Innovative SXSW Interactive Event Touts New and Returning Sponsors

AUSTIN, TX, March 11, 2011 (Press-News.org) Plutopia Productions is excited to announce its line-up of "Plutopia 2011: The Future of Play" sponsors. In addition to returning sponsors like Edible Austin and Green Fern Events, LLC, this year's event features many new members joining the Plutopia sponsorship family. Two of these, Orbotix and XCHOX, continue the trend of new product launches and performance debuts occurring at Plutopia. Boulder, Colorado-based Orbotix will demo their latest prototype Sphero, an innovative robotic ball and new gaming concept that turns your smart phone into a robotic controller. XCHOX will debut an interactive 3D music application that will lead attendees through uncharted territory in the musical frontier. Both devices are sure to set the world of SXSW abuzz.

ThinkGeek, the company notorious for its fantastic gear for passionate technophiles of all shapes and sizes, is sure to cause a stir among the audience as well. The sponsor will provide take-home swag bags full of goodies for Plutopia attendees, and will raffle off the most coveted pieces in a massive multi-prize giveaway.

Through their contributions, all sponsoring organizations partner with Plutopia Productions to create an interactive experience unlike any other. Interactivity is a hallmark of the Plutopia experience, and this carries over to its relationship with sponsors as well. It is also why the number of sponsors has doubled since last year. "It really is exciting to see our income from sponsors jumping 50%, and the 400% increase in what I would call participatory sponsors. I've no doubt those numbers are related. Sponsors don't just want to hang a banner or passively show up at an event. They want to help create it and shape the experience. We seek that out in our sponsors. Our sponsors this year are an absolutely fantastic group. We couldn't have asked for more," says Derek Woodgate, Chief Creative Officer of Plutopia Productions.

Mindful of the futuristic spirit of the event, Plutopia partners with sponsors that have an eye on the future -- not just in the technology or product sense, but also in regards to planetary sustainability. Last year, in partnership with sponsor Green Fern Events, Plutopia had a 70% recycle rate and this year expects to push past 80%. Another environmentally focused sponsor, Paradigum Nouveau Enterprises, is a Clinton Global Initiative Partner that develops sustainable models for communities.

The impressive list of Plutopia 2011 sponsors include:

• SXSW Interactive, an annual festival taking place March 11-15, 2011 in Austin, Texas. SXSW Interactive is an incubator of cutting-edge technologies featuring presentations from the brightest minds in emerging technology and special programs showcasing the best new websites, video games and startup ideas of the year.

• Sphero, developed by Orbotix, is the world's first robotic ball changing the interactive experience by turning your iOS or Android device into the controller. An entirely new gaming concept with an open API, Sphero creates a very different gaming experience with a real life component.

• XCHOX unites musicians, engineers, mathematicians, poets, singers and more into an exploratory collective of precision artisans. Xchox then invites the listeners to interact with the resulting creations in a way that pushes the boundaries of linear cognition.

• Paradigm Nouveau Enterprises, an environmentally-focused company that uses grassroots, community-based approaches to develop models that can be replicated throughout the United States and around the world.

• ThinkGeek, premier retailer for the global geek community and creator of the Electronic Rock Guitar Shirt, Star Trek Pizza Cutter, JOYSTICK-IT and many more unique geek gifts. ThinkGeek is a wholly owned subsidiary of Geeknet, Inc.

• Clarity Ventures, an Austin-based consulting company committed to building innovative technology for their clients. They are software developers that design powerful web-based tools to complement client business processes.

• iCanMakeItBetter, a social innovation and market research platform that enables companies and communities to create, share, and act upon ideas to drive innovation and make everything, and every day better.

• Interactive Entertainment Systems (IES), provider of innovative lighting, sound, video, sales, design, installation, service and rentals. Owner Richard Phillips is the developer of Synth-A-Beams , an interactive system that triggers sound and lighting effects as beams of light are interrupted. The Synth-A-Beams with be featured at the event (Express Your Self, an Interactive Light & Sound Experience).

