"symposium = meet"
....then bloody well say "meet".....damn la de da promotional guru's always trying to make something bigger than what it actually is....as usual.
Gary and his father are nothing more than businessmen, the 'talent' they employ would be a bigger attraction at a meet....1000's would rather meet designers and artists than the boss.
We can safely say that pinball would be in the same place today with or without Sterns presence.
Collectors & pin enthusiasts have always existed, so the worldwide interest would still be the same.....yes, Stern released new games in the past decade, all of which we wouldnt have missed if they werent made at all, in fact alternative developers would have made them anyway.