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By Daniel Davidson

South by Southwest is a festival held in Austin, Texas every year in the month of March and has been doing so since 1987.  The festival has grown into a Mecca of innovation and creativity.  South by Southwest is comprised of music, film, and interactive festivals and conferences.  Although I would be more interested in the music festival which has featured the likes of the Foo Fighters and gave a start to that baby faced, father reminding, man we call John Mayer, the interactive part of the festival attracts nearly 11,000 registrants.

This year, the Director of the USPTO was one of the key-note speakers at the conference.  According to his remarks, he was excited to be there and excited about what SXSW has brought to the next generation of creators in this country.  He was even witty enough to give the conference a nick name of his own- “Now some might be inclined to call this a “Hipster’s Haven” or “Geek Spring Break”—but I call it the next generation of job growth.”  Well played Director.  In his remarks, it seemed as though he was pleased to see opportunity for the up and comers, the independent entrepreneurs, through funding from the Department of Commerce and Small Business Administration. You can read his remarks here.

If you are an inventor or innovator and want exposure it seems that SXSW could be a heck of a spring break get away.  It might be worth checking out next year and, from its continued growth, could present limitless opportunity.  Also, don’t forget to look into government grants for you intellects.  Hey, maybe you could even see the next big performer or film director while you’re at it.