IDG Pulls Plug on Boston Version of Macworld
Staff -- Tradeshow Week, 9/26/2005
Two years after marquee exhibitor Apple left the show, IDG World Expo is pulling the plug on Macworld Conference & Expo Boston.
Launched 20 years ago, the East Coast event was moved from Boston to New York and back again. IDG tried to rework it to meet the needs of creative professionals, but Apple and CEO Steve Jobs were still missed.
Apple continues to support Macworld Conference & Expo San Francisco, which draws up to 90,000 people to the Moscone Center each January.
IDG World Expo decided to cancel Macworld Boston based on input organizers gathered from exhibitors and attendees following this year's show, held at the John B. Hynes Veterans Memorial Convention Center July 11–14.
"We did a lot of research in the marketplace and talked to vendors. It became pretty clear that the Mac community prefers to have one main industry event per year," said spokesman Mike Sponseller. "Based on this input, we decided the smartest thing to do was refocus all our efforts to building and continuing our San Francisco event."
IDG is trying to establish a program to make participation in the West Coast show easier for East Coast attendees and exhibitors, Sponseller said.
Apple participated in the East Coast event until former IDG World Expo head Charlie Greco moved the event from the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center to the Boston Convention & Exhibition Center, reportedly to take advantage of the BCEC's opening rates. Apple pulled out following that decision.
At its height, the East Coast version of Macworld drew 90,000 people. This year's show drew about 8,000, in line with the previous year's attendance. Next year's show was set for the Hynes July 10–13.
