Virtual Worlds Expo organizer explains name change

07.11.2008
An organizer of the event formerly known as the Virtual Worlds Expo has explained the recent name change to .

The name change was announced Wednesday in an email to recipients of the newsletter. Virtual Worlds News Publisher Christopher Sherman, who is also the executive director of event organizer Show Initiative, told the Industry Standard that an evolving marketplace and fluid definition of the term "virtual world" prompted the change.

"We feel that actually the story is changing, or rather, expanding," Sherman wrote in an email. "The market has expanded considerably since we first held our first show 20 months ago. Now we are seeing the emergence of the 3D Web, virtual worlds as widgets, virtual goods (which of course play rolls inside of [virtual] worlds, games, and across the web as well). With all this new activity we feel that in some markets the term 'virtual worlds' may carry a narrow meeting. Certainly the term 'virtual worlds' may has different meanings for different individuals from different industries."

Sherman also noted that the focus and location of the conference played a role in the name change. "Given that Engage! is based in NYC and the target audience is kids-focused brands, media companies and agencies, we feel 'engagement' is foremost on everyone's mind," Sherman said. "It's all about immersive and engaging solutions to capture audience."

Last year's event attracted 1,300 attendees, according to Sherman. The sponsors for the March 2009 event include many companies that have created or invested in social virtual worlds, such as There.com, Linden Lab, Cisco, IBM, Millions of Us, Neopets, Habbo Hotel, and The Electric Sheep Company.