The Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3), May 26-28 at the Georgia World Congress Center in Atlanta, will add a freewheeling keynote panel to this year's attendees so they can listen to some of the top gaming execs talk about the latest issues and trends in the massive US$10 billion interactive entertainment industry.

　　The 1998 E3 Keynote Panel is set for May 28 and will pull in the perspectives of six top executives:

　　--Brian Fargo, founder and CEO, Interplay Productions--Pete Higgins, group VP, Interactive Media Group, Microsoft Corp.--Kaz Hirai, executive vice president and COO, Sony Computer Entertainment America Inc.--Howard Lincoln, chairman, Nintendo of America Inc.--Sid Meier, chairman and director of creative development, Firaxis Games--Larry Probst, chairman, president, and CEO, Electronic Arts "Unlike traditional keynotes, this one will actually give attendees information and insights with practical business applications for making strategic business decisions. Panelists will share their perspectives about what's new and what's next in interactive entertainment," said Douglas Lowenstein, president of the Interactive Digital Software Association (IDSA), which owns the E3 show. "We are very excited that E3 attendees will have this extraordinarily direct access to the current thinking and future visions of these executives."

　　Looking at the list, there is no question about why these people were chosen to fill the seats in the panel. Topics that the group is expected to speak about include Internet gaming, the future of video games, the PC as a growing gaming platform, and new high-speed delivery technologies. We expect topics that will come up will include 3D acceleration and its impact on gaming and the ever present discussion over DirectX vs. OpenGL. GameSpot News will be there to report on what information and topics come from the new keynote format. As always, entry to E3 is limited to trade folks only and not the public.

　　The conference will also launch a series of new attendee workshops focusing on more business-like topics as managing a game company, online advertising, public relations, and web site development.