Upperside Conferences
Upperside Conferences is a Paris-based independent event producer, founded 1994, organizing annual technical conferences on IP networking, cloud, AI infrastructure, optical transport, and quantum communications for telecom operators, hyperscalers, vendors, and researchers.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1994
- HeadquartersParis, France
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What Upperside Conferences does
Upperside Conferences is the brand name of Upper Side Sarl, a privately held French events producer founded in 1994 in Paris by Rémi Scavénius and Michel Gosse. The company specializes in high-level technical conferences for the IP networking, cloud, AI infrastructure, optical transport, cybersecurity, and quantum communications ecosystems. Its 2027 portfolio comprises three co-located events at the Palais des Congrès de Paris in April: the 28th edition of the Upperside World Congress (the flagship gathering for infrastructure leaders, cloud providers, telecom operators, and technology innovators), the 4th edition of the Quantum Networks Summit (focused on quantum communications, photonics, and quantum-safe networks), and the 2nd edition of the QSECDEF World Symposium (quantum security for defence). Content is curated by an independent scientific committee to prevent the events from becoming vendor promotional platforms.
The company operates a 1-10 employee founder-led model with no external funding, parent company, or disclosed subsidiaries. Revenue is generated through three streams: multi-tiered sponsorship packages (Diamond, Platinum, Gold, Silver, Bronze) that bundle exhibition space with delegate passes, exhibition booth rentals in various footprints, and conference pass sales. Sponsorship contracts are multi-year and quote-based. Operational infrastructure is intentionally lean: the venue partnership with Palais des Congrès de Paris is core to the business model, while ancillary partnerships cover hotel booking (Accor), web hosting (OVH), and SSL (Sectigo).
Upperside Conferences' go-to-market is event-driven, reaching enterprise buyers through direct sponsorship sales, call-for-papers outreach, speaker recruitment, and a LinkedIn- and newsletter-led awareness channel. The 2027 event portfolio attracts 1050+ participants from 60+ countries and 300+ companies at the UWC alone, with named sponsors including Cisco (Diamond), DriveNets (Bronze), Nokia, Huawei, Viavi Solutions, and Numana (Quantum Networks Summit).
Upperside Conferences firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Upperside Conferences
- Legal name
- Upper Side Sarl
- Website
- https://uppersideconferences.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1994
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Short description
- Upperside Conferences is a Paris-based independent event producer, founded 1994, organizing annual technical conferences on IP networking, cloud, AI infrastructure, optical transport, and quantum communications for telecom operators, hyperscalers, vendors, and researchers.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Upperside Conferences industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Business Conference and Exhibition Services
- NAICS
- Convention and Trade Show Organizers (56192), Convention and Trade Show Organizers (561920)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Technology & Developer Conferences (MPAGAGAE)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Academic & Scientific Conferences (MPAGAGAD), Association & Society Conference Management (Nonprofit, Professional Bodies) (THAHACAA)
Keywords
Where Upperside Conferences is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Paris
- HQ country
- France
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices1 record
Markets served
Upperside Conferences business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Operations, Marketing or Sales, Personnel, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Others
Revenue model
- Conference Registration & Event Passes: Revenue generated from delegate passes for conference attendance, including various pass types such as Congress passes, Exhibition passes, and combined UWC + Quantum Networks passes.
- Sponsorship Packages: Multi-tiered sponsorship packages (Diamond, Platinum, Gold, Silver, Bronze) offering varying levels of visibility including website/app placement, booth space, event passes, and promotional materials.
- Exhibition Booth Rental: Revenue from exhibition booth rental at events, with various booth sizes including 10m², 12m², 9m², 6m², and 4.5m² meeting pods.
- Sponsoring & Exhibition Packages: Package deals combining exhibition booths with conference passes for exhibitors and sponsors.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| One time/ perpetual license | Multi-year contract | Diamond Sponsorship - Premium visibility with largest exhibition space |
| One time/ perpetual license | Multi-year contract | Platinum Sponsorship - High visibility with ready-made booth |
| One time/ perpetual license | Multi-year contract | Gold Sponsorship - Medium visibility with ready-made booth |
| One time/ perpetual license | Multi-year contract | Silver Sponsorship - Entry-level with ready-made booth |
| One time/ perpetual license | Multi-year contract | Bronze Sponsorship - Basic sponsorship tier |
| One time/ perpetual license | Multi-year contract | Quantum Networks Summit Platinum Sponsorship |
| One time/ perpetual license | Multi-year contract | Quantum Networks Summit Gold Sponsorship |
| One time/ perpetual license | Multi-year contract | Quantum Networks Summit Silver Sponsorship |
| One time/ perpetual license | Multi-year contract | Quantum Networks Summit Bronze Sponsorship |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels4 records
Marketing channels3 records
Upperside Conferences product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Upperside Conferences produces high-level technical conferences and exhibitions for the IP networking, cloud, AI, optical and quantum networking ecosystem. The company organizes flagship events including the Upperside World Congress (28th edition, 2027), the Quantum Networks Summit (4th edition, 2027), and the QSECDEF World Symposium (2nd edition, 2027), held at the Palais des Congrès de Paris. Revenue is generated through tiered sponsorship packages, exhibition booth rentals, and conference delegate passes sold to telecom operators, cloud providers, technology vendors, and research organizations.
Product overview
Upperside Conferences is an independent events, exhibitions and conferences producer specializing in technical events for the IP networking and digital infrastructure ecosystem. The company organizes three major annual conferences: the Upperside World Congress (28th edition in 2027), which serves as the primary gathering for infrastructure leaders, cloud providers, telecom operators and technology innovators; the Quantum Networks Summit (4th edition in 2027), focused on quantum communications, photonics and secure networks; and the Quantum Security Defence Symposium (2nd edition in 2027), addressing quantum security for defence applications. All events are held at the Palais des Congrès de Paris in April 2027.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Upperside World Congress: The annual gathering of infrastructure leaders, cloud providers, telecom operators and technology innovators. 28th edition in 2027, focusing on AI infrastructure, cloud networking, and telecom technologies.
