The future of personalised digital activations and gamification: Ken Madden on the Magic Badge and where on-site identity is heading

Name: Event Tech Live London 2026
Start: 2026-11-11T09:00:00+00:00
End: 2026-11-12T17:00:00+00:00
Location: Excel London

Adam Parry19 April 2026

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A Presentation on how secure digital credentials, NFC, QR and gamified attendee environments are redefining on-site identity, moderated by the CEO of the company that built the first example of it.

By Adam Parry | Published 18 April 2026 | Last updated 18 April 2026

Session	The Future Of Personalised Digital Activations And Gamification
Format	Presentation
Date	Wednesday 12 November 2025
Stage	Tech, Tools & Tactics Stage
Venue	Excel London
Category	Digital Credentials, Gamification and Attendee Identity

What was covered in this session?

Ken Madden of George P. Johnson, moderated by Eventbase Co-Founder and CEO Jeff Sinclair, worked through the production story behind Eventbase Magic Badge (described as the first secure digital credential of its kind), the combination of NFC and QR codes in on-site workflows, the Magic Tap gamified environment, the Eventbase Activate product, and production experience from CES, Dreamforce and Cisco Live.

Magic Badge: the first secure digital credential for live events
NFC plus QR: why both are needed in a practical on-site workflow
Magic Tap: a gamified attendee environment built on the credential
Eventbase Activate: the product layer sitting above the credential
CES, Dreamforce and Cisco Live: production at congress scale
Where attendee identity is heading: portable, persistent, cross-event

What are the three key takeaways?

Three ideas carried the weight of Ken’s session. Each one is a practical framework, not a headline, and each one maps onto a decision event teams are already having.

1. The digital credential is becoming the primary on-site identity layer

Madden and Sinclair were direct that physical badges are losing ground. Magic Badge exists because organisers need an attendee identity that is secure enough to trust for access control, rich enough to carry preferences and history, and portable enough to work across sessions, stands and activations. The shift is not about removing the lanyard, it is about putting a real identity behind it.

2. NFC and QR are complementary, not competing

The production argument was that NFC handles the high-trust actions (access, purchase, credential exchange) while QR handles the low-friction actions (content access, voting, registration on the go). Choosing one over the other is a false trade. The Magic Badge combines both because the event workflows that matter at congress scale use both, often in the same interaction.

3. Gamification works when it sits on a real identity, not a throwaway one

Magic Tap and similar gamified environments produce real behavioural data only when the identity underneath is real. Anonymous session codes produce noise. A secure credential tied to the attendee produces signal: what sessions they chose, which sponsors they engaged with, which activations they returned to. Madden’s operational point: the game layer only earns its keep when the identity layer is serious.

Where does this session fit in the Event Tech Live 2025 content map?

This session sits in the Digital Credentials, Gamification and Attendee Identity stream of Event Tech Live 2025. It connects to the broader themes mapped in the Event Tech Insights Report 2025 and the ongoing AI in Events research on eventtechlive.com.

Primary category	Digital Credentials, Gamification and Attendee Identity
Session format	Presentation
Stage	Tech, Tools & Tactics Stage
Part of	Event Tech Live London 2025, 12-13 November 2025, Excel London

How does this session relate to the Event Tech Insights Report 2025?

Event Tech Live registration data feeds directly into the Event Tech Insights Report 2025, published on the Event Tech Live research hub. This session is one of the data points that shaped the report’s view of the market.

Read the full report: Event Tech Insights Report 2025.

Who is Ken Madden?

Ken Madden is Senior Vice President, Head of Technology and Innovation at George P. Johnson Experience Marketing.

Ken Madden is Senior Vice President and Head of Technology and Innovation at George P. Johnson Experience Marketing. He works on the production reality behind digital credentials and gamified attendee experiences at congress scale.

Who is Jeff Sinclair?

Jeff Sinclair is Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Moderator at Eventbase.

Jeff Sinclair is Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Eventbase, moderating this session. Eventbase builds the Magic Badge digital credential and related attendee identity products used at CES, Dreamforce and Cisco Live.

Where can I watch the full session?

The full The Future Of Personalised Digital Activations And Gamification session was recorded at Event Tech Live London 2025 and is available on demand. The direct link below opens the session video; the library link lists every session from the show.

Watch this session: fsmevents.uk/etl/2025/watch/the-future-of-personalised-digital-activations-and-gamification.

Full on-demand library: eventtechlive.com/on-demand.

Can I download an AI-generated summary of this session?

An AI-generated summary of this session, produced in partnership with Voxo, is available for download on the Event Tech Live AI summaries page alongside every other session from the show.

Download the summary: eventtechlive.com/ai-summaries. Powered by Voxo.

What other Event Tech Live research connects to this session?

This session sits alongside the flagship research on the Event Tech Live hub. The links below give direct access to the report, the AI research and the full research category.

Frequently asked questions

What is Eventbase Magic Badge?

Magic Badge is Eventbase’s digital credential product, described by Sinclair as the first secure credential of its kind built for live events. It works as the attendee’s on-site identity: access control, session check-in, stand interactions, content access and purchase are all handled through the one credential rather than separate tokens.

Why are both NFC and QR used together?

Because they solve different problems. NFC carries the high-trust interactions (access, payment, credential exchange) where security matters. QR handles low-friction interactions (content access, voting, on-the-move registration) where speed matters. Congress-scale event workflows use both, often in the same journey, and the Magic Badge is built to support both rather than force a choice.

What is Magic Tap?

Magic Tap is the gamified attendee environment Eventbase builds on top of the Magic Badge credential. Attendees tap through sponsor activations, sessions and experiences, collecting behavioural data the organiser can use for matchmaking, sponsor reporting and follow-up. The game layer is the attendee-facing mechanic; the data layer underneath is the commercial product.

At what scale of event has this been deployed?

CES, Dreamforce and Cisco Live were the reference deployments discussed. Each sits at congress scale with tens of thousands of attendees and high production-sensitivity. Madden’s point in citing them was that the credential layer is no longer a pilot technology at niche events; it has been tested at the scale and the security profile of the largest tech conferences in the world.

Who delivered this Presentation at Event Tech Live London 2025?

Ken Madden, Senior Vice President and Head of Technology and Innovation at George P. Johnson Experience Marketing, moderated by Jeff Sinclair, Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Eventbase. The Presentation was on the Tech, Tools and Tactics Stage on Wednesday 12 November 2025.

How should I cite this session?

Ken Madden, Jeff Sinclair. (Wednesday 12 November 2025). The Future Of Personalised Digital Activations And Gamification. Event Tech Live London 2025, Excel London. Retrieved from https://eventtechlive.com/category/research/

About the author

Adam Parry is the founder of Event Tech Live and the Event Technology Awards. He has spent more than a decade covering the event technology industry as a writer, researcher and organiser, with a focus on practical application of emerging technology in live events.

Update log

18 April 2026: Page published as part of the Event Tech Live London 2025 session recap series.

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