry. Alistair Johnston, principal analyst at Futuresource Consulting, expressed his enthusiasm for the synergy between the two entities.
"Futuresource’s global research capabilities and extensive knowledge of the education and corporate markets, combined with AVIXA’s deep engagement with the pro AV community, create a unique opportunity," Johnston stated. "We are providing the industry with an unparalleled view of the factors shaping demand, technology adoption, and investment priorities."
For AVIXA, the move is a logical extension of its role as an industry advocate and information hub. By providing objective and clear market insights, AVIXA is positioning itself not just as a trade association, but as a primary intelligence provider for its stakeholders.
Implications for the Pro AV Industry
The implications of this partnership are significant for manufacturers, integrators, and service providers alike.
For Manufacturers
Manufacturers often operate in a bubble of engineering excellence. By accessing the demand-side insights provided by this partnership, they can better align their R&D efforts with real-world user pain points. If the data suggests that corporate users are struggling with specific UI/UX elements in AI-driven rooms, manufacturers can iterate faster, reducing the risk of product-market mismatch.
For Integrators
Integrators are the primary beneficiaries of this research. By understanding the "why" behind client investments, they can move from being simple installers to becoming consultative partners. If an integrator knows the current sentiment of higher education buyers regarding long-term AV maintenance and software-as-a-service (SaaS) models, they can tailor their pitches more effectively.
For the Broader Market
The industry’s transition to "experience-centric" design is the defining trend of the decade. The shift from selling a projector to selling a "learning experience" or "collaboration equity" requires a new set of data points. By formalizing this, AVIXA and Futuresource are providing the industry with the vocabulary and the metrics needed to articulate value to their own clients.
Conclusion: A New Standard for Market Intelligence
As the pro AV industry approaches 2027, the complexity of technology adoption continues to rise. Whether it is the integration of AI or the standardization of global enterprise collaboration, the challenges are becoming more nuanced.
The partnership between AVIXA and Futuresource Consulting arrives at a pivotal moment. By providing objective, data-driven insights that bridge the gap between supply-side reality and demand-side expectation, they are setting a new standard for market intelligence. For those operating within the pro AV sector, the upcoming reports will likely become essential reading for strategic planning, investment decisions, and long-term business growth.
For further details on these studies and to explore the existing market intelligence provided by the association, stakeholders are encouraged to visit the AVIXA Market Intelligence portal. As the industry looks toward the next five years, the combined expertise of these two organizations will undoubtedly be a lighthouse for those navigating the currents of technological change.
