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International Event Organisers Update (IEOU) is published monthly and is an information source circulated FREE to 12000 selected organisers and others interested in keeping abreast of development in the international event industry. It is edited to higher standards than the inadequate ones laid down by the self-regulatory Press Complaints Commission (PCC)
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Note: As a matter of policy International Event Organisers Update (IEOU) does not carry any 0870 telephone numbers in entries for the news or Announcements section of IEOU. This is because these numbers operate as covert premium rate lines – misleadingly called “national rate” by BT and others that sell them – and are charged at five or more times the current normal cost to dial a normal geographical UK number.
Readers are advised to visit www.saynoto0870.com for more information about this customer-unfriendly scam, and to ask all suppliers and potential suppliers to provide their normal, cheaper numbers.
Flying, of course, is never going to be the same again.
The current alleged plot to blow up three, or nine, transatlantic aircraft in mid-air may have been foiled for now by a massive increase in security and police operations, but the threat won’t be going away.
Not now those who want to kill realise you can easily murder 300 + people and terrorise millions of others, with a tiny amount of explosive if you detonate it in the plane carrying them, 30,000 feet in the air. And always assuming you don’t mind dying yourself and having to enjoy all those beautiful young virgins waiting to give you a martyr’s welcome in the afterlife that is Paradise.
The latest developments have already encouraged hundreds of thousands of us to take the boat, or the train, or not travel abroad for our holidays at all, though whether this is mostly in response to the increased chance of death in the air or the certainty of much more hassle added to what is already a high stress and deeply unpleasant experience is debateable. And the transparently obvious desire of the greedy, monopolistic airport operator, BAA, to now get its passengers to its shopping malls with runways added three hours before their flights leave, the better to sell them overpriced merchandise, has given the air travel industry an unsavoury image, not to mention the chance of a backlash as irritated passengers decide that cutting down on airport purchasing is one appropriate way of punishing the greed.
There will anyway be an inevitable impact on business travel and events run overseas, despite what suppliers are saying about the resilience and “bounce-back” of the market, and organisers of events which require their delegates to fly will need to re-visit the necessity of their event in the first place and whether there are viable alternatives to putting their delegates through the pain in the backside flying is becoming.
And maybe putting their lives at unnecessary risk into the bargain.
A six year old girl died watching a fire-based display that went tragically wrong at a Turkish hotel. (Daily Telegraph).
Eden Galani died on July 31 of burns after a bottle of flammable liquid exploded at the Gemin Park Hotel, Izmir, shooting flames into the audience. Eight other children are believed to have been injured.
Summer around the Mediterranean could become low season, with prices to match by 2080.
According to a study published in the Journal of Sustainable Tourism and reported in the Daily Telegraph the average temperature is expected to rise by up to six degrees, an aspect that can only make more commonplace this summers’ spate of forest fires and stinging jellyfish.
The study suggests that the Med would be a better choice for Spring and Autumn breaks, the times event organisers have been getting low season prices for their events. The summer, it is suggested, would be a better time to go to Ireland, Northern France, UK, Germany, the Baltics and Southern Scandinavia.
Two former employees at the Hilton Metropole, Birmingham have been jailed for conspiracy. (Caterer and Hotelkeeper).
The two men conspired with four others and a booking agent to steal a total of £200,000 by invoicing Hilton for commission on conferences that organisers had actually booked directly, paying a higher price. John Kraft, the former director of sales at the Metropole received two and a half years for pocketing £97,747 and Barry Lyne, the former conference and banqueting director got 18 months for pocketing £36,369.
The others involved in the conspiracy made between £1,500 and £15,000 and received either suspended prison sentences or community service orders, with all ordered to return the money to Hilton and pay it compensation.
The conspiracy came to light in 2003 when a former Hilton employee blew the whistle. Shortly after Hilton commenced insisting that all agents making bookings take out membership, for a fee, with the Travel Industry Designation Service (TIDS) run by the travel industry cartel IATA. Fees for TIDS membership started at £60 but have quickly moved up to £80 for registration and then £80 per annum.
The conspiracy, which may well be working in other hotel groups, and other countries, was made possible by the questionable practice of venues only paying commissions on agency bookings and not even-handedly transparently giving the same percentage as a discount on the booking when organisers place business directly with them.
Those organisers with delegates who like to light up are advised that all Marriott properties – 2,300 of them – in the US and Canada are banning smoking in all rooms. (Expo).
The ban includes all meetings rooms, bars, lounges and restaurants with smokers forced to use special outdoor lounges and will apply from September.
Marriott accepts that its stance is not commercially appropriate for its properties outside the US and Canada “where smoking is more culturally acceptable”.
