Announcing the MIT Business in Gaming (BiG) Conference – Giant Chickens Need Not Apply

Though most of the cameras wait for the Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) in June when Nintendo, Sony, and Microsoft reveal and demonstrate their big games for the year, the video game industry has a good deal of annual conferences focused on different aspects of the industry. To oversimplify things: E3 focuses on press, GDC focuses on developers, and PAX focuses on the fans.

This past month I had the opportunity to attend GDC in San Francisco in mid March and PAX East in Boston this past weekend. Both were fantastic – I totally recommend going – but as an MBA student I wanted a bit more of a focus on the business of games. Yes FireHose Games’ Slam Bolt Scrappers rocked the indie showcase at PAX, but I want to know about how FireHose President Eitan Glinert brought this game from concept to reality. Yes, Turbine’s Lord of the Rings Online and Dungeons and Dragons Online both looked beautiful at PAX, but I want to know about the differences between the free-to-play vs. monthly subscription business models.

Well, this month the MIT Business in Gaming (BiG) Conference will answer these questions. I’ve been working as a conference organizer for this year’s BiG conference (warning, shameless plug ahead!!) and it’s clear that the interest in the business side of the industry is stronger than ever. This year’s keynote will be delivered by VP and co-Studio General Manager at BioWare, Godron Walton. Other speakers include Curt Schilling from 38 Studios (and the Red Sox) and representatives from Playdom, Turbine, Harmonix, and Irrational Games – all focused on the business of gaming.

The conference is set for April 16th at the Microsoft New England Research and Development (NERD) Center in Cambridge, MA, and tickets are available, but limited. This is a good thing. There will be no waiting in long lines.

Hope you can join us!

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