East Coast Macworld Goes On Without Apple

IDG World Expo works to build community in absence of key exhibitor

By Margo McCall -- Tradeshow Week, 8/2/2004

Apple or not, IDG World Expo plans to continue its East Coast Macworld Conference & Expo, at least for the time being.

The July 12–15 tradeshow — the first for the new Boston Convention & Exhibition Center — drew about 10,000 attendees and 70 exhibitors. That was down from the 15,000 attendees and 130 exhibitors at the Macworld Creative Pro Conference & Expo last year at New York's Jacob K. Javits Convention Center.

But even without marquee exhibitor Apple, developer of the Macintosh computer, participants apparently thought the event worthwhile.

"What we saw in Boston is that there's a vibrant community on the East Coast that wants an event to serve them. Our intention is to continue that," said Warwick Davies, the IDG group vice president who oversees the show in addition to LinuxWorld and the larger West Coast Macworld.

Although Apple was absent, the event did attract a number of large companies, including Hewlett-Packard, Microsoft, Xerox and Quark, developer of Mac-based software.

Exhibitor VersionTracker, a producer of software updates, "debated really hard about going to Macworld," knowing that Apple wouldn't be there, said Kevin Shields, director of product marketing.

VersionTracker's strong relationship with IDG and participation in past Macworld shows helped convince management to participate.

"It's definitely smaller. It was a good show," said Shields. "But obviously we could all benefit from a bigger presence from Apple."

Ken Baer, director of marketing for Hash, an animation software developer, had a similar take on the Boston event. "I think we did OK, but it was a very, very small show," he said.

Although the company's demonstration of its animation product was a crowd-grabber at Macworld as it is at other shows, Baer said the event's size was comparable to some of the local comic book shows where Hash also exhibits.

The editors of Macworld magazine, which has the same parent as IDG World Expo, wrote that "It's not the Macworld Expo of old — but neither are there tumbleweeds blowing through the Boston convention center." The editors further described the event as, "a quiet show with a bunch of fun, little products, a lot of great conference sessions, and a few wacky feature presentations."

Meanwhile, it's doubtful that Apple will ever participate in the East Coast event again. "When IDG initially announced its plans to move summer Macworld to Boston in 2004, we were very clear that we didn't think it was a good move. Our position stands and Apple will not be participating in Macworld Boston," the company said in a statement, adding that it remains commited to Macworld San Francisco.

All was well between IDG and Apple until last year, when former IDG World Expo head Charlie Greco decided to move the event from New York to its Boston birthplace over the objections of Apple CEO Steve Jobs. Both sides have been circumspect about what transpired. The relocation was reportedly a cost-saving move, designed to take advantage of deals available through the new convention center.

After Greco decided to move the event, Apple pulled out. The question of where to hold the East Coast Macworld was reconsidered after David Korse replaced Greco, but ultimately Korse decided to stick with Boston.

Davies said IDG would be talking to Apple again about its participation. "We get along very well with Apple, so it's not a question of picking up the phone and having not talked to them in a long time," he said.

Because the event was moving, and embracing the wider audience of Mac users, rather than just creative professionals, Davies said IDG World Expo made a special effort to reach out to regional user groups and acquaint them with plans for the show.

"In doing that, the show felt like it was the community's event. People felt like they had a part in its success," he said. "We had to make sure it was something the market wanted."

Davies, who came to IDG last year from managing DCI's Customer Relationship Management Conference & Expo, said for the first time in his 14-year tradeshow career, attendees actually came up and thanked him.

Apple, however, appeared to be taking pains to stay clear of the IDG show. The company scheduled its proprietary World Wide Developers Conference just two weeks before Macworld. At the conference, held at San Francisco's Moscone West from June 28 to July 2, the company introduced a new server and development tool to go with OS X, the latest version of its operating system.

The company waited until just a few days after the Boston Macworld to introduce the fourth generation of its popular iPod portable music player. Although Davies speculated that Apple may have timed the announcement to follow the release of its strong financial results, VersionTracker's Shields considered it "somewhat telling" that Apple waited until after the show was over to announce its product.

Apple still participates in IDG's Macworld event at San Francisco's Moscone West, where last January it unveiled its iPod mini and new versions of four of its software products. Apple is scheduled to participate in the Assn. of Computing Machinery's Siggraph, a 24-year-old, annual computer graphics industry gathering, set for the Los Angeles Convention Center Aug 8–12.