Earlier this year I was pleased to have been able to join a small group of exceptional individuals at a small invite-only think tank held in NYC focused on the future of play and the toy industry. The subject of this meeting is now the cover story of the current issue of Playthings Magazine, trade publication focused on the toy industry.

The conference, entitled Building Our Future New York 2009, the second in a series, was designed to unleash the creative energy of these highly intelligent people. The organizer, Richard Gottlieb, wanted to give them the opportunity to share their thoughts on a number of key issues facing the toy and play industries.

My thanks to Richard for the invite and the opportunity to learn so much from these wonderful people.
 

In 2003 I created the Austin Game Conference (now GDC Austin).  Now, seeing an integration between the toy industry, game indsutry and technology I've created the Engage! Expo® at Toy Fair taking place February 16-17, 2010 in NYC.

This is not the first Engage! but actually our 7th (the 4th annual in NYC).  Engage!® started its life in late 2006 with a focus on virtual worlds. We produced two shows a year (a Spring east coast event and a Fall west coast event) during 2007, 08 and 09.  We changed the name from Virtual Worlds to Engage! late last year. 

Since 1994 I've had a front row seat as kid and youth entertainment and play patterns have changed.  This has accelerated in the last 3-4 years as they become more digital and move away from toys and traditional media.

The toy industry and childrens entertainment business needs to evolve and establish "digital play", engaging development and product expertise. This includes an understanding of online play and mobile play and the integration of these technology-types into their "traditional" product lines. I've watched as these companies started repositioning themselves, learning how to integrate digital technologies. 

We are still at the beginning. This is still a learning process, with most of these companies just getting started.  By comparison the video game industry is already there.  They by and large understand digital. They have to - it is the cornerstone of their business.  I believe these two traditionally separate industries are heading directly toward each other and there are a lot of new opportunities as they do so.

Earlier this year we signed a deal with the Toy Industry Association which co-locates our Engage! Expo with their 107 year old American International Toy Fair in 2010.  What we have created is entirely unique and extremely functional.  Engage! at Toy Fair is the one and only place that brings toy industry and children's entertainment companies together with leading technology and game companies.  Our goal:  bring these groups together and watch business blossom.  I consider it the dawn of the play industry.

Last month I was fortunate enough to be able to take time off from work and travel. I did not do a whole lot of planning. In fact, other than arranging for a flight into Europe from the US I did very little advance planning. I knew I wanted my first stop to be Athens to visit the Acropolis and the Parthenon.

The trip turned into a fascinating adventure. I visited The Giza Pyramids, Pompeii (the rest of Italy was done on previous trips), The Parthenon, The Nile, The Valley of the Kings, Karnak temple, Luxor temple, The Dead Sea, The Negev and more. With little pre planning I followed my heart and wound up at major historical sites that I read about when I was a kid. Specifically, monuments that have with-stood the test of time - most of them architectural wonders and the Dead Sea, a natural wonder. With only two weeks available to me there were certainly sites that could not be included. But then, that leaves room for further adventures.

Select photos can be found via the links below.  See previous blog posts as well for additional location details

Waiting For A Lift The Negev

Dead Sea

Dead Sea shorts

The Israeli game industry meetup

Pompeii

Positano, Italy

Luxor, Egypt - West Bank

Catching a ride in egypt outside of luxor

Talking on phone while driving outside luxor egypt

Karnak Temple In Luxor, Egypt

Luxor Temple In Luxor, Egypt

Giza Pyramids, Egypt and Giza Again

The Nile

Rural Upper Egypt Near The Nile

Athens, Greece

After two weeks of travel and stops in Greece, Egypt, Italy and Israel I'm finally back in the USA.  It was a great trip (see previous posts for photos and highlights).  Waiting in the Dulles/ DC airport for the connection back to Austin.  It will be nice to be home. 

Dead Sea Shorts. Wore these while floating in the dead sea Thursday evening. Shot is taken the next morning about 12 hours later. They have enough Dead Sea minerals in them that they stand up on their own. Can you tell I'm facinated by this body of water. Simply one of the most fantatic places on the planet earth.

From Wikipedia: The Dead Sea (Hebrew: יָם הַ‏‏מֶ‏ּ‏לַ‏ח‎, Yām Ha-Melaḥ, "Sea of Salt"; Arabic: البَحْر المَيّت‎, al-Baḥr El-Mayyit, "Dead Sea";) is a salt lake between Israel and the West Bank to the west, and Jordan to the east. It is 422 metres (1,385 ft) below sea level,[2] and its shores are the lowest point on the surface of Earth on dry land. The Dead Sea is 378 m (1,240 ft) deep, the deepest hypersaline lake in the world. It is also one of the world's saltiest bodies of water, with 33.7% salinity. Only Lake Assal (Djibouti), Garabogazköl and some hypersaline lakes of the McMurdo Dry Valleys in Antarctica (such as Don Juan Pond and perhaps Lake Vanda) have a higher salinity. It is 8.6 times as salty as the ocean.[3] This salinity makes for a harsh environment where animals cannot flourish, hence its name. The Dead Sea is 67 kilometres (42 mi) long and 18 kilometres (11 mi) wide at its widest point. It lies in the Jordan Rift Valley, and its main tributary is the Jordan River.