Originally Posted by Connor

This is a really good point. People often point out the Internext of five years ago... but the difference between that show and the shows we all get now is less to do with anything AVN is doing and more to do with the companies and individuals who attend. Budgets are way down, plain and simple. Companies are still doing things, they're just doing less.

Take the show floor. Internext used to have a show floor that was as big as AEE's show floor is now. But webmasters started saying things like this: "Why should I buy a booth when I can just show up and work the floor for free?" Then their friends jumped in: "Yeah, yeah man, same here." And pretty soon, AVN was forced to come up with a new concept... and we got the night club format at the Palms. We saw a comment in this thread alone about not buying a badge, just showing up to the hotel to work deals. These kinds of things force AVN to make changes to react... but the industry should understand that when they do, it's just in reaction to all of us and how we're behaving.

Something everyone should keep in mind though is this: running a trade show like Internext isn't cheap. AVN has to come to an agreement with the hotel, and they're on the hook for things like the number of hotel rooms (at the Palms) that MUST be bought, the amount of food bought, etc. And hotels will nickel and dime you to virtual death any chance they get with things like 23% service fees on already inflated food prices for catering, $2000 to rent a projector for a day that costs $1000 to buy at Fry's, $40 for every banner that needs to be hung somewhere (time a hundred), etc, etc. AVN would have to pay all this stuff or not have a show there. So I can tell you this... Chris won't say this, but when you put a lot of money on the line to throw a show, you spend time and resources making it happen and promote it to the industry, then people show up and enjoy your work without even buying a badge... well that's frustrating beyond belief.

Also, the companies that DO show up and sponsor the show, throw parties for us, private or otherwise, etc., these people make the show possible. These companies deserve our appreciation at the very least, and our consideration for business. They're investing into the industry and making sure we have a culture outside of message boards, a chance to all meet up and network face to face.

I understand budgets aren't unlimited these days... so it comes down to this, IMO. The more support the industry can give a show, the better the organizers can make it. There's still plenty of love for Internext, and it's likely that companies will feel a little better in 2010 than they did in 2009, so I think given that AVN will put on the best show possible, as always.