TIGA reveals details of E3 seminar

As part of the government-backed State of Play Pavilion initiative at this year's E3 Expo, UK games companies will get the chance to learn more about the North American market with an afternoon of presentations and panel discussions.

The US Opportunities Seminar will be held at the Loews Hotel in Beverly Hills from 1-6pm on May 17. This is the fourth year the event has been held, and it will be followed by a reception hosted by the UK consul.

The seminar is designed to give developers from the UK and continental Europe the chance to gain insights into the US games market, and to make new contacts with North American business. Around 70 industry professionals were at the 2004 seminar and more are expected to attend this year.

The event will kick off with a keynote presentation entitled 'Trends in the US games market - what are the Hollywood majors up to?' by Seamus Blackley of the Creative Artists Agency.

This will be followed by a panel discussion of the current prospects for triple-A titles in the US by Francois Masciopinto (Atari US), Richard Jalichandra (IGN) and Grantley Day (Namco Hometek).

There will also be talks on investment and IP protection strategies by speakers from Greenberg Traurig LLP, market trends and publisher needs by Stacy Siegel of NPD Funworld, and online gaming by Valve's Doug Lombardi.

A second panel discussion will look at prospects for budget games in the North American market, with speakers Lee Milligan (Novalogic), Lloyd Melnick (Merscom) and Colin Gordon (Valcon Games).

Entry is free to Tiga, Game Horizon, Game Republic and East Midlands developers. Anyone wishing to attend should visit the Tiga website.