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Apple moots return to UK Mac show

Talking to event organiser

Apple has been in negotiations with the organiser of the UK's unofficial Mac show - indeed, the UK's only major Mac-oriented event - raising the possibility that the company may abandon its policy of focusing solely on Europe's only official Mac event, Paris' MacWorld Expo Europe.

According to a MacWorld UK report, one Bob Denton, the guy behind last autumn's TheExpo, has had discussions with representatives from Apple's UK, US and European operations, including Apple UK general manager Mark Rogers.

TheExpo was instigated last year by Mac-oriented ISP AppleOnline after Apple dropped plans for an official UK Mac show, Apple Expo 2000, in favour of the Paris event. Apple had already postponed the show from the previous year having fallen out with long-time UK Mac show organiser Emap Exhibitions back in 1998.

Last year's show was clearly sufficiently successful to warrant a rerun this year, this time under the title MacExpo, according to MacWorld.

'Mac', of course, is an Apple trademark, so the show's organiser clearly needs Apple's permission to use the new name - hence the discussions between Rogers and co. and Denton. The fact that the show's Web site still describes the event as TheExpo would imply they may not have got the thumb's up from Apple, but the MacWorld story's tone suggests that Apple has given is permission and that discussions are ongoing as to the company's possible attendance at the show.

Certainly, when we bumped into him at an Apple do last month, Rogers seemed very keen to build bridges between the company, its UK channel, and peripherals and software suppliers. An official sanction for TheExpo 2001 or even an Apple presence at the show would certainly enhance such a programme.

Denton, meanwhile, has been here before. He was originally behind Apple Expo 2000, organising the show for exhibitor CKS/Web on Apple UK's behalf. He also organised TheExpo 2000, this time for Agenda Marketing on AppleOnline's behalf. Whatever it ends up being called, TheExpo 2001 or MacExpo 2001, the UK show will take place on 22-24 November 2001 at the Business Design Centre, Islington, London. ®

Related Link

MacWorld Expo's story
The TheExpo 2001 Web site

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