• The Futures Lab, a futures firm with the powerful ability to generate the unexpected. The Futures Lab moves beyond strategic planning by taking a preferred futures approach that offers effective strategies for implementing concepts and scenarios.

• Edible Austin, a community-based quarterly publication that promotes the abundance of local foods, season by season.

• Green Fern Events, LLC, an Austin-based environmentally friendly event planning firm that seeks to minimize the negative environmental impact of each event while considering overall costs by applying the best green practices in all areas.

• Intellitoys, an innovative technology company focused on providing top quality educational and entertaining experiences to children. They are the first to bring you Playtime Plus - the playtime of the future.

• Austin-based Texas Music Water, provider of purified, oxygen-enriched water in a biodegradable bottle. A portion of the proceeds from Texas Music Water sold goes to charities supporting health care for working musicians.

• The Texas Department of Insurance, which oversees the Texas Health Assistance Program (www.texashealthoptions.com ) and will be on hand to with information for freelance creatives and others who have health insurance questions and concerns.

• Blastro, provider of the Internet's leading music video network for today's hottest unsigned, indie, and major-label artists. Their catalog features 10,000+ music videos with culture- and genre-relevant original shows, industry news and artist profiles.

• QRANK, a product of Ricochet Labs and a daily game of wits for the iPhone and iPod touch. Based in Austin, Ricochet Labs is busy bringing the game to new platforms and adding features that take full advantage of smartphones' GPS capabilities.

• Whrrl, a location-based social application designed to help you discover places to go and things to do. Instead of searching for the right ideas, the right ideas find you. Users join Societies and exchange relevant recommendations, and Whrrl's personalized algorithms ensure that the best recommendations are presented to the right users.

Plutopia Productions is also proud to announce its event-oriented media partnerships with Women's Online Media and Education Network, bOING bOING, Laughing Squid and Pop17.com.

Plutopia 2011 will take place March 14th at the Emma S. Barrientos Mexican American Cultural Center from 6:30pm to Midnight. This event is primarily sponsored by South by Southwest (SXSW) Interactive, the internationally-known annual technology festival, of which Plutopia is an official evening event. The event is a compelling extravaganza of gaming, toys, music, performances and art as a transformative, expansive and upbeat experience of the future. For more information on sponsoring Plutopia 2011, visit http://www.tinyurl.com/PlutopiaSponsorship.

About SXSW Interactive
The 18th annual SXSW Interactive festival will take place March 11-15, 2011 in Austin, Texas. An incubator of cutting-edge technologies, the event features five days of compelling presentations from the brightest minds in emerging technology, scores of exciting networking events hosted by industry leaders and an unbeatable line up of special programs showcasing the best new websites, video games and startup ideas the community has to offer. From hands-on training to big-picture analysis of the future, SXSW Interactive has become the place to experience a preview of what is unfolding in the world of technology. Join us March 2011 for the panels, the parties, the 14th Annual Interactive Awards, ScreenBurn at SXSW, the SXSW Expo, Accelerator at SXSW and, of course, the inspirational experience that only SXSW can deliver. SXSW Interactive 2011 is itself sponsored by Miller Lite, Chevrolet, AOL, IFC, Pepsi, PepsiMax, Freecreditscore.com, Monster Energy, Microsoft, Samsung, AT&T and The Austin Chronicle.

About Plutopia Productions
Plutopia Productions, Inc. was founded in 2007 in Austin, Texas after its founders created a popular Do-It-Yourself (DIY) home of the future installation at Austin's Maker Faire. The name "Plutopia" is a mashup of "pluralist utopias," a concept suggesting DIY, configurable, "maker" environments of the future. Numerous cutting-edge events later, Plutopia is now a full-service experiential events and entertainment production company that helps future-focused clients create their own interactive events for consumer engagement. The highly professional Plutopia management team has years of successful global experience in cultural development, the arts, entertainment, event creation and production, future studies, marketing and visionary strategic planning. Plutopians are international leaders in the experiential movement and produce enlightening events for their clients, while providing value through the delivery of both services and content. Visit http://www.plutopia.org to learn more about how Plutopia 2011 will deliver fresh insights into the changing world of play.