First Sony Computer Entertainment of America lays-off 80 to 100 people, then 90 percent of NOA's marketing department quits and now the woman behind the scenes of E3 has jumped ship to join the IDG World Expo.

Carolyn Rauch, the former senior vice president of the Entertainment Software Association, was named vice president of event development today for the company that puts on the Entertainment for All and Macworld, among other expos.

Rauch has been with the ESA almost since its inception and was most recently in charge of organizing the E3 Media & Business Summit.

When I spoke to the now former president of the ESA, Doug Lowenstein, about the future of E3, he told me not to worry because it was in Rauch's loving hands. Should we be worried now? Brian Crecente

FRAMINGHAM, Mass.—(BUSINESS WIRE)—IDG World Expo, the leading producer of world-class tradeshows and events, today announced the appointment of Carolyn Rauch as Vice President, Event Development. In this role, Rauch will be responsible for business development initiatives and cultivating new events for IDG World Expo, with an emphasis on strategic planning and branding across all events.

Ms. Rauch brings a diverse set of skills and more than 20 years experience to her new position. Prior to joining IDG World Expo, Rauch served as Senior Vice President of the Entertainment Software Association where she managed the association's new E3 Media & Business Summit, as well as public relations, research, aspects of the E3Expo trade show, grassroots campaigns, and other programs for the organization. Prior to joining the ESA, Ms. Rauch was a vice president at Robinson Lake Sawyer Miller, a strategic communications firm specializing in entertainment industry public relations. Her clients included MTV, Nickelodeon, and Comcast, to name a few. Ms. Rauch has also served in several political roles, including deputy national press secretary to U.S. Senator Bob Kerrey's 1992 presidential campaign, deputy press secretary to former U.S. Senator and Senate Budget Committee Chairman Jim Sasser, and New Hampshire press secretary and scheduler for former Governor Bruce Babbitt's 1988 presidential campaign.

"Carolyn is a seasoned executive who brings a broad range of experience to IDG World Expo and we are thrilled to have her on board," said Mary Dolaher, CEO, IDG World Expo. "She will play a pivotal role in helping us build our event portfolio, as well as build on the success of our existing events."

About IDG World Expo

IDG World Expo (www.idgworldexpo.com) produces tradeshows and events for professionals 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™), Macworld Conference & Expo®, Next Generation Data Center™ (NGDC™), LinuxWorld Conference & Expo®, and LinuxWorld® OpenSolutions Summit™. IDG World Expo is a business unit of IDG, the world's leading technology media, research and event company.

About International Data Group (IDG)

International Data Group (IDG) is the world's leading technology media, events, and research company. IDG's online network includes more than 450 web sites spanning business technology, consumer technology, digital entertainment and video games worldwide. IDG publishes more than 300 magazines and newspapers in 85 countries including CIO, CSO, Computerworld, GamePro, InfoWorld, Macworld, Network World, and PC World. IDG's lead-generation service, IDG Connect, matches technology companies with an audience of engaged, high-quality IT professionals, influencers, and decision makers.

IDG is a leading producer of more than 750 technology-related events including Macworld Conference & Expo, LinuxWorld Conference & Expo, Entertainment for All Expo (E for All), DEMO, and IDC Directions. IDC, a subsidiary of IDG, is the premier global provider of market intelligence, advisory services, and events. Over 900 IDC analysts in more than 90 countries provide global, regional, and local expertise on technology and industry opportunities and trends.

Additional information about IDG, a privately held company, is available at http://www.idg.com.

Which Google founder belongs to the hyper-exclusive LA-based $1200-per-month party club? Need another hint? He took home a pleasant young stoner girl after a club event three weeks ago and quickly found that, despite her sweet demeanor and low-paying job, she's celibate.

Gee, is it the one who used Usenet to troubleshoot his humidifier, or the one who made a printer from Legos? File this under "I wish" — or e-mail Valleywag with evidence.

After much wandering in the scrublands between the valley and the sprawl of all the smog-covered walls of Los Angeles, the ConFonz found himself, finally, within the warm embrace of sobriety. While not completely certain as to his location once the booze, pot, and 4-Acetoxy-DiPT wore off, he was certain that the events of the past week were far beyond the comprehension of even his massively capable and verbose mind.

