E3 but the Entertainment Software Association is still around, and it's just unveiled its new idea: "a first-of-its-kind event designed to connect visionaries, thought leaders and innovators from across industries to harness the power of interactive entertainment" called .
Two things right off the start: No, this is not a reborn E3, and no, I didn't spell it wrong. Iicon is a snappy abbreviation for the Interactive Innovation Conference, and its goal is to provide attendees "exclusive access to visionary keynotes, engaging discussions and workshops, and elite networking opportunities with executives shaping the future of entertainment, business and technology." Those executives will come from companies including Amazon Games, Disney, Electronic Arts, Epic Games, Microsoft, Nintendo of America, Sony Interactive Entertainment, Square Enix, Take-Two Interactive, and Warner Bros.
"The Entertainment Software Association and its member companies are among the innovators and leaders shaping the future of culture, business and human connection," ESA chairman Doug Bowser said. "It’s a natural role for ESA to host and support an event that fosters an open exchange of new ideas with our peer industry leaders.
It also works as a lobby group for the industry as a whole: Earlier this week, for instance, the ESA issued a criticizing US president Donald Trump's proposed tariffs on products coming from Canada, Mexico, and China, saying they "would negatively impact hundreds of millions of Americans and would harm the industry’s significant contributions to the US economy. Last year it also libraries and educational institutions being able to provide remote access to games for research purposes, claiming that such easy access to classic games "would present โปรโมชั่นสล็อต a serious risk to an important market."
So, setting aside the tiresome tradespeak—iicon will provide "a key opportunity to drive innovation and foster collaboration across sectors"—the conference makes sense, at least as far as a justification for the ongoing existence of the ESA. What makes less sense is it being held in Las Vegas just two months after , another businessy, industry-only event. But the ESA doesn't control DICE, which may be exactly why it's aiming to jam another conference into the arena.