The economy, mostly. But trade shows have been on the decline since 2001. The economy was the final straw. The internet is honestly cheaper - with social networking and high-tech sites, what is the ROI of a trade show nowadays? Hard to decide. - David Bisset (sn)

I don't know! :( But this will be my first and last MacWorld experience! - Daynah

Odd that they announced it so early .... - Michele Neylon

Bloggers killed MacWorld becausethey will print anything Apple tells them to and Apple can talk to all the bloggers it wants back on campus for a lot less money than at MacWorld. - Robert Scoble

I have been covering the economy and conventions and trade shows on ConventionInsider.com I also just came from IAEE which is the trade show for trade shows. The economy is hitting the industry hard. - Jim Turner

Al Gore,he wants to save a lot of energy. - Steve Chou

I've heard some speculation that the effect pre-event rumors had on Apple's stock prices might have been a factor. - Brandon

Trade shows are expensive, they have a massive following, especially among bloggers so they don't need to go to MacWorld anymore. - Gavin

is it related to health issue withstevejobs? I doubt the economy, they have 25 billions in cash... - scales

That kinda makes sence, Robert. But the economy calls for more advertising and PR dollars to be spend, not less. - Roberto Bonini

The internet. The internet killed User Groups nearly a decade ago. Now it's so easy to broadly disseminate information to the general population that MacWorld is just a fan convention. - Kevin Fox

It's a combination of the economy (David Bissets point) and the fact that bloggers are blogging anything Apple tells them to (Robert Scoble's point). - Paul Vereijken

is this not about control? Apple gets the same amount of press from their music events, which they host, than macworld announcements. they can do it cheaper AND with more control - John Head from twhirl

MacWorld killed Christmas sales cos everyone not buying until after MacWorld - Shazron Abdullah

scales: everyone is cutting back, no matter how much money one has in the (stable?) bank. Apple has already announced they are continuing R&D spending and not so far haven't cut much jobs. Some would consider this a logical step. - David Bisset (sn)

Who really killed MacWorld? iPod sock makers... - Johnny Worthington

i dont know... perhaps their big announcements just don't cut it this year? with all the iphone hype etc they don't have much to announce? just more upgrades?? - Terry O'Fee

John: it is all about control. Oh and ROI. Now do you see why bloggers are worth more than $500? - Robert Scoble

in their press release they said that it is part of their ongoing strategy, and due to increasing popularity of the internet and their store gets 3.5 million visit a week, with a web audience reaching over a 100 million people around the world.. - scales

This is obviously the work of the Jewish Illuminati group lead by none other than Michael Dell. /sarcasm - Dean Clark

trade show biz is in trouble... MacWorld was such a huge event, I'm little surprised...but trade show economics don't add up anymore..Turn out the lights when you leave... - mark ivey

I don't think money has been an issue,it is very tiny compared to Apple's giant ad fee.\ - Steve Chou

really, the fanbois make enough hype for them now as it is. they don't need big events. they have their own street team now. :P - Terry O'Fee

I don't believe it's the last. Apple will find an excuse in the coming year(s) to bring it back. Steve Jobs won't turn away from the hero worship service. - Rudy Amid

I'd add the Internet, video streaming, etc. There's nothing like face-to-face events; those are still needed, but there are more efficient and cost effective ways to spread the word about, promote, or teach something. Schools are encountering this shift in reality too. - Loren Heiny

Still can't figure out why Steve Jobs won't attend all of sudden,is he sick again? - Steve Chou

@rudy - hahah. actually you're right. i see it now. give it two years or so and boom! our savour! he's back! with something brand new! *cue wallets* - Terry O'Fee

The return on trade events has always been nebulous even in good times, in tighter times its even more of a highly visible expenditure. When people the industry over, are losing jobs visions of your management "networking" with martinis loses some of its appeal. - Robert

And it's not only Apple that is saving money... Seriously, who can afford to go to these events? If it's only the very top of the pile, then better for Apple to host it locally, and better for the attendees cause they are getting better value for their time and money. - Johnny Worthington

Macworld is Apple's biggest AD every year,if they want to save money,why start it now,I think 25 billion cash is a huge amount. - Steve Chou

I agree with many of the above posts. Apple is able to muster its own hype and no longer needs a major launching event to release products (which seems to have been a major point of Macworld in the past years). Also, it seems that the environment is changing and little real news comes out of Macworld other than new Apple products which is forcing them to ready products for this specific annual date. - Brandon Titus

I might buy if someone said that MacWorld is expensive for Axiotron, but I have to turn my nose up at any idea that it's too costly for Apple, my piddly shares be darned. That's like saying a pack of gum is too expensive for me. I can maybe accept that the accountants were saying there was nothing in it for them; they'd say things like that. - MiniMage, sheeple of FF

I prefer to think this is the start of something new, not a death alone. Nerds will need to find another way to "tech vacation". :) - David Bisset (sn)

Steve Jobs has always hated MacWorld. - Oldengrey (Jay)

I guess Violet Blue really frightened him. http://news.cnet.com/8301-13... - MiniMage, sheeple of FF

Excuse me? Who said Macworld was dead? It might sound bonkers but Apple are (were?) a miniscule part of the event that is Macworld! Yes, we'll all miss getting stoked up because there is no SteveNote but come on, the Apple booth didn't really give you anything you couldn't find at an Apple store - more thoughts here - http://myownreality.eu/?p=589 - Don McAllister

Don: without Apple MacWorld is dead. Period. - Robert Scoble

I detect some Freudian language here. It's not MacWorld whose death we fear. - Tim Ostler

Apple has a great strategy. Announce special events, broadcast/stream them from their campus to Apple Stores around the world. And after the new product is announce, say... and you can buy it and take it home today at this special Keynote price. Tell me that they won't be able to pack their stores with this type of presentation. - JosephLew1s

Who killed Macworld? Easy. The economy and the overall decline and horrible cost-effectiveness of old-school marketing and prospect/customer acquistion. - Jeff Ventura

I think you're right, these events are old school. The mac fanbois who won't get their yearly fix of steve are whats making these posts amusing, though. - Terry O'Fee

As a former trade show director, Apple was nowhere to be seen, and our show was education based... a target market for them. We went from a great symbiotic relationship to nothing in one year. So this does not surprise me. Their excuse at the time: we don't need shows, we have our stores. - Matson Breakey

another vote for the economy... when (and if) economic times get better, apple will be back. big shows offer things no blogger can offer: spectacle and scale... things that come from tens of thousands of people converging in one place at one time. everyone loves a good show. - .LAG liked that

Honestly as a non apple fan boy I think they are a lame company in a lot of ways. I have no idea what their relationship is with MacWorld. It could be Apple wants a cut / a bigger cut of the profits from the event. But using this move by Apple as a sign of a trend in tradeshows in general in nonsense. It is a much longer and involved discussion than this thread. - Rick Calvert

I blame MSG - Bwana ☠

I do agree that MacWorld may not be the best place for the industry or commercial entities to conjugate to find out new products and network. Let's don't forget the other major target audiences for MacWorld, and that is the Macintosh users and other Apple product users. Without MacWorld, where will these users go to find out and touch the latest greatest accessories and software for their favorite product (the Mac, iPhone, iPod, etc.)? I see MacWorld as a celebration of Macintosh ownership. - Vinko