E3 over the last few years became a major spectacle for the video game industry, with attendance in the range of 60,000 to 70,000 people and 400 or more companies exhibiting. When the Entertainment Software Association (ESA) announced the new format for E3, everyone knew it would be a much downscaled event, but the drop in the number of exhibitors is perhaps even greater than we expected.

Over the weekend, GameDaily BIZ and other media outlets received official invitations and access to a website with exhibitor information. According to the site for the new E3 Media & Business Summit (which takes place July 11-13), participating companies have fallen to just 32, although the list does include some of the top publishers and developers in the business.

The full list so far is as follows: 1C Company, Activision, Akella, Atari, Atlus, Buena Vista Games, Capcom, Codemasters, Crave Entertainment, Eidos, Electronic Arts, Foundation9 Entertainment, Konami Digital Entertainment America, id Software, Logitech, LucasArts, Majesco, Microsoft, Midway, Namco Bandai Games America, NCsoft, Nintendo, Nyko, Sega of America, Sony Computer Entertainment America, Sony Online Entertainment, Square Enix, Take-Two Interactive, THQ, Ubisoft, Vivendi Games, and Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment.

The E3 Summit should have around 3,000 to 4,000 attendees (invitation only). Santa Monica's Barker Hanger will host the event and numerous hotel suites in the area will allow media, retailers, developer partners, and other key industry contacts to have business meetings without all the distractions of E3s past. Although there will be no huge expo per se, organizers intend to convert Barker Hangar into a software showcase where attendees will be able to try out featured video games outside of the companies' suites.

[UPDATE] Pete Hines, V.P. of Public Relations and Marketing at Bethesda Softworks (makers of the blockbuster RPG Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion) contacted GameDaily BIZ to let us know that ESA accidentally omitted Bethesda from the exhibitor list, but that Bethesda will indeed be at the Summit.