It should read "will not attend" not "will not attempt".

Yeah. Less exposure is a good idea. Not.

I went to the Software Developer conference in Santa Clara this year and there wasn't a single session or reference to Apple. Yes, I know their conference is WWDC, but here was a chance to reach developers using other platforms that would most likely not be paying for an Apple only conference.

Apple needs to spread some of their marketing budget to other areas. Development, IT, Enterprise. They have decent solutions for all these areas now and need to get the word out.

this is why i attended this year's macworld. i had the time, barely had the money, and there will be a day when there won't even be an apple presence at macworld reliably. heck, the only reason i think they still do it is that it's literally just up the road for them to attend/present.

wwdc is a different matter, but if you aren't a developer, the cost of attending simply isn't worth it.

Is it possible that the disastrous failure of their iPhone marketing strategy in Europe has left a sour taste and their rejection of a European Apple event is a "punishment" for heathen Europeans that simply refuse to worship at the alter of his (overpriced) Steve-ness? It can't be easy for the Big-S to have to make concessions and facilitate alterations to his "perfect" iPhone master strategy. Sniff.

Looks like they don't want to do trade shows anymore, that's all. They dumped NAB, they dumped the French Expo. They dumped Boston MacWorld. Steve has only enough energy (and news) for San Francisco once a year, 'cause it's nearby. Too bad, they're a a crucial presence in consumer and professional buyer perception at these events.

The problem is an "all or nothing" mentality at Apple which doesn't make sense. They could go into any of these trade shows with a neat, stripped down presence-- like kiosks peppered about the show floor, ecah one in a different area with different hardware or software focus, like little Genius Bars, rather than the all encompassing Big Tent, which always strikes me as just a little out of human scale, a little too MicroSoft.

Since when has Think Different meant black or white? That's juvenile. IMHO, they ought to rethink their presence at these events, not dump it.

I don't see it being a necessity for Apple to host global events. Even though I would love to have the MacWorld Expo held in Vancouver, Canada it's not going to happen. I can either take the time off work to fly to San Francisco for the event or easily watch the podcast. This is no different than Siggraph for the Post Production, Film, Television and Game industry which people attend the annual event in one city every year. Though I admit there's more to see at Siggraph than at the MacWorld Expo ;)