PAX attendees,
We thought you should know about an important and disturbing development for this year's show. As many of you know, last year Pegasus Publishing had two booths at PAX08 and sold pretty much every t-shirt we had brought with us, down to the bare tables. Folks told us time and time again how very happy they were that we were there to take their money, because there simply weren't very many booths at the show where one COULD spend money. We had a fantastic (if very busy) show, and made plans to have two separate booths at PAX09, on opposite sides of the hall, so that you the consumer would have twice as many choices and even more ways to spend your hard-earned dollars. PAX was one of the best cons we did in '08, and we immediately made plans to make PAX09 even bigger and better for everyone.
Imagine our surprise when we were told this morning by the management company that now runs PAX: "we cannot grant you space at this year’s PAX Expo. We have a very limited amount of booth space and the decision was made by PAX management to allow only true gaming companies the ability to exhibit at PAX. That means companies with products considered ancillary, such as your gamer merchandise, will not be getting space this year. This move is in no way personal and there are many other companies affected by this, including companies like yourself who have exhibited in the past. "
Further, it was explained us thus: "...as part of our relationship with Penny Arcade, they have the ability to control exhibitor content. They must approve any and all companies who exhibit. The decision has been made to protect the integrity of the show by keeping it focused on the games and the products they are played on and there is nothing that I can do about it. No exceptions are to be made...hopefully one day we will gain more space and make PAX a big blowout that can contain merchandise, educational facilities, start-up indies, consumables, etc…"
This is no small matter to Pegasus. We had paid a considerable sum in advance for our PAX09 booths; we had to make arrangements to shrink our presence at DragonCon that same weekend in order to be in Seattle; we've made arrangements to order extra stock, fly in extra staff, we even paid in advance for our booths at the Boston PAX show - all of which is being refunded to "protect the integrity of the show." We are unsure who else has been affected by this decision, but according to this email every SINGLE company that took your money at PAX08 will not be at PAX09, in order to make room for Yet More Video Game Companies.
Is this really what you, the PAX attendees, want to see?
We ask that you consider this, and speak your mind to the Penny Arcade staff, who have clearly made this decision without considering their attendees and what they want out of the show. If we and all other companies like us are excluded from PAX, what's the point of paying $50 to enter the exhibit hall in the first place? You folks pay to come see what's new and interesting in ALL of the gaming world, not just video and console games. Wouldn't it be nice to see what new gamer or geek-related t-shirts are new and popular as well, to say nothing of actual games, DVDs, other clothing, anime...pretty much anything? If so, you might want to consider contacting the Penny Arcade staff and letting them know how you feel about this decision.
Yours,
Pegasus Publishing
Trenton, TX
www.pegasuspublishing.com
Posts
I don't think attacking them in the forums is a great solution to your problem.
It appears you didn't read the quoted portions of the email they said they got. :P
That you ignored. Yes. :P
If this is true I probably will not bother much with it. But I'm not too worried about it. I go for the people
And I am personally annoyed that the management company would not bother AT LEAST to tell the vendors they aren't invited this year until after they've made all their commitments. And payments. Besides, we want merch, period. If you're not going to host them on the exhibition floor, fine, but make space somewhere else.
Um...no? You don't speak for everyone, and I could care less about merch. Game demos > merch.
I do agree it sucks to have them pay and get told so late, but I think we should reserve the anger until after we get the whole picture.
+1
Yes. It is.
PAX, for me, was and is an opportunity to see and play games that are unreleased, go to panels and see people who are passionate about games talk about them intelligently, and to socialise with like-minded people. I do not fly halfway across the world to buy merchandise; I can do that at home.
I'm actually a little insulted that you consider selling merchandise to be an integral part of what PAX is about. It isn't. The insinuation that without the opportunity to purchase your products, it's not worth paying the price of admission, is ludicrous.
@gamefacts - Totally and utterly true gaming facts on the regular!
Clearly the decision has been made to eliminate ALL "merch" vendors from the hall, and make PAX nothing but a show of games. Sure, it's their show, they can do what they want with it...but it's monumentally unfair to not only us, but the other exhibitors who tied up thousands in anticipation of this show, only to be cut off 90 days out - to say nothing of you, the attendees, who spend a LOT of money on a ticket that will get you into a hall full of...well, not much, really, if there's nowhere to spend your money.
Focusing the show on games and what they're played upon is all well and good, but don't those of you who play games also wear shirts? And didn't you prove that you wanted more of what we offer last year?
As for expressing our concerns on this forum, perhaps you know a better place to address PAX attendees directly?
Trenton, TX
www.pegasuspublishing.com
Well if the vendors are selling out every year then I'm not really speaking for the minority am I? And I said annoyed, not angry. I'm not angry.
