Hard-nosed trading replaces glitter at Cannes multimedia exhibition

Just two years ago it was still one of the world's trendiest high-tech events, but MILIA, the huge annual multimedia developers and publishers' exhibition and conference opening tomorrow in Cannes, has lost much of its initial exuberance.

When it began five years ago, MILIA attracted the digital equivalent of the film world, the creative and often flamboyant devotees of the CD-Rom.

The storage capabilities of the plastic disks, which can hold a combination of text, graphics, sound and video files, made it possible to produce rich, interactive digital worlds.

Initially, traditional print publishers like Time-Warner and Macmillan snapped up multimedia products from developers in order to guarantee that they weren't left out of a potentially lucrative new media market.

Massive successes like Broderbund's game Myst, which has sold more than three million copies, suggested there were riches to be made. However, the cost of producing multimedia products assembling teams of highly-skilled designers, writers and technicians quickly forced the market to settle.

Now, many traditional publishers have withdrawn from the media market entirely. In general, publishers remain under pressure from prices which fall as development costs continue to rise. Last year, hopeful developers found MILIA awash with unreceptive publishers content to preen in front of each other with their existing product lines. A hard business mode had replaced much of MILIA's former sense of play. Nonetheless, more than 8,000 participants made the trek to Cannes last year.

Vermont industry analysts InfoTech predict last year's US$15.8 billion world market for interactive media will rise to US$26 billion in 2001, so perhaps the market just hasn't found its proper footing yet.