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At Con Information

Developer Information

Identification:

All developers and applicable staff must show a government-issued, photo ID to exhibit at the Gaming Hall. If a developer is not able to produce a valid ID at check in, their booth(s) will be held until 11:00 PM on Friday, at which point the booth(s) will be considered unclaimed and open for sale on a first-come, first-served basis. Accepted forms of ID include but are not limited to:

  • A state driver's license
  • State-issued identification card
  • A passport
  • Military ID.  Other forms of Photo ID may be accepted at the discretion of the Department Head of Gaming Hall.  The name on the ID must match the name given during booth registration.

Contract:

To exhibit in the Gaming Hall at Otakon you must agree to the rules and terms in writing. Printed copies of these rules will be available for all developers to sign at check-in.

In Washington DC, a person must be at least 18 years old in order to sign a contract. Therefore, any person who is not 18 must have an adult sign the contract on their behalf. The adult who co-signed the contract must be present to check-in for a booth, must remain present at the booth at all times, and must

accept responsibility for any failure of the under-aged developer to comply with all convention policies as well as applicable laws.

Number of People Behind Each Booth:

Each table and booth may only have their allotted number of staff (2 people plus any additional badges registered, up to 4 per 10 x 10 space) at any one time. Please take breaks for food and water!

Sharing Space:

Developers may share space with another developer under the following conditions:

  1. The total number of people for a booth does not exceed 4 people per 10 x 10 space.
  2. Gaming Hall staff must be notified of any developer taking in personal sales at check in or at the Gaming Hall Operations Table. Those additional developers will be required to have already filled out paperwork for Sales Tax purposes (see Policies page).

Subletting Space:

At no time may a developer sell or rent their space to another developer within the Gaming Hall. If a developer is found subletting, both the developer who registered the space and the person occupying the space will be evicted from the space immediately with no refund.

Transfer of Booths:

Each booth is registered to an developer at registration. No registered booth may be moved to the ownership of another developer. If you need to opt out of your booth, please notify Gaming Hall staff. Also, please note that booth costs are nonrefundable.

  1. If you are a registered corporation at the time of your application to the Gaming Hall you may transfer your booth to another employee of your corporation. This person must not have been accepted for a booth in the Gaming Hall. Additionally you must also provide the following information:
  • The State in which you have incorporated
  • Your incorporation ID (This is not your Federal Tax ID)
  • Your Federal Tax ID
  • Date of incorporation (Your date of incorporation must be prior to submitting an application to the Gaming Hall)

Not Registered Booths:

Not registered booths will be offered for sale one (1) hour after Gaming Hall opens on Friday at the Gaming Hall Operations Table. Not registered booths are booths which have been made available before convention and should not be confused with abandoned booths.

  1. You may not line up prior to this time.
  2. All booths are sold on a first-come, first serve basis.
  3. Not registered booths will only be sold at the full rate.

Abandoned Booths:

If developer fails to check in for their booth by 11:00 PM Friday and DOES NOT contact the Gaming Hall Department Head in advance, their booth will be considered abandoned. At that point, their booth will be offered for sale at the at-con rate on a first-come, first-served basis.

  1. Lost booths cannot be reclaimed, and neither credit nor refund will be given for no show booths.
  2. No show booths are sold on a first-come, first serve basis.
  3. No show booths wil only be sold at the full rate.

Refunds:

Booths are not refundable.

Operating Hours

The Gaming Hall hours are the following:

  • Friday & Saturday: 10am to 1am
  • Sunday: 10am to 3pm

Since the Indie area will be located in a specific area of the room, we do not expect Indie booths to operate at the same extensive hours.  To maximize traffic to your booth, it is suggested to have someone at your booth Friday & Saturday until to 8pm and the entire day Sunday.  If you are unable to open with the Gaming Hall, let the Gaming Hall Department Head know ahead of time.

When you close your booth for the day, do the following:

  1. Break down and secure your table for anything of value. Ex. Bring valuable equipment back with you and/or cover equipment to be left overnight with a drape.
  2. Check-out with the staff at Gaming Hall Operations Table.

The check-out process is to ensure that the Gaming Hall staff knows which booths are still open and ensure security of closed Indie booths.

Indie Load-In and Load-Out

Check In

All Indies arriving Thursday will check-in inside the Mount Vernon Lobby (Corner of Mt. Vernon and 9th)

Check In Times

Day Open Close Note
Thursday 8 AM 9 PM  
Friday 8 AM 11 AM INSIDE OF THE MOUNT VERNON LOBBY, Corner of Mt Vernon and 9th

Tentative Hours:

  • Thursday: set up 8:00am to 9:00am
  • Friday: 8:00am to 10:00am
  • Saturday: 9:00am to 10:00am
  • Sunday: 9:00am to 10:00am and 3:00pm to 5:00pm
  • Please note that all Indies must be out of the Gaming Hall by 5:00pm.

Load-in Information

  • Indies may use the entrance at 9th and Mt Vernon to hand carry their booth materials into the Gaming Hall area during Indie booth set up times.
  • All booth materials using the 9th and Mt Vernon entrance must be “hand carried”. Handcarts, foldable wagons, or hand trucks are not allowed for hand carrying.
  • The loading dock will be available for those unable to load in via this method. Please see the “Loading Dock Use” section for more information.
  • During setup all Indies must wear their issued convention badges.
  • Any Indie entering the Gaming Hall before setup hours without previously obtained permission may be evicted from the Gaming Hall without refund.

Loading Dock Use

Tentative Hours:

Thursday:  8:00 AM to 5:00 PM
Friday:  8:00 AM to 10:00 AM
Sunday: 3:00 PM to 5:00 PM

  • The entrance to the Loading Dock is on 9th and M street on M street itself. Hall D is located on the very top floor and the end.
  • All groups MUST INDICATE to the Loading Dock staff that they are heading upstairs to HALL D for setup of their space so they can be directed accordingly on where to go and to clarify to the staff that you are NOT heading downstairs to the Dealer's Room Halls.
  • All Indies must check in before they may gain access to the loading dock. The Walter E. Washington Convention Center staff will turn away any vehicles attempting to access the loading dock without their issued convention badge.
  • The loading dock is for the use of unloading and loading materials into the Gaming Hall. You must remove your vehicle from the loading dock immediately after loading in or loading out all of your materials. Any vehicles left for significant amounts of time may be towed at the discretion of the Walter E. Washington Convention Center.
  • You are NOT ALLOWED to park your vehicles overnight in the loading docks.
  • Plan accordingly for any delays or waits if you choose this method for load in as other groups setting up in the Gaming Hall will be using the Loading Dock as well.
  • Please note that when the loading dock is closed, you can still use the entrance at 9th and Mt. Vernon to hand carry materials to and from the Gaming Hall.

Changes

Though Otakorp, Inc. and the Gaming Hall staff retain the right to make instantaneous changes to the Indie Row policies, every effort will be made to extend developers the courtesy to make announcements of any changes.

As a reminder the Gaming Hall staff will consistently monitor and patrol the Gaming Hall for policy and rules violations. Any and all observed and reported violations will be acted upon. A single violation of the convention and Gaming Hall rules and policies can potentially result in the developer being removed from the Gaming Hall and the convention at the discretion of the Gaming Hall staff. If an individual is removed, they forfeit all fees and will receive no refund for their booth or membership. Additionally, for the safety of the Gaming Hall staff, conversations between yourself and the Gaming Hall staff may be recorded.