Well, that National Post thing went out the door a little early, so in return I give you a look at another story dated (echo chamber) FROM THE FUTURE ... In tomorrow's Austin American-Statesman is, or will be, a story by their gaming writer, Lilly Rockwell. She talked to Michael Gallagher, described as "one of the game industry's top lobbyists" but not the president of the Entertainment Software Association. Curious. Anyhow, we're familiar with the fact Texas is courting developers with incentives, and Gov. Rick Perry's appearance at E3 says as much. But tucked in the story is this little nugget:

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The recent announcement of a bigger and better E3 left many wondering if the other North American gaming shows would be left shaking in their boots. The people at Pax? They're not bothered by it. E for All, however, may be a different story. Speaking to Big Download, IDG World Expo CEO Mary Dolahe was asked about the future of the trade show and had this to say:

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The E3 Media and Business Summit is dead. Long live the E3 Expo, which returns to the Los Angeles Convention Centre from June 2nd to 4th next year, with "all qualified computer and video game industry audiences, including international and U.S.-based media, analysts, retailers, developers and business partners" in tow.

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The ESA is giving E3 another go in 2009, still trying to find the sweet spot between the ear-splitting boom of the old E3, the painful, panicked confusion of E3 2007 and the dry as dust E3 2008. With the most recent E3 Media and Business Summit suffering from executive and public criticism that the show was an unqualified dud, the ESA may be looking to shift the show back to early June, a time that industry planners think is better compromise between the original E3 and the previous two iterations.

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Yesterday, we posted a letter from former ESA boss Doug Lowenstein chastising the gaming press for giving everyone's favourite soon-to-be-former-lawyer Jack Thompson, claiming that we "treated him as if he was a credible, fair minded critic" (we did?) and overcovered him (and Crecente admitted that on that point, it's probably true - at times). Well, they've shot back at GamePolitics, succinctly calling Lowenstein's assertions 'bull.' You can't combat a bully by sticking your head in the sand, notes GP:

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I can't imagine there is much love lost between the former president of the Entertainment Software Association and soon to be former attorney Jack Thompson. While Thompson often publicly vilified Doug Lowenstein, once even calling him the Goebbels of the industry, Lowenstein always declined to respond.

When news of Thompson's upcoming disbarment hit Kotaku, Lowenstein (who now works outside the industry) took the time to write me an email asking that I and other game journalists take this moment not to celebrate but to reflect on how culpable we were in helping create Thompson.

That letter for your consideration after the jump. Personally, I think that many (including Kotaku) over covered Thompson at times. But I also think it would be a disservice to completely ignore Thompson's legal proceedings which, at times, did find a home in the mainstream media. We even tried, at times, to apply an investigative slant to his coverage.

Ignoring a problem, I think, does not usually make it go away.

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It's almost time for this years "Nite To Unite for Kids" dinner, the ESA Foundation's annual fund raising event for children's charities. The event honors members of the industry who have made a great impact on the lives of children with the ESA Champion Award, with past recipients including George Lucas, Dan DeMatteo of GameStop, Nintendo's Howard Lincoln, ad Sony's Ken Kutaragi. Fixing a grave oversight, this year's recipient is the "Walt Disney of electronic gaming", Shigeru Miyamoto.

"Miyamoto-san truly has defined video games as we know them today," said Michael D. Gallagher, president and CEO of the ESA, which represents U.S. computer and video game publishers. "With his remarkable creativity and passion for fun, family entertainment, Miyamoto-san and his team at Nintendo have produced many iconic games that appeal to audiences of all ages."

A gala dinner and silent auction will be held on Wednesday, October 22nd at the Westin St. Francis in San Francisco, with tickets running $500 per person. A little pricey, but for a good cause honoring a pretty great guy. Hit the jump for details.

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The Entertainment Software Association issued a press release today that for once wasn't scolding a U.S. state for pursuing unconstitutional game legislation. Instead, they take a moment to applaud the sentencing of two convicted software pirates - Kevin Fuchs of New York and Kifah Maswadi of Florida, both of whom received prison terms for their efforts at taking away money from hardworking developers and publishers.

"We commend the U.S. Department of Justice Criminal Division's Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section, the U.S. Attorney's Offices for the Western District of North Carolina and the Eastern District of Virginia and the Federal Bureau of Investigation for their work in bringing these criminals to justice," said Michael D. Gallagher, CEO of the ESA... "These decisions illustrate, once again, that game piracy will not be tolerated and the extent at which these criminals will be prosecuted. The ESA and its members will continue to support law enforcement's efforts to protect the intellectual property of our industry."

It's just another friendly way of saying don't f*** with the ESA.

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Kenneth Doroshow, former executive at the Recording Industry Association of America and senior counsel to the United States Department of Justice, has been named the Entertainment Software Association's new General Counsel, the association announced today.

Doroshow, who start his new position at the ESA in September, replacing Gail Markels who was let go when the ESA's New York office was shuttered in March.

"The ESA continues to attract and recruit the brightest individuals. Ken has remarkable expertise in the protection of intellectual property and an excellent understanding of the increasingly connected, dynamic, and innovative entertainment environment we live in," said Michael D. Gallagher, CEO of the ESA, which represents U.S. computer and video game publishers. "The computer and video game industry will be well-protected with Ken's guidance and I know he will help facilitate our growth to even greater heights."

One can't help but wonder if Doroshow's appointment, the announcement of which comes on the heels of some pretty draconian piracy enforcement in the UK, could signal a change in the approach the world's software associations, including the Entertainment Software Association, is taking in their anti-piracy efforts.

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Sega US boss Simon Jeffery wasn't the only big name in the industry who felt that this year's E3 Expo lacked a certain livelihood. Former Microsoft tattoo bearer and current EA Sports head man Peter Moore says that last week's event was "soulless and lacking an epicenter". All is not lost though. In a post on his official blog late last night, Moore assures us that the problems can be fixed, and that getting the fans involved is the key.

We're confident that we can work with the ESA to make this right. There are important meetings ahead that we think will be substantive and be productive in finding the right path forward.

Let's invite the community. With the right planning, involving our biggest fans in E3 would bring back some of the raw passion the event has lost.

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