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E3 2009 postmortem with ESA CEO Mike Gallagher
ESA CEO Mike Gallagher's first "real" E3 was a success. We briefly spoke with him on the concourse from the South to West Hall of the Los Angeles Convention Center on the last day of the show, but with some more time to decompress and receive feedback, it seemed like the right time to circle back around and see if he was still feeling good about how things went. We asked the executive about how the post-show feedback is going, the chance of loosening up the attendance a little more and if there are any plans yet to make the show public -- oh yeah, and is Activision coming back to the ESA? Joystiq: On the last day of E3 2009 we had a quick chat in the hallway and you stated that the feedback you'd received was extremely positive and the show floor was "full but still navigable." Now that you've had a week to decompress and receive more feedback, what's your current take on the show? Mike Gallagher: I have a combination of pride and excitement right now. We set out to reflect and amplify to the world our industry's growth, energy, and vitality and I am incredibly proud we achieved that goal. I am also filled with excitement over the high-impact news announced at the E3 Expo by the companies that make up the industry. We have a lot of great titles to look forward to this year, along with some pretty exciting hardware previews and announcements. This is the golden age of computer and video games. I say that because more than ever before, we are seeing new interfaces, new distribution models to consumers, and new IP that will reenergize our industry's growth as the year continues. And this growth and continued innovation and creativity comes not at the end of a console cycle, but rather when developers are still harnessing the full processing power of the current systems, leading us to believe that games will continue their upward path of compelling storylines, engaging characters, and epic visuals. The challenge for us at the ESA now is two-fold. One, continue build on the momentum created by the E3 Expo and educate new market segments about our industry's cultural and economic significance, but also to begin planning for the 2010 E3 Expo.
E3 2010 scheduled for June 15-17; 2009 had 41,000 attendees
The ESA just announced that E3 2010 is all set for June 15-17. The organization stated that this year's seemingly successful show had more than 41,000 attendees from 78 countries and 216 exhibitors. The company feels the new show met the needs of exhibitors and attendees.During an impromptu run-in with ESA CEO Michael Gallagher right before the announcement was made, we asked him how he felt his first "real E3" went. He expressed that the feedback has been overwhelmingly positive, that the show floor was "full but still navigable." To him, the strongest sign that various levels of attendees were comfortable with this year's show is that company CEOs were roaming the show floor.
Joystiq interviews ESA president about E3 2009
Just a few minutes ago we got off the phone with ESA president and CEO Mike Gallagher. We had 10 minutes to ask our list of questions about today's announcement that E3 2009 would return to the show's over-the-top roots. We covered a range of topics: from booth babes to how this new show will avoid the pitfalls that brought us the downsized E3 in the first place. This will be Gallagher's first time being in charge of a "real E3" since taking over for Doug Lowenstein two years ago.Joystiq: If you had to give E3 2009 a six word or less tag line, what would it be? We went with "The b*tch is back" this afternoon, but what's yours?Mike Gallagher: The must attend event of 2009What is the anticipated attendance? Is there a cap?MG: No cap, we have expectations that it'll be higher than the previous two years. It could be in the neighborhood of 40,000 or more. We're not focused on the turn of the turnstiles, but the success of the event.Is it out of the realm of possibility that we'll still see public dates announced later?MG: I wouldn't expect that.
