I have met many members of the WordPress Community through the two WordCamps I have attended (WCT08 and WCT09). I even had lunch with a few of them at WCT09.

What about the drunken opening party or after party? Virtual beer gives me gas.

There are so many countries around the world that are still using dial-up or crappy highspeed.
You need a strong internet connection for good stream viewing.

I tend to stay a few extra days when I go outside Toronto for conferences since I like to travel and explore the cities the conferences are in. If I go to WCSF, I am sure Matt or any of the local attendees would have real suggestions over usual touristy places to visit.

Overall my preference is to go to a WordCamp conference (or any type) and interact in person.

Why not merge both? I attended PodCamp Toronto last year…All (or at least most as far as I was aware) their sessions were streamed. Wether you have 1 tracks or 3 tracks…stream them.
So people who can’t make it due to distance…can actually e-attend. Mix both.

I want to meet up with the different…admins/webmasters/WordPRessers of the different WordPress sites/forums/podcasts I read/listen to. WPtarven being my favourite site :)

One last thing: Virtual WordCamps don’t give you a WordCamp T-shirt.

I love the idea of Jeff organizing a competing event on the same day.

I don’t think it’s a moot point, though, because although she is the first one to try to profit grossly off of a WordCamp, if we as a community don’t put an emphatic stop to her efforts, she won’t be the last.

Also, I can see enough people getting suckered into registering for this thing to reflect negatively on the legitimate WordCamps.

Jeff should organise a competing event for the same day :)

@wptavern @conorpegypt 2 dispel myth of zero expenses: design, advertising, PR, webinar service, editing, hosting, our time, etc…

Design? Time Commitment? Advertising? PR? Hosting?

These things cost… what, exactly? So far, Dozens of WordCamps have taken place, without incurring any significant costs in these areas.

Webinar Service? Okay, sure – but there are less-expensive and even free options.

And, still no list of speakers. (But, don’t you know, “they” have space for “a few more” speakers):

ATT: WP experts! We have space for a few more speakers at Virtual WordCamp 09. http://www.VirtualWordcamp.com Contact us! #VWC09

More and more, this is screaming SCAM!

What say we band together, and prevent this Gina Bell from milking her six-figure revenue from the WordPress community, eh?
.-= ´s last blog ..Daily Digest for June 14th =-.

You raise a lot of interesting points but at this stage of the game, I’m willing to withhold judgment regarding this entire event until the end of July into August. By then, we should have a clear indication as to what is going on. Would be a shame if everything you pointed out turned into reality.

This “Virtual WordCamp” is supposed to take place the week of September 14th; that’s barely two and a half months away – and not one, single speaker confirmed?

Has anyone asked the usual WordCamp speakers, to find out if they’ve even been approached regarding presenting for the Virtual WordCamp?

That one, single point would go a long way in determining if this thing is even trying to be legitimate. If nobody has even been approached yet, then we can be pretty confident that it’s a scam. If some of the usual players have actually been approached, then we could make a more educated guess – especially if anyone who has been approached is willing to divulge any of the details they’ve been given.

@Martin -

Also did a who is search on the domain:

Registrant Search: “Gina Bell” owns about 210 other domains

Indeed, Gina Bell is the person behind Virtual WordCamp (which, according to her web site, she claims to have trademarked). She appears to be an Internet Entrepreneur, and one of her program offerings is “Virtual Events Made Easy“.

So, how does she market these “virtual events”? Here’s how:

So let me ask you this …

What if that dream of thousands of targeted subscribers almost overnight could become your reality?
And what if you could add instant credibility and profit to that dream come true too?
Would you be interested in knowing how to make this happen? For real?

Now, I know what you’re thinking already … what’s the catch? As I said already, it’s normal for you to feel suspicious when there’s so much hype and empty promises about overnight success out there on the net.

But what I’m talking about here is an honest-to-goodness, ethical and authentic marketing strategy that’s actually a lot of fun too.

I’ve done it multiple times, my clients have done it, my colleagues do it too. And it is literally the BEST way to grow your business in leaps and bounds. No more pulling your hair out or throwing towels around – I promise you!

The strategy is Virtual Events, also known as tele-series and telesummits.

My colleagues, my clients and I increase our community of subscribers and customers AND generate revenue in the biggest way possible with virtual events.

(Emphasis in original)

But here’s the kicker:

And, I’m beyond excited to be collaborating on a forthcoming virtual event that is projected to be our first 6-figure virtual event!

(Emphasis in original)

(Wanna bet on which event that might be?)

Bottom line: “Virtual WordCamp” is nothing but a network-building revenue generator for an internet entrepreneur.
.-= ´s last blog ..Daily Digest for June 14th =-.

For me the value in WordCamp is the networking, discussions and relationships that are built with firsthand interaction. You can’t recreate that in a virtual event.

The speakers and presenters are great, but to me they are just a bonus. I get more value out of everything else… meeting and talking to people, relationship building, and of course the after party :)

registrations should definitely not be open this early.