Walk-in digital installations: Netural founds “Responsive Spaces”

What is Responsive Spaces about? In short: Walkable and graspable digital installations. Or, slightly more detailed, interactive multi-media applications which create impressive brand and product experiences in spaces. They are enormously helpful wherever emotions are to be triggered and stories should become tangible. Spaces are understood in their widest sense here, including not only retail spaces and trade show booths, but also vehicles and all kinds of abstract or temporary environments: Think exhibitions or interventions in public spaces.

Markus Pargfrieder has been with Netural from the very start. Now, after 17 years in the team, he is now managing partner of Responsive Spaces. A favourable constellation of organizational culture and talent has led him to running his own company within the company. His personal background ensures an ongoing strong integration of Responsive Spaces in spite of the spin-off. All Netural core competences remain part of the package.

So why take the trouble to spin off? Simply because growing in this special field demands a special approach: While Netural always seeks direct collaboration with clients, Responsive Spaces thrives in interdisciplinary teamwork with exhibition architects, event agencies and artist groups. Another important factor is hardware and equipment being extremely important for the business of Responsive Spaces, much more so than it will ever be for Netural.

We run a wide variety of projects. Theoretically, the applications possibilities are unlimited. Practically, Responsive Spaces has pushed boundaries with projects like a virtual luxury yacht walk-through, an art installation at the current Venice Biennale, and projects for prominent brands in the automotive sector. Sadly, some really exciting current projects are subject to strictest confidentiality, and we can only hope that one day we will be free to show them here. They would be worth your while.

Passion. Period. Being totally committed, with the necessary expertise as an of course. The long history I share with Netural is also helpful. We have built up loads of mutual trust, which is essential once you get down to starting a business.

It was all a hugely exciting trip and it actually feels much shorter that it really was. The whole team of digital professionals at Netural went through permanent development and reorientation of both skills and organization. We were always testing and pushing limits. I myself started out as a one-man multimedia team and eventually wound up running the Netural Lab. We enjoyed a great amount of freedom and trust in all this, and after burying Flash we found new exciting terrain in Augmented Reality. Tilling this field, we have harvested more than a handful of international interactive design awards. Now along comes the „Responsive Spaces“ spin-off with its whole new challenges. The fun never stops! laughs.

Responsive Spaces creates tangible, walkable digital installations, including everything from developing an idea to its full implementation and operation. Netural provides digital solutions for standard environments like desktop browsers and mobile devices, always in longer-term strategic customer relations. Responsive Spaces provides custom setups, often for limited time periods. At this year's Biennale art fair in Venice for instance, where we run nine synchronized projections in one room: The ephemeral with its special attractions, and also the challenges of live performances, makes the main difference to Netural's core business.

Digital transformation has already had a huge impact on the economy, but in many respects we are still only scratching the surface of what is really possible. Exciting and innovative installations make sense in all kinds of exhibition and trade show environments, and I am thinking far beyond huge, impressive events like the IAA automotive show in Frankfurt, as much as we enjoy contributing to this. I would define continental Europe as the market for Responsive Spaces. In Austria alone, there are so many great companies, and I want to encourage them to add a handful of digital stardust to their national and international events.

It is scary, intimidating, ambiguous, delightful, exciting, motivating and liberating. I have been through all these states of mind, and roughly in this order. But backed by Netural's structure I enjoy the luxury of being able to focus on the substance of the job. I am hundred per cent sure I made the right decision and I am glad I had the guts to make it. There weren't any tangible changes in the physical world I can think of. Except maybe that I have significantly more business shirts in my wardrobe now.

Always a pleasure!