An ICv2 Release.  ICv2 will present the ICv2 Insider Talks 2020 - Livestream, a virtual event for professionals in the business of geek culture with data, strategies and inspiration for the COVID era, on October 28 and 29, the company announced.  "The times are challenging, but both hobby games and comics and graphic novels are proving to be surprisingly resilient due to the creativity and inventiveness of the response," ICv2 CEO Milton Griepp said in announcing the event.  "We’re bringing the business community together in this period of rapid change to share learnings and strategies, and to find inspiration in the things that work."

ICv2 Insider Talks 2020 – Livestream is for business professionals from all parts of the business, including retailers, wholesalers and distributors; publishers; creators; librarians and educators; licensees, licensors, and marketers; tech executives; and press.

This invitation-only event (info on how business pros can get their invites below) will include two tracks of short talks with Q&A on consecutive days: one on the business of hobby games; and one focused on the business of comics and graphic novels.

Here’s some initial info on the sessions—

Hobby Games:  2 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. ET, Wednesday, October 28, 2020, Sponsored by Upper Deck

• ICv2 CEO Milton Griepp will present a White Paper on the state of the hobby games market as we go into the holiday season.
• We’ll conduct a one-on-one interview with Chedy Hampson, founder and CEO of TCGplayer, the largest online marketplace for trading card games, on trends he’s seeing in the collectibles market and in online sales by retailers during the pandemic.
• Retailer, Premier Event Organizer, and Manufacturer Alan Hochman of Pastimes Games will share his experience with adapting quickly to new ways of building community without holding in-store events.

Thanks to Upper Deck for sponsoring the Games Track!

For more information on the games track, click here.

Comics & Graphic Novels:  2 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. ET, Thursday, October 29, 2020

• ICv2 CEO Milton Griepp will present a White Paper on the state of the comics and graphic novel market as we go into the holiday season.
• NPD Executive Director, Industry Analyst Books/Entertainment Kristen McLean will share insights on the comics and graphic novel business and the retail environment from NPD’s data and research.
• ICv2 columnist and author Rob Salkowitz will interview AWA CCO Axel Alonso and comic writer and journalist Ethan Sacks about the real-time comics journalism of Covid Chronicles, a series of webcomics published on the NBC News site beginning in the early days of the pandemic and now about to be collected in book format.
• PW Senior News Editor Calvin Reid will interview Harvey Award-winner Keith Knight about his comics and Woke, the new hit Hulu series he inspired and co-wrote about a Black cartoonist whose life is changed by an encounter with the police.

Thanks to The Beat for sponsoring the Comics Track!

For more information on the comics track, click here.

If you are a business professional and would like to attend the event, email: Conferences@ICv2.com.

If you are press and would like to cover the event, email: Conferences@ICv2.com.