Your opinion is duly noted, and we respect that. Clearly not every single soul out of 50K+ will feel the same way you do, or we do, and that's just the way it should be.
But consider this: in the two and a half days that the hall was open last year, a vast majority of those 50K+ visited our booth (perhaps even you did), bought ALL our stuff (and we had a very heavily stocked booth), placed mail orders for shirts that ran out of stock, AND we saw a huge spike in online orders immediately following the show. I hardly think we're the only exhibitor who can say the same thing.
Now, eliminate not only our two tables of shirts, but EVERY OTHER place where you can buy something from PAX. The ONLY merch you'll be able to buy is PAX merch, and they ran out of that quicker last year than we ran out of our own stuff. Suddenly the exhibitor hall turns into E3 Lite, and while that's great for some, what about those who clearly came to pick up some cool new gear? What you feel is insulting and ludicrous may be exactly the OPPOSITE way others feel, but unless we stand up and let everyone know what's going on, the only way you WOULD know is if you bought a ticket and got to the show floor. SO let me ask you this: if the Penny Arcade staff turned around and eliminated all the video game companies from the hall, and packed it with merch sellers like us, and then didn't tell you about it well in advance, how angry/insulted would YOU feel?
Trenton, TX
www.pegasuspublishing.com
I am OK with PAX being nothing but a show of games. THAT is why I bought my ticket.
I don't need somewhere else to spend my money. I can do it online before and after the show.
This is a great place to address pax attendees, but I would like to hear an official PAX response rather than just trusting your post. I'd like both sides of the story, though I do agree it was unfair to you to cut it off if you have paid already.
Are you for real? The price of admission number one is dirt cheap. One of the reasons I have been wanting to attend PAX for so long is because I don't have the commercial pressure to buy crap shoved in my face every two seconds.
My impression of PAX (now mind you this is the first one I have actually had the chance to attend, however I have heard a lot of stories) is for people to come together, geek out, play games, make friends, listen to people share their Geek stories with no marketing pressure that is present on most Cons.
Again, are you for real?
/rant
And that's great! You are one of fifty thousand. Some large percentage of the rest, however, obviously came to the show looking to burn through some hard-earned quatloos, otherwise our sales would have been dismal and we would have refused to prepay in advance for this year's show. And yes, our products are obviously available online, but if there was no need/demand for our products at this particular show, we wouldn't have had record sales there - hence my obvious desire to return :-)
As for an official response, I'm right there with ya, brother. We've been waiting for some form of reply from the Penny Arcade staff all day. So far, nothing.
Trenton, TX
www.pegasuspublishing.com
Looking at other responses to this thread, I'd say I'm much more than one out of fifty-thousand.
There is a difference between convenient spending, and wanting to spend.
I could do without vendors or with vendors. If you guys are there, cool. If not, whatever.
I am sorry that you have come to this inconvenience though, and I do hope you get an response from Penny-Arcade.
Absolutely I'm for real. Our company exhibits at 3-5 conventions around the country every single weekend of the year. PAX went form not even on our radar to one of our TOP THREE shows in an instant last year. We won't lie to you, we'd love to come back and make even bigger record sales in '09, but the bigger problem here is that if there wasn't a demand from the PAX attendees for this kind of thing, we wouldn't have had mediocre sales, let alone record-breakers. Eliminating us and everyone else like us from PAX won't hurt us as a company, but it WILL affect what attendees think of the show. The entire decision-making process here seems poorly thought out, and we'd like attendees to know what they're getting into before they show up expecting to see more and better this year, and instead get...well, less.
Trenton, TX
www.pegasuspublishing.com
Yes, gamers enjoy wearing merchandise that is related to their culture. That is not why they visit the show, though. It's exactly what you quoted in the email - you are ancillary to the experience.
What kind of data do you have that says that people bought tickets to the expo for the purpose of buying merchandise? Paying twenty bucks to access a booth selling shirts that are available online?
You are sorely mistaken in your interpretation of it. Fifty thousand people visit PAX, and if they see a shirt that they sort of like in this environment they'll buy it. They did not enter the show in order to buy a 'what part of [insert word here] do you not understand' shirt.
@gamefacts - Totally and utterly true gaming facts on the regular!
Historically, no. When PAX was smaller and in Bellevue, space was at a serious premium, so vendors were strictly limited. The number of places back then where you could spend money could be counted on one hand.
Now, however, PAX is located in the WSCC, a massive facility that easily accommodates Emerald City Comic Con, SakuraCon and countless others throughout the year. To say there isn't room for merch vendors in the hall at PAX is simply not true. There's ALWAYS room for more booths at a con like this, all you have to do is want them there. If what we're being told is allowed to happen, your purchasing options will be limited to Penny Arcade stuff only, and they usually run out of that in the first day or day and a half.
