GamePro Expo Show To Make LA Debut In 2007

According to information disseminated by the LA Convention and Visitors Bureau, tech publisher and events company IDG is planning to debut the E3-rivaling GamePro Expo at the Los Angeles Convention Center, on October 18, 19, and 20, 2007. Consumer site GameSpot, which broke the news, noted that IDG is apparently expecting 30,000 visitors for this first version of the show, which has trade show, consumer, and game competition components, and is described as "what we knew as E3" by the LA Visitors Bureau. The show, which is apparently officially endorsed by the ESA, will take place separately to the trade association's own downsized, industry-specific E3 Media & Business Summit, which is due to take place from July 11-13, 2007, in Santa Monica, California. IDG, which recently hired key E3 show organizer and ESA executive Mary Dolaher, currently runs consumer U.S. game magazine GamePro and website Games.net via its IDG Entertainment division, and so has chosen to name the show after its most notable video game brand. However, the Los Angeles Convention Center setting and ESA approval are simply the first step on the road for the IDG-backed convention, which will need to attract both publishers and consumers to its offering much closer to the crucial holiday gaming season.