For the Second Time in As Many Days, the Dallas Convention Center Loses an Event

Last December, we received word that come November '09, the Dallas Convention Center would play host for three days to a mammoth video-game expo -- the Southwest Video Game Expo, to be precise, which promised to fill more than 200,000 square feet of exhibit hall space with all manner of shiny shoot-'em-ups and fancy-pants gewgaws. It was part of a two-fer package, tied to something called Li-Fi, which promised to be "the largest consumer electronics and entertainment show in the Southwest." Alas, it was not meant to be.

Moments ago, Southwest Video Game Expo sent word, via its L.A.-based publicist, that it has canceled its Dallas dates -- November 20-22 -- meaning that for the second time in as many days, the Dallas Convention Center finds itself without guests it was expecting. Not 24 hours after the Food Marketing Institute backed out of next week's scheduled events, citing the swine flu scare as its reason, the SVGE backs out with a more familiar excuse: the economy. Notes Don Jennings, president of Li-Fi, Inc., "A poor economy mixed with a large number of other expos for publishers to attend has meant our show didn't perform the way we had hoped it would. We still hope someday to bring a large event like this to the Southwest, and are determined that it will be worth the wait."

David Tractenberg, the show's publicist, tells Unfair Park that Li-Fi canceled its consumer electronics show at the convention center "about a month and a half ago." But little mention was made because "at the time," he says, "we didn't want it to affect the possible attendance for SVGE." To which he adds, "We like to say it's postponed. It's just a matter of waiting out the economy, but there's never been a video game show there, and that's ridiculous. There's no reason not to do this. We just need to wait till the vendors catch up to our train of thought."