Closing Report

Leipzig, 26 August 2007

The GC - Games Convention drew to a close on Sunday evening with a further increase in visitor figures. A total of 185,000 visitors (2006: 183,000 visitors) came to the Leipzig Exhibition centre site over the course of the past four days to see and test the innovations displayed by 503 exhibitors (2006: 374). These included 12,300 registered trade visitors (2006: 8.700). One significant point of note was the internationalisation of the fair. The share of foreign trade visitors rose to 43 percent (2006: 24 percent).

The exhibitors at the GC Business Center declared themselves highly satisfied with the turnout. For 85 percent of exhibitors (2006: 75 percent) their participation at the GC Business Center had a great significance or significance in the scope of their overall marketing activities. 91 percent of exhibitors (79 percent) plan to take part in the GC Business Center again next year.

"The GC 2007 has exceeded all of our targets. A high degree of satisfaction can be seen, not only amongst exhibitors and trade visitors, but also amongst the general public. This result underscores once again why the GC, as Europe's leading fair in the industry, has an ideal home in Leipzig", said Josef Rahmen, Managing Director of the Leipziger Messe.

"I'm delighted that our new hall concept proved to be a success. The expansion of the GC Business Center, the new hall layout and the incorporation of the outdoor area all led to a marked increase in the quality of the fair experience. The expansion of the GC family area is a sign of our increased focus upon families. We have been supported in this by the industry itself, which is paying increasing attention to the field of Family Entertainment. The best proof of this is the rise in average age and growing number of female visitors", says Peggy Schönbeck, GC Project Director.

GC Visitors Growing Older

According to a survey conducted by the Leipziger Institut für Marktforschung 52 percent of visitors (2006: 45 percent) were over 20 years old. The share of female visitors this year stood at 20 percent (2006: 17 percent). A rise in the number of casual gamers was also noted, reaching 45 percent (2006: 41 percent). In addition, the survey also revealed that 92 percent of visitors also plan to attend the GC in 2008. 40 percent of visitors had a journey of over 300 kilometres to attend the GC this year, compared to 36 percent in 2006.

The GC - Games Convention was in the spotlight of the international media more than ever. Over 3,300 journalists from 46 countries (2006: 2,610 journalists from 38 countries) filed reports from this year's principal games industry event in Europe.

Satisfied faces could also be seen amongst the exhibiting companies: By the end of the fair 96 percent of the total of 503 exhibitors from 31 countries had already declared their intention to exhibit at the GC 2008 in Leipzig. 94 percent of exhibitors stated that they had achieved their fair target very well and well (2006: 89 percent) - an excellent result. A total of 88 percent of exhibitors (2006: 78 percent) assessed the number of trade visitors at the GC as very good or good.

Olaf Wolters, Managing Director of German Federal Association for Interactive Entertainment Software

"Once again, the GC 2007 was a successful, excellent fair. We achieved all of the objectives that we had set ourselves in advance. The new hall concept proved to be a success. Both trade visitors and private visitors found conditions improved by the increase in surface area and new layout of the halls. I am particularly pleased with the rise in interest in the GC family. Once again, the professional co-operation with the Leipziger Messe meant that our trade fair was even more of a success. I am highly satisfied with the result and look forward to welcoming people back to Leipzig next year."

Uwe Bassendowski, Managing Director Sony Computer Entertainment Deutschland GmbH

"We came to the Games Convention with the goal of exceeding the success of our fair performance last year. And we achieved it! The GC is the most important European fair in the industry, and that importance has been elevated even more this year."

Martin Bachmayer, Sales Director Entertainment & Devices Microsoft

"Once again the GC has underscored its status as the leading European fair in the industry and the world's largest consumer show. We set our goals for the press, trade and consumers very high, we aimed to exceed the fantastic success of last year in each of these areas. We look forward to a continuation next year in Leipzig."

Dr. Bernd Fakesch, General Manager Nintendo Deutschland

"The media reporting of the Games Convention is an accurate reflection of the themes and messages that were of significance to us. We are therefore more than satisfied with the development of the Games Convention 2007. The Games Convention is an extremely important fair for Nintendo, and Leipzig is an ideal location for it, in our opinion. There is nowhere else in Europe that so many games manufacturers, traders and gamers can enter into contact with one another directly."

Thomas Zeitner, Managing Director Electronic Arts Deutschland

"We are delighted with the extremely positive development of the Games Convention. After all, we were an initiator of the event, together with the Leipziger Messe. This year we were pleased with the fact that completely new target groups made their way to Leipzig, in particular women and older gamers. The reaction to the business area and the media presence at the GC was also highly positive."