Professor Noel Gallagher gives lecture on game violence
Rock star and noted media violence expert Noel Gallagher used a recent public appearance to speak out against the influence of violent video games, according to the BBC. While accepting an award at London's Silver Clef Music Awards, Professor Emeritus Gallagher mentioned games as one possible cause for the prevalence of youth-oriented knife violence throughout England."People say it's through violent video games and I guess that's got something to do with it," said Gallagher, whose wide-ranging, cross-cultural sociological studies on the relationship between media exposure and real-world violence have changed the way we all look at this complex problem. "If kids are sitting up all night smoking super skunk [cannabis] and they come so desensitised [sic] to crime because they're playing these video games, it's really, really scary," he added while adjusting the Amalfi Prize hanging around his neck.Gallagher is the best-selling author of Burning the Razor's Edge: How Super-Skunk Smoking and Our Knife-Obsessed Media Landscape are Turning Our Kids to Crime.[Thanks, GunForHire]
Former MPAA PR man Rich Taylor joins the ESA
The ESA has a new head PR man, and he comes with some credentials. Rich Taylor is the new senior vp of communications and research at the ESA. Taylor was previously the head of the Motion Picture Association of America's communications department under former president Jack Valenti. The MPAA is well known for creating a very solid shield for the movie industry with its rating system and behind-the-scenes maneuvers.Taylor's MPAA experience will probably serve him quite well during those video game culture war flare-ups. It should also be noted that the man went from the movie industry to the video game industry -- oh how times are changing. The funny thing about Taylor's job, if he's doing it right, you'll hardly hear from him or uppity politicians in the press.[Via GamePolitics]
ESA releases video game economics study
An economic study commissioned by the Entertainment Software Association (ESA) found the industry continues to outpace US economic growth, but is that really that hard these days? The report titled Video Games in the 21st Century: Economic Contributions of the US Entertainment Software Industry found between 2003 - '06 the industry grew 17% annually, while the US economy grew 4%. The shocker in the report is that for the 24,000 individuals employed in the US, the average salary was $92,300 in '06.There a lot of big numbers with billions attached to them speaking of the industry's economic impact on various states. California is currently the largest employer of industry professionals with 40% of the industry's population and a $1.7 billion contribution to the Cali economy. Of course, Washington state came in second with Microsoft and Nintendo's HQs located there. We're a little more curious about the mode salary rather than the mean. The $92,300 sounds peachy, but we're pretty sure that high-level executives screw up the average. We're guessing the quality assurance ground troops don't eat porterhouse every night and burn Benjamins on the weekends for fun.
ESA's Gallagher spends time gaming with Washington Post
It's fun to watch Mike Gallagher, the still-new head of the ESA, as he evolves into his position slowly but surely. His image has transitioned from total noob, to hired gun, to softening up a bit and gaming with The Washington Post. If nothing else his image seems to be on the right track to represent the industry and have his big coming out at next year's E3.The WaPo piece paints Gallagher as a man who brings a Nintendo DS to Capitol Hill meetings to show lawmakers games that are actually more representative of the industry. He also apparently got a vanity plate from his children for Father's Day that says: GAME DAD. Robbie Bach, Microsoft entertainment division president, who is on the ESA board, gets a quote in the piece saying that Gallagher was chosen because he "games and understands the space." Then the WaPo writer and Gallagher have a gaming competition that ends in a draw. Gallagher continues to build a solid image that shows that he's political, but also understands "the gamer."And we really need a new photo of this guy. This photo of him from the National Telecommunications and Information Administration is *snore* and we're done using the Pokémon one. Oh, and we sure as heck ain't using the WaPo picture of Gallagher walking around with a PS3 like a boombox on his shoulder. Time for some respectable glamour shots with the ESA logo in the background -- maybe the ESA can hire Annie Liebovitz, industry should be able to afford their spokesman some good portrait shots..[Via GamePolitics]
New ESA prez Mike Gallagher speaks
Information on new Entertainment Software Association president Mike Gallagher has been slim -- very slim. The new lead of the industry's lobbying group has been more behind-the-scenes compared to predecessor Doug Lowenstein. Gallagher hasn't taken the training wheels off yet with his new job and didn't even bother having the annual opening speech kicking off E3 like Lowenstein would have. This was always an opportunity to hear what was going on with the industry and the ESA, hear Lowenstein's thoughts and afterward he'd be open to questions. An interview with GameDaily, which relates an unabridged version of Gallagher compared to his NY Times piece, gives a little insight into why the shift -- whether intentional or not, Gallagher comes off as a hired gun more than a man invested in the industry -- it's all politics. But maybe that's the point.Gallagher says his early experience so far is like "taking a drink of water from a fire hose." The interview sounds like he's still going through a learning curve and grasping the basics of the industry, depending on staff (one of whom is ready to leave) and asking former ESA pres. Doug Lowenstein for advice. He says he's been meeting with politicians on Capital Hill, "I'm drawing a much deeper picture of what the policymakers' view of our industry is and that's important because that's one of the key audiences that we need to impact at ESA ... understanding 'where are they right now?' and 'how do we move them to where they're meeting the goal of creating a positive policy environment for the growth of video games?'" Maybe it is best that Gallagher learns what he's doing before coming out. We're quite aware of the ESA doing many things behind the scenes in regards to recent issues and scandals, but it's still not clear if that's through Gallagher's leadership or the trained staff Lowenstein left behind.
