GC 2008

GC - Games Convention

21 - 24 August 2008

(20 August 2008: Exclusive Trade Visitor & Media Day)

Leipzig, 26 June 2008

GC - Games Convention Leipzig: Even More International in 2008

Business Area Expands by 25 Per Cent

Messe Boss Marzin Makes it Clear: The GC - Games Convention is not Moving

As Europe's benchmark fair for interactive entertainment, edutainment, infotainment and hardware (21 - 24 August 2008), the GC - Games Convention in Leipzig will come up with new superlatives: it will be more international than ever, and the GC Business Center is heading for record participation.

"A large number of registrations from international publishers and developers are arriving at the moment, " says Wolfgang Marzin, CEO at the Leipziger Messe. So far, there are exhibitors from 23 countries, including the USA, France, the UK, Spain, the Netherlands, Sweden and Russia. "The growing foreign participation underlines the status now enjoyed by Germany as the most important European trade show venue for computer and video games", says Marzin. The Federal Ministry of Economics and Technology had only recently confirmed the GC - Games Convention's classification as an international benchmark fair, a status linked to funding at the national political level. Overall, more than 500 exhibitors are expected, including almost all the industry's market leaders and many young, creative companies.

In the GC Business Center, the separate area for industry and the trade, almost half of the exhibition area has been booked by foreign suppliers. In response to the big demand, the Leipziger Messe has enlarged the Business Center yet again - by a quarter compared to 2007 at 40,000 square metres. This means that the entire Congress Center Leipzig (CCL), the whole of Hall 1 and half of Hall 2 are now available for B2B activities.

The trade visitors at the GC - Games Convention also come to Leipzig from all over Europe and beyond. The list of registrations already includes 41 countries, with Germany, the UK and the Netherlands at the top of the list, followed by Russia and the USA.

In addition, the big interest from the media also highlights international interest in Leipzig's GC - Games Convention. Last year, more than 3,300 journalists from 46 countries filed reports from Europe's benchmark fair. Accredition is now in full swing for 2008. Given the considerable media interest, several press conferences are already being held at this time, including in Paris, Milan and London.

Leipziger Messe Hotel Service Finds Rooms Up to the Last Minute

Leipzig's hotels are perfectly equipped to deal with the arrival of international guests, with quotas already reserved for the GC - Games Convention. Up to the very last minute, exhibitors and visitors can use the Leipziger Messe's customer services to make their bookings (phone: +49 341 678 8958) and have already done so around 1,600 times. The average stay in Leipzig during the GC - Games Convention is three to four nights.

Parallel to this, many other bookings are received direct in Leipzig and the surrounding area. "We're looking forward to a full house", says Andreas Hachmeister, general manager of the hotel The Westin, for example. The 5-star hotel is in the best city centre location and has more than 436 rooms. "The Games Convention is synonymous with the opportunities offered by the Leipzig venue. Within the shortest possible time, this trade show has developed from a national into an international benchmark fair with numerous foreign customers. We have many regulars for the GC, with groups from individual companies continuing to grow over time. Our guests feel very comfortable here and they show us that they appreciate the conditions available in Leipzig."

The Westin is part of the Leipziger Messe's extensive network of partnerships. "Thanks to wide-ranging cooperation, we have adequate hotel availability and can find rooms at short notice if required", explains Messe boss Wolfgang Marzin. More hotels are currently being built in Leipzig to accommodate the overall rising number of international trade fair and congress guests in Leipzig. "The city is flexible in its reaction to growing international event business, so that we are ideally equipped for the future", says Marzin.

By Plane, Coach and Rail: Leipzig is an Interface for Game Fans

In support of easy travel from all over the world, flight connections to Leipzig have been added for the GC - Games Convention. Bigger planes are being used for scheduled flights whilst charter flights are also available from other key European transit airports. London is most in demand at the moment, for which a charter plane is already booked. In future, Leipzig will also have a fast rail link to Berlin. As from 2011, the ICE will take only 55 minutes from the new main Berlin-Schönefeld airport to the Leipziger Messe.

The Deutsche Bahn is also at the ready for Europe's biggest game event in Leipzig. As well as GC specials for exhibitors and trade visitors, special trains are running across Germany. On its way from Berlin to Leipzig and back, the InterConnex is adding extra stops at the Leipziger Messe station. For the first time, the Leipziger Messe is also organising a blanket coverage coach service in cooperation with "Connect GC".

Further information on all travel options are available on the internet at www.gc-germany.com/Besucher/Anreise.

250 Premieres and Spectacular Events

Once again, the very latest trends and highlights from the game industry are on show in Leipzig for trade visitors and fans. More than 500 exhibitors occupy an area the size of 16 football pitches (115,000 square metres). Among their exhibits, console suppliers and publishers are showing 250 world, European and German premieres. The many events include a concert in the "Video Games Live" series. For the first time, the cult spectacle is coming to Germany, after the successes enjoyed by the American organisers in the UK and the USA. Compared to the Leipzig GC concerts of previous years, the audience can expect even more show, lots of action and interactivity. (Tickets from all the usual advance sales outlets, from the ticket hotline +49 1805 570081 and on www.deag.de)

(Editors please note: further details provided in other press releases on the GC website).

GC - Games Convention is not Moving

In response to individual reports in the media in recent months claiming that the GC - Games Convention 2009 would be held elsewhere, the Leipziger Messe boss Wolfgang Marzin clarifies: "The GC - Games Convention is not moving". Marzin emphasises that the Games Convention is still available to the national and international industry. As the organisers of the GC - Games Convention, the Leipziger Messe would continue to pursue its international strategy. The strength of the world-famous and positively perceived "GC - Games Convention" brand must be exploited to continue expansion of the globally structured concept. An important element in this regard was the Games Convention Asia (GCA) which has been held annually in Singapore since 2007, as Wolfgang Marzin reports.

Backstory

The GC - Games Convention has been developed by the Leipziger Messe in close cooperation with the industry and has been held in Leipzig since 2002, since when visitor numbers have risen from 80,000 to 185,000 most recently. The number of exhibitors has tripled from 166. In 2007, 503 companies took part in Europe's biggest game trade show, including the industry's market leaders in hardware, software and accessories.

The rapid growth of the fair has not just raised public awareness of the still young game industry. It has also inspired public debate in a society in which computer and video games are now taken for granted as part of the cultural canon. From the outset, Leipzig's GC - Games Convention has promoted competencies in dealing with the new keynote medium in youth culture - beyond the boundaries of all age or social groups. Among other aspects, visitors respond very positively to the "GC family" section which was set up specifically to promote media literacy. Special exhibitor segments and communication strategies also serve to support the appeal to new user groups.

From 21 to 24 August 2008, the Games Convention is being held in Leipzig for the seventh time.

Contacts for the Press:

Heike Fischer

Director, Press Depatment

Phone: +49 (0)341 678 8181

Fax: +49 (0)341678 81 82

E-mail: h.fischer@leipziger-messe.de

Torsten Anke

Press Officer

Phone: +49 (0)341 678 8198

Fax: +49 (0)341 678 8182

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

Internet:

http://www.gc-germany.com

http://www.leipziger-messe.de

http://www.leipzig.de