For those who appreciate the art of the Impressionists one of the best day trips from Paris is a visit to the Claude Monet Museum at Giverny, comprising the painter’s gorgeous house and garden.
Monet lived here for the last 43 years of his life, from 1883 to 1926 and painted some of the most famous of his works in the garden, notably the views of the wisteria draped Chinese bridge and the series of water lily studies.
Visitors can tour the flower filled and symmetrical gardens, including the large and famous water garden, as well as the pastel pink and green house, which has reproductions of most of his best works, and rooms that are works of art in themselves.
Giverny is located around 50 miles north east of Paris, on the way to Rouen where Monet painted another famous series of the façade of the cathedral there in various lights. By train from the Gare Saint Lazare, another well-known Monet subject, visitors must first go to Vernon and then catch the buses that meet the few trains a day making the trip.
And don’t forget the camera.
Tel: + 33 (0) 2 32 52 28 21
Tel: (Groups) + 33 (0) 2 32 51 90 31
e-mail: contact@foundation-monet.com
Visit: www.foundation-monet.com
(Note: Impressionist fans can also indulge in Monet and others at the Musée D’Orsay and the Musée Marmottan – Claude Monet, both in Paris).
Philadelphia Airport has opened an exhibition to honour the musical contribution of its 1970’s rhythm and blues songwriters Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff.
The exhibition coincides with the 35th anniversary of the founding of the duo’s Philadelphia International Records label. Included in their hit parade of more than 175 gold and platinum records are such as Me and Mrs Jones, Love Train and If you don’t know me by now, this last one sent affectionately up by comedian and former pop singer Ricky Gervais doing a hilariously OTT rendition of it as musical poseur and office manager David Brent.
www.phi.org
Croatia’s first five star resort hotel opens in Split this winter.
Offering 366 rooms, 16 suites, eight restaurants, eight bars, a private marina and beach, nightclub and casino the Le Meridien Lav hotel (the “Lav” means “Lion”) also has nine function/meetings rooms with Wi-Fi internet connections and capacities from 45 to 650, theatre-style. Complementing these are a business centre and simultaneous interpretation facilities.
Tel: (UK publicity office) 0207 290 7107
Fax: 0207 290 7560
Visit: www.lemeridien.com
China’s reputation for gratuitous cruelty has been further supported with reports that up to 50,000 dogs have been beaten to death after three people died from rabies. (Daily Telegraph).
The brutal five day massacre took place in Monding country, Yunnan province at the end of July and featured dogs being walked taken from their owners and beaten to death in front of them. Owners wanting to avoid this were offered 30 pence to exterminate their own dogs before the government’s killing teams moved in.
The Chinese government has blamed its action on local officials not doing their job in protecting people from rabies in the first place, a terrifying disease which is currently on the increase in China.
Meanwhile another clue to the Chinese government’s attitude to living things is the banner reportedly adorning the walls of the building site that is to become the Olympic Village in Beijing.
Apparently this carries the slogan “The quality of work is more important than life” and is supposed to inspire the labourers toiling there for very low pay.
Leaving aside the thought that for most the slogan would be more persuasive the other way around – that is the quality of life is more important than work – it is evocative of another questionable work-ethic government slogan Arbeit macht frei, or “Work brings freedom”.
This one was used by the governing Nazis a few decades ago at the entrance to Auschwitz, and other work/death camps, to reassure the doomed entering ….
Talented entrepreneur and brilliant publicist Sir Richard Branson of Virgin is to make a product placement appearance in the next James Bond film Casino Royale. (Business Travel World).
Set in exotic Jamaica the film features jet set gamblers of which Sir Richard will presumably be one. If so he’ll need a better briefing on the subject, if the publicity shot for his film cameo is anything to go by. This shows a very dapper Dicky in dicky bow, white tux and shades, sitting at a blackjack table and holding cards but without any chips placed on boxes, which indicates a bet. As all blackjack players will know you have to place a bet before getting your cards.
Ah well, publicists, what do they know? Meanwhile rumours that our Dicky’s line in the film runs: “Is that a gun in your pocket, James, or are you just pleased to be here in the Virgin Five Mile High Members Club” should be discounted, in our opinion, as downright scurrilous.
For the attention of ICCA press contacts.
ICCA is compiling a list of media contacts in the meetings industry which will function as a guide for ICCA and ICCA members for PR activities.
This could be beneficial for you in the near future as ICCA members are the leading suppliers in the international meetings industry and will be providing relevant information to the correct contact person in your organisation. This guidance will also promote the media as an advertising opportunity to our members!
We would appreciate it if you could take 10 minutes to answer the following questionnaire in which we ask to check the contact details, add subscriber characteristics and subjects and deadlines of articles.