- Quantum Networks Summit
- Quantum Security Defence Symposium (QSECDEF)
Products and services
- Upperside World Congress 2027 Annual gathering of infrastructure leaders, cloud providers, telecom operators and technology innovators covering AI data center interconnects, closed-loop automation, autonomous networks, SRv6, IP/optical networking, and 5G/6G edge technologies. Sells Congress passes, Exhibition passes, and tiered sponsorship packages (Diamond through Bronze) to enterprise attendees.
- Quantum Networks Summit 2027 Leading international forum dedicated to quantum communications, quantum security and the future of network infrastructures. Brings together industry, research organizations, telecom operators, technology vendors and public institutions. Sells Quantum Networks passes and tiered sponsorship packages (Platinum, Gold, Silver, Bronze) to enterprise attendees.
- Quantum Security Defence Symposium 2027 (QSECDEF) Specialized symposium addressing quantum security for defence applications, targeting organizations evaluating quantum-safe security architectures. The 2nd edition event takes place alongside the Upperside World Congress and Quantum Networks Summit.
Companies that use Upperside Conferences
Customer profileNamed customers6 records
Segments5 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Upperside Conferences technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Upperside Conferences partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Two partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.
- Accor Group HotelsminorAccor Group Hotels is the partner for hotel room reservations through the Upperside Conferences website for conference attendees.
- Palais des Congrès de PariscorePalais des Congrès de Paris is the venue partner hosting all Upperside events including exhibitions, conferences, lunches, sponsor meetings, interop events, and social events on level 3.
Scale indicators4 records
Recent moves5 records
Expansion highlights4 records
Upperside Conferences competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- TM Forum: TM Forum runs global telecom industry events (incl. Digital Transformation World) and serves operators and vendors on network automation topics. Comparable as an operator-vendor focused conference organizer with deep telecom technical content.
- OFC (Optical Fiber Conference): OFC is the flagship optical networking and fiber conference co-sponsored by IEEE and OSA. Comparable as a globally significant IP/optical networking event Upperside's UWC content partially overlaps with.
- Layer123 (now part of Informa): Organizes network transformation, SDN/NFV, and transport networking congresses attended by operators and vendors. Closest direct competitor to Upperside on IP/optical networking content.
- Total Telecom: Total Telecom produces events and media for the global telecom industry, including events for operators and infrastructure providers. Comparable as a B2B events business targeting telecom operators.
- Capacity Media: Capacity Media organizes telecom carrier and wholesale conferences and publishes related news. Directly comparable as a focused B2B events/media business serving telecom carrier audiences.
- Light Reading: Light Reading is a media and events business covering the global telecom industry with a focus on operator networks. Comparable as a B2B publishing-plus-events business targeting telecom infrastructure buyers.
- ITW (International Telecoms Week): ITW is a major annual wholesale telecom conference. Comparable as a large enterprise-focused telecom gathering that competes for operator and infrastructure sponsorship budgets.
Emerging players
- IEEE Communications Society: IEEE ComSoc organizes ICC, GLOBECOM, and other academic/technical telecom conferences. Comparable as a curator of technical, scientific-committee-driven networking events targeting a similar technical audience.
Broad incumbents
- Informa Tech (Informa PLC): Informa owns a large portfolio of tech and telecom events (including MWC, Light Reading, and Layer123). Comparable as a broad incumbent events conglomerate with overlapping IP/optical event properties.
- GSMA (Mobile World Congress): GSMA organizes MWC, the world's largest telecom industry event. Comparable as a higher-profile telecom event organizer competing for the same operator and vendor sponsorship dollars. Broader and at much larger scale.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Upperside Conferences social profiles
Digital presenceUpperside Conferences financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Upperside Conferences leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles2 records
Upperside Conferences funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Upperside Conferences M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Upperside Conferences
What does Upperside Conferences do?
Upperside Conferences produces high-level technical conferences and exhibitions for the IP networking, cloud, AI, optical and quantum networking ecosystem. The company organizes flagship events including the Upperside World Congress (28th edition, 2027), the Quantum Networks Summit (4th edition, 2027), and the QSECDEF World Symposium (2nd edition, 2027), held at the Palais des Congrès de Paris. Revenue is generated through tiered sponsorship packages, exhibition booth rentals, and conference delegate passes sold to telecom operators, cloud providers, technology vendors, and research organizations.
Is Upperside Conferences a public or private company?
Upperside Conferences is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Upperside Conferences founded?
Upperside Conferences was founded in 1994. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is Upperside Conferences based?
Upperside Conferences is headquartered in Paris, France, in the Europe region.
How does Upperside Conferences make money?
Four revenue lines are on record. Conference Registration & Event Passes are the primary driver. The others are sponsorship Packages, exhibition Booth Rental and sponsoring & Exhibition Packages.
Who are Upperside Conferences's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are TM Forum, OFC (Optical Fiber Conference), Layer123 (now part of Informa), Total Telecom, Capacity Media, Light Reading and ITW (International Telecoms Week). IEEE Communications Society is listed as an emerging player. Broad incumbents are Informa Tech (Informa PLC) and GSMA (Mobile World Congress).
Does Upperside Conferences have an API?
No public API is recorded for Upperside Conferences.
What industry is Upperside Conferences in?
Upperside Conferences's product category is Business Conference and Exhibition Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is MPAGAGAE, Technology & Developer Conferences, with a secondary code of MPAGAGAD, Academic & Scientific Conferences. Its NAICS code is 56192.