TRAFFIC Cancels San Francisco Show, Announces Ritz Carlton as October Venue

I had been strongly considering attending the TRAFFIC show in San Francisco in March. I love the Bay Area, and it would be a great reason to visit again. Unfortunately, this trip is not going to happen.

Rick Schwartz just announced that the previously scheduled San Francisco TRAFFIC show, which was to take place right around the time of the ICANN conference also being held in San Francisco, would not be taking place.

According to Rick in an email that was sent this morning, “after an exhaustive search and then sending out a poll a few weeks ago to see what most folks thought, it became clear that the interest was not really there to have a meaningful and impactful show and on the heals of the other shows, just did not make sense.”

In other better news, Rick also announced the venue of the October show in Ft. Lauderdale – the newly opened Ritz Carlton. The conference will be held from October 16 – 19, 2011, and it will be the 22nd TRAFFIC conference.

I can’t say for certain that I will be there, but it is highly likely. Registration opens soon, and I will let you know when it does, since the prices are generally much better the earlier you book.

Elliot Silver
Elliot Silver
About The Author: Elliot Silver is an Internet entrepreneur and publisher of DomainInvesting.com. Elliot is also the founder and President of Top Notch Domains, LLC, a company that has closed eight figures in deals. Please read the DomainInvesting.com Terms of Use page for additional information about the publisher, website comment policy, disclosures, and conflicts of interest. Reach out to Elliot: Twitter | Facebook | LinkedIn

19 COMMENTS

  1. Why does Rick’s note focus almost entirely on the location?? Who cares???

    This event should be about our industry – speakers, auctions, vendors, new products, advice, etc. Not some exotic location with lame speakers like Don King.

    Im begining to think TRAFFIC has just become a PR channel for Rick and this gang of domainers.

    If I wanted to go to a great party I’d go somewhere else.

    Thanks but I’ll pass.

  2. @ dcmike77

    Location is key for me… if the conference was in Seattle, I probably wouldn’t go… Since it’s in Florida, I probably will go. There aren’t a whole lot of other factors that go into making the decision whether I will go or not. I don’t care about the speakers, hotel, date, panels…etc. I care about the location above all, because I know if it’s easy to get to, my business friends and colleagues will be there, and then it makes it worthwhile.

    If you haven’t been to a domain conference before (correct me if I am wrong), I don’t know how you can judge.

  3. on a lighter side DRT in Bahamas no longer has any jelous cock blocking competition in March.

    notice rik said something about traffic being luxury.
    clearly DRT is the new luxury conf kid in town.

    now let’s get back to work kids.

  4. It is disappointing that Rick cancelled SF.
    But, we can understand he needs people to commit.

    With so much going on in Jan/Feb/March, he probably
    made a smart decision.

    I’m sure the Miami meeting will be excellent.
    If Oversee put a show in Miami to compete with Traffic,
    it would similar to staying at the Ritz compared
    to the Holiday Inn.

    Anyone who has attended different tradeshows
    and meeting, it is very obvious that Traffic is
    the premier meeting.

    With Rick cancelling SF, Ammar should send
    Rick and Howard a nice ‘thank you’ gift.

  5. “if the conference was in Seattle, I probably wouldn’t go”–why?

    Oh well, good to know for Rob’s Epik conference.

    Let have a conference in the middle of the dessert.

  6. I guess it’s never good to have to see a conference get canceled, but this is good news for Domain Roundtable in the Bahamas. I was worried that the other conferences happening around that time might discourage people from attending, but this can only help.

    Of course, I’m biased, because that’s the one I’m attending. It’s a bit of a splurge, but I found a great deal on airfare because I booked it months ago. 🙂

  7. Did you look at the hotel rates for the Roundtable hotel at Atlantis? $400 a night base which is bad enough but then add tons of mandatory add-on fees and taxes (18% + and you even pay extra for utilities! That would be an all time hotel first for me). All told that makes it OVER $500 a night! The many complaints on Trip Advisor about people feeling ripped off by all of the extra charges, grossly overpriced food etc. isn’t encouraging either even though Atlantis is a beautiful complex.

    I’ve done a lot of shows and paid $300 for a lot of nights, but sorry – $500 for questionable value is too rich for my blood. Add in the registration fee, flights, ground transportation etc and the cost (several grand) makes no sense (especially since I don’t like Nassau to begin with). Despite my issues with ths venue, I have always liked Roundtable and hope to go future DRT shows but this one is a definite no go for me.

    • @ Jonathan

      The Atlantis is a world class hotel/resort, and the prices are commiserate with that. If the cost of the hotel is too much, perhaps you should look for a room off the premises? I think the reserved rooms are in the Cove, and there are also other levels of hotels at Atlantis that may be less expensive.

  8. A quick note before staying at another hotel – when I was researching Atlantis before, I remember reading something about the Cove only being accessible to people staying at the Cove (there are 4 or 5 other hotels on the property).

    This might be to keep the crowds (and kids) down – the other parts of the hotel get a lot of traffic from cruise ships, and the Cove (and its pool) are marketed as an adult-only zone.

    However, I can’t remember whether the restricted access was for just the pool, or the entire premises. Anyway, I would check with DRT/Atlantis first, to make sure you’ll actually have access if staying at another hotel. I thought about it, but I didn’t for that reason.

  9. @ Jeff

    LOL… nothing personal against Seattle. It happens to be far away, I have no family or friends there, and I’ve never really had a desire to visit (rainy) Seattle.

  10. @ Adi

    It’s in line with other tradeshows. It’s not cheap to put on a conference of this size, and like any business, they should be entitled to make a profit.

  11. No disrespect intended, but the Loews is a far superior hotel and conference venue than the Ritz Carlton.

    The Ritz Carlton, located a block north of the Loews at the intersection of Lincoln Road & Collins Avenue, bears the more eloquent signature brand, but pretty much remains the very old DiLido Hotel, warmed over with some comparatively modest RC updates and pool deck amenities. Even some of the old DiLido signage has yet to be removed, almost a decade after the conversion. Lacks the look, feel and character that makes the brand special. I know the venue well. My corporate office was located on the property for 10 years.

    Curious choice, other than perhaps a little sci-sci brandwaving. But bet you can the portfolio that it’ll still be an outstanding event. (Or so I’m told 🙂

    Through the looking glass:
    http://www.pbase.com/donboyd/image/118980030

  12. Ooops, a Dyslexia moment. Last paragraph should read:

    “Curious choice, other than perhaps a little sci-sci brandwaving. But you can bet the portfolio that it’ll still be an outstanding event.”

    Sorry.

LEAVE A REPLY

Please enter your comment!
Please enter your name here

Recent Posts

I Would Love to Go Back in Time

1
NameBio does a very good job of tracking down and reporting domain name auction results. Domain investors aren't the only people who use NameBio...

Dynadot Now Allowing Imported Leads

3
Domain investors have another option to transact domain name sales. Dynadot Founder and CEO Todd Han announced that Dynadot customers can now import their...

Challenge of Buying a Domain Name from a Big Company

1
There are many large companies that own domain names that aren't being used. This can be due to corporate acquisitions and mergers, killed products...

Hopeful New US Admin Will be Good for Domain Investments

7
As you know, the United States held its Presidential election yesterday, and Donald Trump won the election. In addition to this win, the Republican...

Boost Part 2: The Roller Coaster of Domain Investing

1
A month ago, I shared the results of my first month with Afternic "Boost" enabled on my account. Technically, the Boost features were previously...