The average price of a hotel room fell 14 percent in 2009 compared with 2008, according to Hotels.com’s Hotel Price Index (HPI) annual report on hotel prices paid around the world. In fact, a hotel room was cheaper in 2009 than it was in 2004, when the HPI first started tracking price data. The rate of decline grew less steep over the year – from 16 percent down in the first quarter to 7 percent down in the fourth quarter.

The International Association of Exhibitions and Events (IAEE), the SuperPetExpo and the National Association of Consumer Shows have responded to Upper Merion Township’s (King of Prussia, PA) imposition of an itinerant merchant tax, which requires show organizers to pay $30-$50 per exhibitor selling products at exhibitions in the Valley Forge Convention Center. Each organization has written a letter to the township’s board of supervisors, urging them to rescind the tax. According to the industry players, no other township or county across the country imposes such a fee, which is prohibitive to organizers doing business in the area.

Thousands of brides-to-be and vendors were duped by the "Boston 411 Home and Bridal Show," a fake bridal show which was to be held at Boston’s Hynes Convention Center this weekend, according to Boston police and the FBI Cyber Crime Unit.

Here’s a taste of some of the announcements made at last week’s Virtual Edge Summit in Santa Clara, CA, which focuses on virtual events, meetings and communities.

COMDEX will make a comeback later this year as a virtual event. UBM, which acquired the brand as part of its acquisition of MediaLive Intl. in 2006, will relaunch COMDEX as a virtual event to be held Nov. 16-17, managed by its Everything Channel business.

Although the worst of the recession may be behind us, many organizers are still challenged with delivering quality shows on reduced budgets. It’s more important than ever these days to find ways to produce meetings more cost effectively. Here are a few cost-savings tips to try at your next show.

For years, the Massachusetts General Hospital Psychiatry Academy (MGH-PA) has provided world-renowned continuing medical education at its live events and on the Web. And when audience members expressed an interest in receiving educational content on their mobile phones, the Academy came through — promptly developing an iPhone application that allows users to download recent education programs from wherever they are.

Parkers’ Lighthouse is a full-service, contemporary seafood restaurant and bar serving lunch and dinner with attentive service in a relaxed atmosphere. A perfect locale for private functions such as board and committee meetings, the venue is housed in a dramatic, free-standing building with an outstanding waterfront location at the point of Shoreline Village in Long Beach, CA.

Several current technologies let shows leverage social media and smartphones, but Aerva technology also adds digital display networks to the mix. Aerva lets organizers engage, entertain and inform attendees with real-time interactivity and social media using mobile phones and digital display networks.

Canon Communications will launch three 2010 DesignMed events focusing on the medical electronic imaging, diagnostics and interventional device industry sectors. Electronics Design News (EDN) magazine, which Canon recently acquired, will sponsor the events. The DesignMed series will co-locate with Canon’s Medical Design & Manufacturing (MD&M) shows in the U.S. and MEDTEC shows elsewhere around the world. In 2010, the pairings will be with MEDTEC Japan in Yokohama, MEDTEC China in Shanghai, and MD&M Midwest in Rosemont (Chicago)...

The Americas region experienced declines in all three key performance metrics for January 2010, according to data compiled by STR and STR Global. The region’s occupancy ended the month nearly flat with a 0.7 percent decrease to 45.5 percent; the average daily rate fell 6.0 percent to $96.68; and revenue per available room dropped 6.7 percent to $43.98.