Peter Mucha, Vice President GSA Activision Deutschland GmbH

"The response has been fantastic. More and more casual gamers are joining the core gamers. In addition, this year in particular saw even more intensive contact with foreign media representatives. Those international colleagues that were visiting Leipzig for the first time were highly impressed with the city and the professionalism of the fair corporation."

Ralf Wirsing, General Manager Ubisoft Germany and Austria

"The Games Convention is the leading European games fair and enjoys steadily increasing significance. The concept with the Business Center and Consumer Area turns out perfectly every year. The conditions are ideal, our business stand has grown again, with one reason being the increasing number of international visitors."

Lothar Lechtenberg, PR Manager Fujitsu Siemens Computers

"The Games Convention is great fun. The fair is a kind of hallmark for us, we benefit from its image. This year we also had a stand in the business area for the first time, and this has proved to be highly successful."

Thorsten Brokopp, Marketing Manager ASUS COMPUTER GmbH

"This year's GC was a premiere for us - we are very enthusiastic about it, especially the excellent service and the organisation of the GC Team. We have never before experienced the standard of support that we received from the Leipziger Messe."

Fair Visitors Enthusiastic about GC Freestyle

The open-air GC Freestyle summer festival saw the Leipziger Messe provide its guests with a broad range of entertainment after closing time at the GC - the first time this has been offered. At the Stadion des Friedens exclusive live concerts awaited visitors, together with numerous sporting activities and an open-air swimming pool. With over 3,000 overnight stays, the festival concept was very well-received on its premiere. Surveys showed that the visitors to the GC Freestyle reacted to the new offer with enthusiasm. In addition to the reasonably-priced accommodation, they also enjoyed the festival feeling that extended beyond the opening hours of the GC itself.

GC family Attracts Parents, Teachers and Children

This year's GC family was presented under the motto "Learning through play and learning to play". The specialised area for media skills in the family, learning and school software and child-friendly media provides information to parents, teachers and children on all questions regarding interactive play and learning. New this year: for the first time, the GC family had a hall of its own (Hall 5).

The interest in the GC family was also very high this year: 75 percent of all fair visitors were interested in this special area of the GC. In addition, the visitor survey in the GC family revealed that the visit to the GC family was a rewarding one for 75 percent of the visitors. 88 percent wish to return to the GC family next year. 87 percent of visitors were so impressed that they would recommend the GC family to others.

Prof. Dr. Hartmut Warkus, Chair of Media Education at Leipzig University

"I am especially pleased that the GC family has been allocated more space this year than it had previously. This says a lot about the targeted development of the GC concept and the excellent organisation. The pleasant atmosphere in the GC family hall was an ideal environment for communication and guidance."

Thomas Kruk, Managing Director Rabenstark Spielzeug GmbH

"The GC family has developed into a platform for entertainment and learning software for the whole family. No other site in Germany presents the numerous positive aspects and potential of new media with stage programmes and games stations in such an interesting and professional manner. An excellent and extremely varied stage programme, the hall games, a wealth of information on games genres - interested consumers found answers to all of their questions."

GCDC: International Developer Branch as Guests in Leipzig

The fifth GC Developers Conference (GCDC) ended with a record attendance. Over 900 conference attendees took part in the event, held from 20 to 22 August at the Leipzig Exhibition Centre, where they obtained information on the latest trends in the developer sector. "The concept of the conference was that of providing a forum by developers for developers, offering international experts and stars of the industry with a high-quality forum for the exchange of information and networking, and that concept worked perfectly. The GCDC was able to stake a clear claim as the most significant European developer conference", said Frank Sliwka, GCDC Project Director. Focal points were Online Gaming, Outsourcing and Business Development. Speakers included Julian Eggebrecht (Faktor 5), Michael Capps (President, Epic Games) and Hector Fernandez (CEO, Streamline Studios B.V.).

The GC 2008 will take place in Leipzig from 20 to 24 August; the GCDC developer conference from 18 to 20 August.

Contact for the press:

Torsten Anke, Press Officer

Linda Brandt, Press Officer

Telephone: +49 (0)341 / 678 81 84

Fax: +49 (0)341 / 678 81 82

E-mail: t.anke@leipziger-messe.de

E-mail: l.brandt@leipziger-messe.de

Contact for exhibitors:

Peggy Schönbeck, Project Director

Telephone: +49 (0)341 / 678 82 81

Fax: +49 (0)341 / 678 82 82

E-mail: p.schoenbeck@leipziger-messe.de

Internet:

www.gc-germany.com

www.gcdc.eu

www.leipziger-messe.de