By Kathy Bergen | The dwindling SuperComm telecommunications trade show is canceling its
2010 exhibition at McCormick Place, which had been set for October.
The cancellation comes after the show’s manager, Reed Exhibitions, pulled out, citing financial projections for the show. The move does not reflect unhappiness with McCormick Place, a spokesman said.
It is “a fine venue,” said Michael Snyder, a spokesman for the Telecommunications Industry Association, made up of equipment vendors and manufacturers. TIA co-sponsors the show with the US Telecom Association, made up of carriers.
The show drew only 6,473 attendees last year at McCormick Place. No projections were available for 2010.
The sponsoring organizations have not decided yet whether to try to mount the show in the future, Snyder said. The show, which launched in 1988, has been held in various cities and under varying names. At its 2000 peak, in Atlanta, it attracted more than 50,000 attendees.
Ordinarily, I’d be criticizing greedy McPier officials or union bloodsuckers, but this show was a casually of the economy and its thunder was stolen by other shows.
Are you sure our wonderful unionized labor and the many competitive price advantages it offers played no role in their decision? I mean, look how wonderful the CTA’s union workers made Chicago’s transit system on Monday morning.
Remind us all again how much better off we are with unions?
What kind of irresponsible business group would consider a trade show in Chicago when it could be done in Orlando for a fraction of the cost?
“The cancellation comes after the show’s manager, Reed Exhibitions, pulled out, citing financial projections for the show. The move does not reflect unhappiness with McCormick Place, a spokesman said.”
The rates that McPier are charging factor directly into the financial projections. I would say it does actually reflect some level of unhappiness with McCormick Place.
Why don’t we cancel the employment of the dozens of McPier employees who make in excess of 100k per year. There’s plenty of unemployed people who I’m sure would do a better job and appreciate having a job.
Unions bankrupted GM and Chrysler.
Unions are bankrupting the federal government with the outrageous salaries and unfathomable life-time benefits for a group of workers that are generally slackers.
Unions are bankrupting the state governments for the same reasons as the federal government.
Unions are bankrupting city and municipal governments for the same reasons as above.
Unions are bakrupting school districts for the same reasons as ab ove except that most teachers are not slackers but those who are are (10% ??) protected by the unions.
Unions are driving organizations from doing business in Chicago
Andy Stern spends more time in the WH than any other entity and has Obama eating out of the palm of his hand as Obama wants to increase the number of federal employees — read union — by 10 – 20 %.
There is one common factor in all of these bankruptcy issues — unions. Maybe the likes of Andy Stern should go the way of Jimmy Hoffa.
oh daley, I cant wait until you loose in the next election. youve destroyed this city by your greed. i hope you, and all the people in this city go down with this sinking ship. All you people from chicago are arrogant and greedy yuppies.
NAVYFLYER09 | February 9, 2010 1:05 PM
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Lotta “facts” from this guy. No links to prove it however. Just conjecture I guess.
Where is the least unionized state in the country? South Carolina. Is that right to work state doing any better than union states? The last half of 2009 SC had anywhere between 11.7 and 12.6 percent unemployment. Illinois – 10.4 – 11 percent. (http://www.bls.gov/EAG/eag.sc.htm) So yeah, I can see how the unions are hurting Americans. I guess Navy flyers don’t approve of pensions for retired union members but do approve of them for retired military.
I doubt you flew for the Navy and I doubt you could even fly a kite .Union labels put bread on our tables .It is proven that the fees charged by these companies at Mc pier and not the union wage is causing the shows to move .Time to audit the books and get to the root of it .Wont happen because too many connected people would be running for high ground.
Actually, if you’ve noticed, most other Rust Belt cities have struggled in the years since Mayor Daley took over Chicago in the late 80s. Chicago is still vibrant and strong, and a lot of that has to do with his administration. I’ve lived in cities with no leadership and they are truly rudderless ships, never sure of which direction to go in. Maybe Daley hasn’t been dead on with everything he’s done, but anyone who actually thinks Chicago would have been better off without him is, quite frankly, an idiot.
All you union bashers, now just cut it out! We’re talking about tasks here that require a serious amount of professional expertise and training! Like plugging those extension cords into the wall…if done incorrectly, there would be dire consequences..like the cord could get tangled! And that person whose hauling in your crate full of feather dusters at $220 per hour? Well there’s a vast wealth of knowledge and training behind all that stuff like physics and structural load theory so sophisticated that it’s amazing you didn’t severely injure yourself loading those feather dusters into your vehicle before bringing to the McCormick loading dock!
So remember that utilizing this unionized labor is such a necessary element to your continued good health when dealing in those trade shows…because failing to do so could result in a couple of broken legs!
If you work in the industry (and no I am not employeed by the union at all) you would know that any show that goes from 50,000 attendees to less then 7,000 attendees in 9 years would have to pull the plug….
If union scale, and McCormick rates, were driving out this show, it would have been rebooked in one of those lovely “right to work” states. But that’s not the case. As the article points out, this particular industry, and show, are “dwindling,” and the show is cancelled, not moved.
