E3 is back bigger and better than ever this year, and along with all the fanfare are a couple of other really awesome additions in the form of the presence of several charities. The ESA formally announced tat they are partnering up with “Pro vs. GI Joe.”, a nonprofit military support organization that sets up sets up real-time video game competitions that pit professional athletes against celebrities and military personnel stationed all over the world. You can catch these guys in one of several booths on the show floor.

The American Red Cross will also be on hand at E3 for blood donation on June 4 from 10:00am - 4:00pm. You need an appointment to do this, so if you're feeling generous and need a break from the show floor, head over to www.givelife.org to sign yourself up.

The Esa also announced the E3 Expo 2009 T-shirt Contest, which allows people to try their hand at creating an E3 shirt. All entries will be viewable on E3 Expo's Flickr page and the winning entry will be fo rsale at E3. A portion of the proceeds will also go to The Midnight Mission. If you want to try entering, email your submission (JPGs no larger than 5MB will be accepted) to esa@theESA.com with the subject line "E3 T-Shirt Contest." This is really cool -- I wonder what type of design could win?

E3 EXPO GIVES BACK TO THE COMMUNITY

Premier Trade Show for the Entertainment Software Industry Puts Spotlight on Charity
 
Washington, DC – May 6, 2009 – The Entertainment Software Association (ESA) today announced several charitable programs scheduled to take place on-site at the Los Angeles Convention Center (LACC) during this year’s Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3 Expo) trade show on June 2-4 that give the gaming industry the opportunity to reciprocate goodwill to the Los Angeles area and offer support to the community.

“I’m proud we can give back to the Los Angeles-based community that has welcomed us for so many years. We felt that this would be a perfect way to let our E3 Expo attendees become personally involved in charitable efforts, and allow them to make a difference,” said Michael D. Gallagher, president and CEO of the Entertainment Software Association, the trade association that represents the U.S. computer and video game publishers and owns the E3 Expo.

The ESA has partnered with the nonprofit military support organization “Pro vs. GI Joe.” The organization sets up real-time video game competitions between professional athletes and celebrities and military personnel stationed all over the world, via the Internet and in person, as a means of support in a fun, interactive way. At this year’s E3 Expo, Pro vs. GI Joe will have several stations set up within their military tent, enabling attendees of the Expo to “throw down” a personalized video challenge to the troops via their “GI Joe Throw” program. These videos will be uploaded to the organization’s Web site for troops around the world to accept their challenge. The organization is also planning to hold one Pro vs. GI Joe video game competition per day between a pro and/or celebrity and local military personnel. In addition, Pro vs. GI Joe will also unveil their exclusive Military Online Gaming (MOG) site.

“E3 Expo is the perfect platform for Pro vs. GI Joe to connect with the gaming community in a truly fun and interactive way,” said Greg Zinone, co-founder and president of Pro vs. GI Joe. “We are thrilled to be part of the Expo to showcase that our organization is about more than just playing video games; it’s about the connection we are making through the games, something the troops absolutely love. We are honored to show the gaming community that through Pro vs. GI Joe, they now have a way to support those troops by simply doing what they already do – play video games.”

The ESA is also inviting all computer and video game enthusiasts the opportunity to create and submit an entry in the E3 Expo 2009 T-shirt Contest. The winning design will be unveiled on June 2, the opening day of the E3 Expo. The submission deadline date is May 14. Submissions will be viewable on the E3 Expo Flicker page, http://www.flickr.com/photos/E3_Expo. The official T-shirt will be available for purchase at E3 Expo and www.e3expo.com. A portion of the proceeds will be donated to The Midnight Mission, a Los Angeles-based organization that provides multiple layers of services for the local area homeless with an emphasis on developing self-sufficiency.  Entrants should send an email with an attached JPG file of their design no bigger than 5MB to esa@theESA.com with the subject line "E3 T-Shirt Contest." Please visit www.E3Expo.com for additional details and official rules.

Finally, in coordination with the American Red Cross Blood Services Region, Southern California, the ESA has organized a blood drive scheduled to take place on-site at E3 on June 4 from 10:00am - 4:00pm. Appointments will be required to donate and you can sign up online at www.givelife.org and enter E3 as the sponsor code.

Approximately 40,000 people will attend E3 Expo to witness the latest unveilings and announcements that launch the hottest video games and hardware platforms for the holiday season.

The ESA is also reminding E3 Expo attendees that hotel and travel accommodations are filling up quickly. For more information, visit the E3 Expo Web site at www.E3Expo.com.

Members of the press interested in covering E3 Expo should contact media@E3Expo.com with any additional questions.

A full list of current exhibitors is located on www.E3Expo.com. Produced by IDG World Expo, companies still interested in exhibiting at E3 Expo should contact the team at (877) 216-6264.

To stay current on E3 Expo news, follow its official Facebook presence at http://tinyurl.com/btx835 and on Twitter at www.twitter.com/E3Expo.
About E3 ExpoTM
E3 Expo is the world's premiere trade show for computer and video games and related products. The show is owned by the Entertainment Software Association (ESA), the U.S. association dedicated to serving the business and public affairs needs of the companies, publishing interactive games for video game consoles, handheld devices, personal computers, and the Internet. For more information, please visit www.E3Expo.com or www.theesa.com.
About the ESA
The Entertainment Software Association is the U.S. association dedicated to serving the business and public affairs needs of companies publishing interactive games for video game consoles, handheld devices, personal computers, and the Internet. The ESA offers services to interactive entertainment software publishers including a global anti-piracy program, owning the Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3), business and consumer research, federal and state government relations, First Amendment and intellectual property protection efforts. For more information, please visit www.theESA.com.
About IDG World Expo
IDG World Expo (www.idgworldexpo.com) is a leading producer of tradeshows and events for professionals and consumers seeking world-class education, peer-to-peer networking and one-stop comparison shopping. IDG World Expo's portfolio of conferences and events includes Entertainment For All® (E For All®), E3 Media & Business Summit, LinuxWorld Conference & Expo®, Macworld Conference & Expo®, Next Generation Data CenterTM (NGDCTM) and REVEAL Los Angeles... The Fashion & Design EventTM. IDG World Expo is a business unit of IDG, the world's leading technology media, research and event company.