I think it is very common for an "organization" to run a conference. In this case I think the conference went from one organization to another.

However, writing good code (or creating a good design) is a significantly different skill than putting on a good conference. Can the new org do it as well as the old one? Quite possibly. As others have pointed out "consulting type firms" put on other conferences with great success.

I'm pretty familiar with what it takes to run a conference :)

true enough to all your examples, maybe the commonality of who owns them is why they charge so much? Interesting side thought.

My only counter point, those conferences (sans FF) have always been part of the owners marketing initiative, so it's a bit different, but you raise a good point. Lynda's not the only training game, so maybe my core assumption about FF is erroneous. Great points!

Thanks!

I'm sure Daemon doesn't limit who can sponsor (sponsors are a primary revenue source). CFUnited is run by TeraTech, a ColdFusion consulting firm, and their sponsor hall is full of competing firms. The same can be said for Webmaniacs (hosted by FigLeaf). Did Lynda.com allow other training organizations to sponsor FlashForward? (I assume so)

Sorry, 'design shop' wasn't meant as a derogatory term. :) interactive agency, code house, whatever term fits, I don't much care :)

@Chris,

Ah, interesting point, good to know about Daemon, though I didn't exactly mean in the sense of dominating any particular space. I was thinking more of competition supporting a competitor. ie. How many of Daemon's competitors are sponsors?

I think it is very common for an "organization" to run a conference. In this case I think the conference went from one organization to another.

However, writing good code (or creating a good design) is a significantly different skill than putting on a good conference. Can the new org do it as well as the old one? Quite possibly. As others have pointed out "consulting type firms" put on other conferences with great success.

I’m pretty familiar with what it takes to run a conference :)

true enough to all your examples, maybe the commonality of who owns them is why they charge so much? Interesting side thought.

My only counter point, those conferences (sans FF) have always been part of the owners marketing initiative, so it’s a bit different, but you raise a good point. Lynda’s not the only training game, so maybe my core assumption about FF is erroneous. Great points!

Thanks!

I’m sure Daemon doesn’t limit who can sponsor (sponsors are a primary revenue source). CFUnited is run by TeraTech, a ColdFusion consulting firm, and their sponsor hall is full of competing firms. The same can be said for Webmaniacs (hosted by FigLeaf). Did Lynda.com allow other training organizations to sponsor FlashForward? (I assume so)