For 12 years now, the greatest show in the gaming calendar has been growing along with the industry's remarkable explosion but its creators have announced plans to shrink it back to more manageable proportions.
The Entertainment and Software Association (ESA) has announced plans not only to reduce the size of Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) but also to host it in July rather than May. According to ESA these changes will take place in order to ...better address the needs of today's global computer and video game industry, since the ...2007 Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3Expo) is evolving into a more intimate event focused on targeted, personalized meetings and activities...
ESA justifies this change as a result of the success of the industry. According to Douglas Lowenstein, President of the ESA, E3 was setup at a time when gaming was just beginning to make it as a mainstream market. The first E3 show in 1995 saw the release of SEGA's Saturn, Nintendo's Virtual Boy while an outsider introduced its new gaming product, which many attendees scoffed at, the PlayStation. Back then the need was to create a big show that would build enthusiasm around the products on offer and secure orders for the holiday season. As the industry has grown a variety of other shows have been established that carry out the same function and so E3 needs to focus on the industry insiders, offering them a more intimate program, including higher quality, more personal dialogue with the worldwide media, developers, retailers and other key industry audiences.
The new E3Expo will take shape over the next several months. As currently envisioned, it will still take place in Los Angeles, described by ESA as a great and supportive partner helping to build E3. It will focus on press events and small meetings with media, retail, development, and other key sectors. While there will be opportunities for game demonstrations, E3Expo 2007 will not feature the large trade show environment of previous years.
Additionally, the evolution of the video game industry into a vibrant and expanding global market has led to the creation of major events in different regions, such as the Games Convention in Leipzig, the Tokyo Game Show, and company-specific events held by Sony, Nintendo, Microsoft, and others around the world. As a result, Lowenstein said, It is no longer necessary or efficient to have a single industry 'mega-show'. By refocusing on a highly-targeted event, we think we can do a better job serving our members and the industry as a whole, and our members are energized about creating this new E3.
Additional details about the new E3Expo event will be forthcoming in the next few months.