Many thanks in advance,
Kind regards,
Mathijs Vleeming
Marketing Developer
Dear Mathijs
Thank you for your recent communications about us being included in your ICCA list of media contacts, and for the questionnaire you kindly faxed.
Our concern is that our inclusion on the list that could suggest that we are desperate to receive press releases from event industry suppliers (in this case members of ICCA) and are likely to print them in the hope of getting some paid advertising.
This may well be true for the majority of the printed magazines in the marketplace but it is certainly not the case with International Event Organisers Update (IEOU) which is a very short, cheaply produced e-mail newsletter for the sector which can afford to concentrate on hard news and opinion. We therefore believe that to include us on the ICCA list of media contacts for PR would be misleading for your members.
As discussed however all ICCA members are welcome, as are all involved in international events, to subscribe free of charge to IEOU at www.eou.org.uk, and to then contact us if they have any real news, or interesting opinions.
Yours sincerely
Peter Cotterell
Editor IEOU
Hall 2, a £5 million exhibition hall, the largest in Leeds, is now being built alongside the Royal Armouries Museum.
Hall 2 is due for completion April 2007 and increases available exhibition space at the Royal Armouries to over 27,000 square feet (2500 square metres) as well as complementing the existing range of five galleries and meetings space. There is a secure 1,650 space car park, an on-site 130 bed Express by Holiday Inn hotel, another 700 hotel bedrooms within a five minute walk and another 5,500+ in the rest of Leeds.
Show-rounds are being arranged for organisers of conferences, corporate hospitality, parties and exhibitions in early 2007.
Tel: 0113 220 1990
Fax: 0113 220 1997
e-mail: enquiries@rai-events.co.uk
Visit: www.rai-events.co.uk
A new events venue for up to 4,000 delegates theatre style has opened at the Disneyland Resort, Paris.
Giving an area of 6,500 square metres (69,000 sq ft) the new space is 130 metres long and 50 metres wide with a wall height of 4 metres and a maximum ceiling height (top of the triangle) of 12 metres.
Other capacities are 3,500 for a sit down banquet and 6,000 for a buffet.
Tel: + 33 (0) 1 60 45 75 00
Fax: + 33 (0) 1 60 45 76 91
e-mail: dlp.business@disney.com
Visit: www.drpbusiness.com
Mocha is an award-winning creative team working with clients in the corporate, association, charity and government sectors. We use film, video, dvd and cd-Rom to create cost-effective solutions for internal and external communications, marketing, sales, public relations, promotions, tenders and bids, and from conception through filming, editing and production.
Recent projects have included filming large conferences and events, promotion of venues, video installations and corporate documentaries and films.
Contact us for an initial no obligation discussion.
Tel: 0151 706 0761 Fax: 0151 706 0762
e-mail: info@mocha.tv
Visit: www.mocha.tv
A new 12 day Diploma in Conference Organisation (DCO) qualification has been launched by the Society of Event Organisers (SEO) for 2007.
This comprises the four current days of the SEO Certificate in Conference Organisation (CCO) and eight additional and mainly practical days held as a summer school at a variety of London venues in August 2007. Delegates already holding the CCO qualification can just take the eight day summer session to sit for the DCO exam. The CCO is being held in Manchester on a residential and non-residential basis this August and in London (non-residential) starting September.
Fees for DCO run from £1,460 to £2,940 plus VAT.
Tel: 01767 316255 Fax: 01767 316430
e-mail: info@eou.org
Visit: www.seoevent.co.uk
o Event Organisers Update (EOU) for those running UK based conferences and seminars.
www.eou.org.uko Corporate Hospitality and Party Update (CHPU) for those organising client hospitality and parties.
www.eou.org.uko Association Update (AU) for association organisers.
www.eou.org.uko Exhibition Update (EU) for organisations that exhibit themselves.
www.eou.org.uko Live Marketing News (LMN) for live marketers.
www.livemarketingnews.como Association News (AN) for those who associate.
www.associationnews.org.uk
A 100-word announcement costs from £95 in this section of International Event Organisers Update (IEOU) and reaches 12,000 organisers.
To download full details and a booking form visit www.eou.org.uk Alternatively call (44) 1767 316255 or fax to (44) 1767 316430.
For more information please contact the organisers directly. You are advised to check that events are appropriate to your needs and still running before finalising travel plans. IEOU only lists the main international exhibitions and events specific to the events market – there are however lots of smaller country-specific presentations and travel industry events that can deliver useful information to organisers.
28-30 BARCELONA EIBTM exhibition
www.eibtm.com
27-29 ABU DHABI GIBTM exhibition
www.reedtravelexhibitions.com
17-19 FRANKFURT IMEX exhibition
www.imex-frankfurt.com
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