Licensing Industry

REF: New York v's Las Vegas

I think it would be disastrous to move to Las Vegas, you would lose many of your European and International visitors. Las Vegas is not supported with as many flights from the UK, it would be very difficult to manage the timetable with competition for flights. It is a lot further for us to travel and substantially more expensive. New York is a competitive travel route, with many flights and good low cost solutions. New York is also good to have any additional East Coast meetings as many related businesses are located there, there would be no appropriate business meeting opportunities in Las Vegas which would mean additional trips to New York to have meetings - therefore, definitely not cost effective.

Also, we are concerned that many of our US contacts would not travel to Las Vegas as they tend to be in New York for E Coast office meetings at the same time as the show.

New York keeps the LIcense show focussed and professional, we are concerned that many people would see Las Vegas as a playground and you would not get focussed professionals in meetings.

We are very concerned by this pending decision, and I know many of my European industry colleagues feel the same. We hope the decision is to stay in New York.

regards
Pauline Howarth

Re: Licensing Show: New York vs. Las Vegas

Moving the Licensing International Show from New York City to Las Vegas would be disasterous in our opinion. New York City offers both exhibitors and attendees the best of all of the essential elements for successful licensing shows.

Location... location... location! With the growing international licensing business on the rise, it is vital to consider the challenges that international companies would face by moving the show to Las Vegas. More time, more expense, and much more stress and hassle would be involved for all international exhibitors and attendees.

Las Vegas does not provide the professional, multi-cultural environment that exists in New York City. The Javits Center has always been an outstanding venue for the Licensing Show and New York City is a world-class location with the best of airfare options, hotels, restaurants, Broadway shows, tourist destinations, etc. Las Vegas does not provide the appropriate environment to conduct serious, productive opportunities for our businesses. For many of us, "What happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas" is not the type of motto we want associated with our companies.

We have exhibited at the Licensing International Show in New York for the past 8 years and would plan to continue to do so
if it stays in New York. A move to Las Vegas would be a huge disappointment and would make our partipation in future shows questionable.

We hope that the Licensing International Show will stay in New York City, where is has thrived and where companies like ours have been able to successfully establish our brands with licensees from around the world, in a dynamic, professional, and worldclass environment.

Best Regards,

Randy Evert

A lot of European licensees would probably not go to Las Vegas due to the increased costs. Further, the attraction of New York as a venue is far superior to Las Vegas and long term I believe the European contingent would reduce significantly if the show were moved to Las Vegas

New York has many strong points as a show venue, notably its proximity to Europe and the fact that it is served by so many flights. However, it is rapidly losing its allure to many people (both exhibitors and attendees) due to escalating costs and the isolation/inconvenience of being at the Javits Center. Room rates in excess of $500 per night for a tiny room at an average hotel are robbery when you're bringing a group of people to New York for a week, and it is just one reason companies such as ours would like to see the show move out of Manhattan. Las Ve****as no shortage of hotel rooms, restaurants, or entertainment options, all within a relatively compact area; the airport is just minutes away; and its convention spaces are easily accessible. As for the 'what happens in Vegas...' factor, I'm of the opinion that there are just as many distractions in New York and that the experience in either place is what you make of it. I do think attendance would be affected in the short term, but ultimately, if people feel they need to be at the show to do business, they will find a way to be there.