A letter from Digidesign’s general manager, Dave Froker:
“Since the September 11, 2001, terrorist action, there has been speculation regarding Digidesign’s attendance at the upcoming 111th AES show. We want to address the questions that have been raised by our customers, devlopers and the press about our presence at this important annual event.
“Faced with a decision that will impact many, we deliberated at length to find a solution. Digidesign will not be attending the AES show on November 30th. Our decision is based on a range of factors.
“September 11th was a day of great tragedy. It seems no one went untouched. The frantic need to find family and loved ones was an experience commonly shared by us all. The loss of our colleague at Avid, Doug Gowell, distressed many. At such an uncertain time, we made a choice not to attend the show.
“At the behest of AES, we withheld this information until they deemed it an appropriate time for public announcements. We are in full support of the AES, and the AES understands our decision. For years, Digidesign has participated in the show, benefiting from broad exposure to industry-leading engineers, scientists and technology developers. And while there’s no substitute for the value Digidesign can gain from attending AES, we believe that this year, we have an equally important civic responsibility to contribute to the ongoing relief efforts that have followed the events of September 11. A company-wide decision was made to redirect some funds set aside for AES to a number of charities. Digidesign and Avid are contributing to the Red Cross, NY Firefighter’s 9-11 Disaster Relief Fund, and specific relief agencies. Additionally, we remain committed to bringing valuable business back to the city hit hardest by these events and have scheduled a DigiWorld event in New York for the first quarter of 2002.
“Digidesign is aware of the sentiments expressed on our Digidesign User Conference, and know that some will not agree with our decision. We hope that at times like these, people will choose to put their energies toward more constructive and positive efforts. Lastly, we would like to thank all of our employees, customers and developers for understanding our decision and supporting Digidesign during this time.”