Alex (12:53pm) is right, this show is victim of the economy.
I’m usually quick to blame the unions for Chicago’s trade show troubles, but that’s not the case here. SuperComm/NXTcomm, as a part of its regular operation, rotates through cities. It’s not like the organizers are moving the show from Chicago to elsewhere. The show is being outright canceled for 2010. The show was already having in trouble in 2009. The 2009 edition was originally scheduled for this past summer but ended up postponing till October due to attendance trouble.
Oh, what a great idea, break the unions and privatize everything. We see how well that worked with the parking meters. No longer do we have union workers servicing the meters, the rates are increasing, the few owners and management are going to make hundreds of millions of dollars while the workers make nothing and leave for a better job as soon as they can. LAZ doesn’t care if the meters work or not. The city did a MUCH better job running the meters, and it was CHEAPER.
First, of all, the military is NOT represented by any union. They volunteer to serve and protect everyone’s rights to freedom. Many have made the ultimate sacrifice and many others have suffered severe physical and emotional injuries. They have put everything on the line for this country. I doubt that any others groups have risked what these brave men and women risk. They do so very low pay, being away from their loved one for months on end, etc. Those who have made it a career 20+ years deserve every penny in benefits they can get.
What have the likes of unions, politicians and most government workers (non-defense related) suffered and endured for this great country? NOTHING!! Unions are sponges that just keep taking and taking and taking. This is especially true of the union leaders.
For the idiot who questioned my military service, all I got to say is have you ever tried to land a Navy F-4 or F-14 on an aircraft carrier at night in a storm with armament attached to it? I don’t think so!
And the facts of what unions are doing to most governments — federal, state and local — are most definitely true. Look at any government budget. That’s if you can read or understand numbers.
By the way, I did not make the Navy a career and get no long-term benefits, except for those few provided by the GI Bill.
chimmyChan: here’s the thing though, ousting daley won’t solve a thing. Unions are protected on a national level, in various ways. Something needs to happen in congress to change the power that unions have. They may have made sense in the 30’s when we didn’t have such strict safety regulations and a min. wage…but no more.
The idiot is navyflier09. I see you don’t say that you did anything on an aircraft carrier. If you are content with military pay and benefits and are not willing to organize to increase deserved benefits, that is your problem. For years the American federation of labor has tried to increase pay and benefits for the enlisted. Have you? It’s easier to gripe about things you don’t understand than try to change things.
Wee Little Tommie, trying to carry on an intelligent communication with you is like trying to talk to a rock, except that the rock has a higher IQ. Your ingnorance is only outdone by your stupidity. If you knew anything about the law and the military, you would know that the law prohibits the unionization of the military.
And even to someone as stupid as you, it should be obvious as to why that is so.
“Excuse me, Mr. President, I know that Japan just attacked us. But we can’t fight a war to protect the country now because as you recall, we are on strike.”
It is also obvious that you never served as those who never served never question those who did. So I am not going to try to prove to an ignoramous such as you what it is like to fly in the Navy and land on carriers. All I will say is that I doubt that “Wee Little Tommie” has the testicular fortitude to do any thing to protect anyone, even himself.
To help you out with what I just told, go find yourself a dictionary — it might have the word “WEBSTER’S” on it – -and look up the words “testicular” and “fortitude” and see what each of them mean. Then put the two meanings together.
The more you your garbage in public, the more the public recognizes your ignorance. The best advice for you in order to protect what litte, if any, manhood you have left, is to keep your mouth shut and go back to your boyfriend.
Unlike pretend NavyFlyer, I don’t have to brag about my service. Nor do I have to like the way the government treats those of us who served.
Have another temper tantrum. I’ll check back in an hour.
I’m not certain the domestic telecom industry could find 50,000 people in their ranks. What once was a growing field has been shrinking steadily. In a few years you’ll be able to hold telecom industry conventions in the backroom of any large restaurant.
Just look for the Union Label.
BUST THE UNIONS . . .
. . . AND WATCH CHICAGO PROSPER !
Hey Navy Flier, stop talking like you sacrificed so much. If you wanted to serve the country, pick a branch that puts their neck on the line. Not stay on a ship in case the Afghan Armada strikes. The navy is for men who want to join the armed services to put something on their resume but are too scared to go to war. Hey, thanks for joining the navy and doing… well nothing.
As the article points out, this particular industry, and show, are “dwindling,” and the show is cancelled, not moved.
That is correct in this case. Bigger picture though … trade shows, especially industrial ones, have been a dying elephant for years. Their utility as marketing communication and sales tools have steadily declined. Some will go on, others will go the way of SuperComm. This has been apparent to any business observer who cares to see. However that did not stop politicians and their “build it and they will come” mentality from projects like McCormick Place expansion. Or the 3rd airport of Bobby Rush and Gov Quinn that “we” all really really must have. Beware. Seach MidAmerica airport and check out what that kind of “grand vision” can cost taxpayers.