And those events began to slowly trickle back into the consciousness of your humble conference Fonzie. Memories like those of hurridly running from the press room to vomit. Memories such as those of being turned away from the House of Blues, despite being assured of list-worthiness on multiple seperate occasions from the PR firm behind the Best buy Access E3 party. Memories such as watching former Oddworld Inhabitants employees spoking a joint outside the Staples Center, and being told that Lorne Lanning encouraged all employees to imbibe in the wacky weed whilst working.

After the jump, ConFonz says why Sony's kaput.

Intimate details of the week's activities also included multiple instances of drunken shmoozing with pointless PR tools who jumped up and down with excitement over the Playstation 3. Of course, jumping up and down on top of the actual unit itself is likely to be the only way Sony can get the wonkin' circuit board and excess wires into the box they've created. From low Cell processor yields, to a case that's too small for the circuitry, to wired controllers on the budget version of the console, to SOE working on three Everquest clones at once, it's certainly looking like Sony is fucked. Did I mention that Sony is utterly hosed? By the way, Sony is doomed.

But the ConFonz also saw other delightful sights at the show. Despite his inherently bitter nature, the ConFonz is delighted to see the future of games unfold before his blood-shot eyes. The future looks bright for the games industry, and despite massive globalization, the heart of the games world is still in San Francisco and the valley itself. Enjoy basking in the warm glow of this industry's giant budgets, for when the gaming bubble bursts, we'll all be doomed to playing pong with pings.

Earlier: ConFonz at E3: Wal-Mart robs gamers of their booth babes [Valleywag]
And: ConFonz at E3: "Uneven grounf" [Valleywag]

Why is Robin giving his "Patch Adams, moments before a butterfly makes it all better" face? Does he not realize the brilliance that surrounds him? Or did being with these guys remind him that Will and Bing's new game will kick RV's ass on Jeff's site?

More E3 coverage: E306 Mini-guide: Day 3! [Kotaku]

Well, 2 days have passed, and the ex is on the fuck-it path. Everyone is either happy or depressed beyond belief. This includes Macrovision. The nefarious ConFonz spent all night shmoozing with yogourt in tow. The most exciting part of the evening? The Brits hate Edge because it's so up it's own asshole. Funny, though, they couldn't name any better mag!

So, how do you piss off Macrovision? Ask about playing DVD'S under Linux. Boy, it was a great discussion until Linus' ubiquitous operating sysytem was mentioned. Then it was all, " have you talked to our PR
people? Have fun, and good night."

So, Turner has deep pockets. GameTap will prevail, despite what Carless and Scheffield say. Give it one year and one Xbox contract later, and the service will be right behind WoW s the most popular subscription-based service.

CMP lost China. Ouch. China is now competing on uneven grounf.

Sony is still a 3-year-old girl in a small box purchased by a multi-millionaire ass-rapist. Goodbye. We shall not cross pathes again.

IBM thought that it was endrunning around Intel with its console plays, but in the end, it's all gonna come crashing down. DVD is enough. Cry cry cry me a fucking river, third parties.

You'll all be on your knees at the alter of Nintendo soon enough.

Here is the ConFonz's first E3 post, live from the Wired party at 1201 5th St. Robin Williams munches on his own mouth like an old man who's lost his dentures.

So E3 has started up once again. Outside, the Army stands watch, handing out CDs of its recruitment game via robotic mine-defusing/machinegunning-but-now-armed-only-with-an-arm. Funny,
though, the armymen onhand at the show were wearing significantly more bodyarmor than their counterparts over in Iraq. (Hmmmmmm. Confonz waxesWonkette.)

After the jump, vital booth babe news.

So, the show, the first for the Confonz since 2001, has utterly solidified the notion that Sony is completely fucked. In the ass. Nintendo had to fend off people with a stick. Microsoft was its standard oblivious, so wildly flush with cash that it could care less who anyone in its booth was, save for the reps from Wal-Mart. But Sony was friendly, accomodating, positivly desperate for good press.

So, elsewhere on the floor, it's getting hard to differentiate between the really cool, the amazing, and the groundbreaking. Bioshock, Hellgate, Spore, Darkness, Alone In the Dark, Gears of War, Jesus
fucking Christ! Which one to spunk over? Tough choice!

So, the booth babes were not gone. They were toned down a bit. Why? Wal-Mart. They demanded it, and they got it.

New phrase! Proceedural mating! Thanks Will, sorry we called you out for not washing yer hands.