E3MediaFestival
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Nintendo commits to next year's Min-E3
After punching out a rampaging E3 hopped up on sex, drugs and caffeine and sending it to conference rehab, the ESA is already preparing plans to welcome a more discreet and otherwise polite press gathering in 2007. The change has garnered much discussion, with one of the central points revolving around the kind of support the major industry players will provide to a significantly smaller event.According to Gamesindustry.biz, Nintendo is the first of the major three platform holders to confirm involvement with next year's Min-E3, though the level of said involvement is still up in the air. A couple of Super Mario Galaxy posters on the wall of a barren hotel room would likely fail to generate the massive lines Nintendo enjoyed at the last E3, though it certainly would help alleviate the problem of getting trampled by an army of wand-waving nerds (always a plus).Microsoft and Sony have been less decisive in their response, though it should only be a matter of time before they reveal intentions to join the officially dubbed "E3 Media Festival" or simply bulldoze the proceedings with conferences of their own. [Via Nintendo Wii Fanboy]
New E3 gets a new name: E3 Media Festival
Speaking to the Wall St. Journal, ESA head honcho Doug Lowenstein said that E3 will now be called the "E3 Media Festival." And, instead of hordes of fans and press attending, the event could now cater to around 5,000 (we're assuming big press only). Also, no more convention center:The smaller version, tentatively titled the E3 Media Festival, could occupy suites and conference rooms at two Los Angeles hotels with a target attendance of about 5,000, said Doug Lowenstein, president of the ESA, which voted to make the change Wednesday.Apparently, independent events or private meetings will be the way to go for most publishers from here on out. The Journal quotes an EA spokesperson as saying, "The industry has gotten to a place where we can afford to have more-intimate or more-private meetings in different types of settings."[Via Next Generation]
