Metaverse and NFT hype lure marketers back to SXSW

The mood heading into SXSW is certainly different than two years ago, when the Austin-based tech and music festival was in free-fall amid the start of COVID-19 lockdowns. Ad executives appear eager to dust off their boots and kick up their heels for the gathering, set for March 11-20. But even as there is momentum for in-person festivities, the virtual interactions that defined pandemic life also altered the future of SXSW, permanently.