Editor's Choice

China and U.S. Developers

Trade Shows. Arguably, the biggest marketing investment new development studios make is exhibiting at trade shows. In some cases, this expense may be as high as 50-60 percent of their annual marketing budget.

The exhibit space cost for a standard 10'x10' booth at U.S. shows ranges from $12 to $53 per square foot of exhibit space, so a 10'x10' space can cost from $1,200 to $5,300, whereas most U.S. shows offering 10'x10's in the $3,500-$4,000 range.

Building a booth in China is quite different than building one in the U.S, both in process and in cost. In China, you can have your booth custom built on site. Local craftsmen set up shop around your booth space and build walls, lighting, etc. right in front of you. Here's a rule of thumb: The ratio of space cost vs. booth building cost in China is 1:1, while the same ratio in the U.S. is 1:5 (minimum).

Shipping your booth to China is risky business, and expensive. Rose Faler, Account Director of AccessTCA, one of the largest exhibit companies in the world, says, "When U.S. companies choose to ship their custom booths to China for a trade show, it is a highly calculated choice. The risk of damage, loss, delays or theft is high. The transportation infrastructure in China is developing. The majority of the shipping trucks are small. Minimal storage is available, and those storage 'areas' are sometimes nothing more than a parking lot or field with a large tent overhead, and are often unprotected and not secure. Most companies prefer to work with U.S. exhibit agencies with offices or partnerships in China. These agencies work collaboratively with their Asian counterparts to achieve the marketing objectives of their clients. Generally, this approach is the most worry-free option."

Given all the booth options in China, it may make sense to rent smaller booths and custom build larger booths onsite.

Go East, Young Man
So there you have it - some basic information on how Chinese and U.S. game developers can begin partnerships with one another. If our two game cultures can better understand how things work in each other's world, the chances of clashing will be minimized, and collaboration will prevail.

Doug Mealy is founder and president of Online Marketing and Public Relations, and he has launched 280 computer games and managed 130 trade show exhibits, both industry records. He can be reached at dmealy@om-pr.com.

Horace Xiong is CCP Games' first Chinese employee as Chief China Representative and Asia Business Development Manager. He successfully introduced pioneering MMOG EVE Online to the China market and started the CCP Asia office in Shanghai. He can be reached at horace@ccpgames.com.