E3 in turmoil as game publishers skip event

Once the premier video game conference, E3 is now losing major publishers with Activision saying it will take a pass.

Vivendi -- which owns Activision -- will also drop out of the Entertainment Software Association for "business reasons." Instead of being at E3, the company will have its own event at its Santa Monica headquarters during the show.

E3 will take place from July 15th through the 17th this year, according to the ESA.

While there have not been any public statements pointing to a specific reason, part of the problem may be the ESA's new president.

Mike Gallagher replaced Doug Lowenstein last year, and is reportedly not well liked by many of the member companies. Gallagher helped spearhead the transformation of E3 from a massive event that attracted 60,000+ attendees to a small invite-only event.

E3 will move back to the Los Angeles Convention Center this year, but will remain closed to the public. It may be that game publishers do not feel this smaller format is worth the time and effort to plan and execute.

Activision is not the only one to drop out of this year's E3. NCsoft and Foundation 9 have also decided not to exhibit at the show, and id Software has apparently also begun to waver in its commitment.