Trenton, TX
www.pegasuspublishing.com
But, sounding all bitchy and trying to get everyone riled up isn't going to do anything for you, and you're probably just going to end up damaging your company's reputation in the end.
It doesn't matter how many people do or do not want to buy merch at the convention, the point is you're pissed because you can't get in, and PAX is very profitable for you. That makes sense, but it doesn't make sense to alienate and aggravate your potential market.
Everyone stop fighting and let the pros handle this!
And what they want there is more developers and publishers, as they explained in the email.
@gamefacts - Totally and utterly true gaming facts on the regular!
FALSE
The EXPO hall is still limited in space. The whole WSCTC isnt expo space. PAX isnt about the expo itself, its just a small part of everything at PAX. Other areas are dedicated to freeplay/tournament/other gaming areas.
Also... what nomad said, ^5 to Nomad.
Because there is an infinite supply of good developers with good games to exhibit, right? :P
Well played. I don't think I trust in your self righteous suicide.
I admit, the forum population here makes up for about 1-2% of the total PAX attendees. There are a lot of people I and the people I know attend PAX, to game, geek out, see and play unreleased material, a chance to interact with people in game and geek industry/culture, concerts, and hang out with people we only get to see once a year. These may not be all the reasons everybody goes to PAX, like I said, we're a small portion of the PAX population, but those are the people you're preaching too here.
Buying stuff is secondary for me, and honestly, I probably spend more money buying board games at the comic shop in North Bend than I do in the expo hall at PAX (PAX merchandise notwithstanding). Sure, I make note of things I'd like to buy, but usually wait a month or more before making new purchases. PAX takes a huge chunk out of my wallet in travel and lodging. The fact that all that awesome is contained within a $50 ticket makes spending that money worth it. I'm sorry for what has happened with you guys, and I sympathize, but I really think you're going about this the wrong way.
There's more than enough to fill the expo hall. There is a set amount of space for exhibitors. If the space is oversold, then you cut the ones that are the least essential to the expo. For PAX, game companies take precendence over retailers.
@gamefacts - Totally and utterly true gaming facts on the regular!
Somehow I doubt that.
Hmm let me weigh out the pros and cons here
Play thousands of dollars worth of games so that I dont have to rely on reviews before I purchase them at the expense of the sponsors minus 50 bux or line some corporate wallet who appears to only want to be there to make money
hmmmmmm
You know what, I think I will go with playing with the sponsors for pretty much free. Testing thousands of dollars of games while they take the chance that I may never buy their product from any store or online
or
Buy something that I really do not need or want and if I needed or wanted other merch, I could easily find it online
for me its a no brainer
You realize every booth is there to make money, right? :P
Bah, I didn't agree to that when I signed on!
Of course they are in a way. However a lot of the the exhibitors are also sponsors of PAX no? Yes obviously they are hoping that you will buy their games etc
However, this person is beating us over our heads with his booths of stuffs. That doesn't sit well with me at all.
Yes, the ones with a hojillion dollars are sponsors, because it's good advertising. Your argument here is proving it's money well spent!
However they could blow the whole EH up for all I care anyways, cause it is honestly the least important part of pax for me. I go to hang out with old friends and to meet new ones, do fun games/quests/contest stuff, and generally geek out with my fellow nerds.
And THAT is what I pay my $50 for.
If one of those sponsors with a whole whack of money decides to try and pressure me and tell me why I am going to PAX, my response would be the same to them.
Of course they want to make money. But the whole reason why I have wanted to attend PAX for years is because it is no pressure and has a sense of family that is lacking in most other CONS.
Yes PAX has grown by leaps and bounds, but the organizers have done so while trying to keep that let just have fun together feel about it and it not being about buying stuff.
That is my impression.
Where the person who posted this thread, well it appears all they care about is their bottom dollar and not the enjoyment of the game which I thought PAX was about. *shrugs* Or perhaps I am way out in left field here. It has been known to happen.
And how would you feel if your "family" let you know "Oh, by the way, we don't need you anymore."? :P
They adjusted their schedule to fit in PAX. They acted in good faith. They limited their appearance at DragonCon to come to PAX (are they going to be reimbursed for that?) They're a small company and I seriously doubt they have a PR or Marketing guy. I'm willing to cut a small business owner some slack when shit happens and they don't respond like we've been trained to expect the corporate machine to (with sanitized press releases and such). *shrug* Putting myself in their shoes, I'd probably have done the same thing. Maybe a *little* less confrontational in the OP, but still. :P
I think that much is obvious.
@gamefacts - Totally and utterly true gaming facts on the regular!