Reed Exhibitions is changing the date to avoid the show crossing over financial years, which has made budgeting for it difficult for exhibitors. It will also give exhibitors more time after Christmas to plan product launches and promotional campaigns.
The show has recently been scheduled around Easter, which has meant its dates change every year.
This year, it landed in the same month on CMP's Technology for Marketing, with which Reed plans to compete against by bringing in a 'Technology for the Direct Marketer' feature.
IDMF director Darren Whitehead said: "Getting the very best out of a show requires significant planning time. The message from exhibitors and visitors alike is that they need consistency of dateline. As the industry becomes more technology-based, the demands of new product development make this crucially important."
Whitehead said that unaudited visitor numbers for IDMF 2005 are up by 6% on last year, when it attracted 8,806 ABC-audited visitors.
According to CMP, Technology for Marketing 2005 attracted 4,146 industry attendees, a 5% increase on last year's event. Its ABC audited total for the 2004 show was 4,944.
ABC figures may or may not include press, exhibitor personnel and exhibition staff, at the discretion of the organiser.
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