VidCon

The first VidCon was held on July 9–11, 2010, at the Hyatt Regency Century Plaza hotel in Los Angeles and sold out in advance,^[2] with over 1,400 people attending.^[3]

In February 2018, Viacom (owner of the Viacom Media Networks and film studio Paramount Pictures) announced that they were acquiring VidCon, as part of its efforts to expand its live events business and expand from TV programming to next-generation entertainment platforms. Jim Louderback will remain the CEO of the convention, and co-founder Hank Green will continue to be involved and work closely with the team. Its offices will also exist in Missoula, Montana.^[4][5] Internet reception to this acquisition was mixed, with some noting the irony of Viacom acquiring VidCon a decade after their lawsuit against Google and YouTube for copyright infringement. Hank Green reassured fans that Viacom's acquisition^[6] would allow the convention to flourish.^[7][8] Three conferences were cancelled in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and a series of online programming, VidCon Now, became available for registration.^[9]

In March 2021, VidCon announced that it would host its next U.S. conference at the Anaheim Convention Center from October 22–24, 2021, delayed from its usual summer scheduling in order to increase the chance that an in-person event could be held.^[10] VidCon also announced that TikTok would be the top sponsor of the 2021 event, replacing YouTube who had been the main sponsor since 2013.^[11] On August 20, however, VidCon announced the cancellation of its 2021 event "due to the recent increases in COVID-19 cases [in California] and evolving health and safety mandates." The convention was rescheduled to June 22–25, 2022 in Anaheim.^[12] The 2023 event was held between June 21–24 and was sponsored by YouTube for the first time since 2019. In September 2024, Viacom's successor Paramount Global sold VidCon to Informa.^[13]

In 2020, all international VidCon events were suspended due to the COVID-19 pandemic. While the flagship convention in Anaheim, California resumed in 2022, international editions such as VidCon London, VidCon Australia, and VidCon Asia have not returned. A limited expansion has continued in Mexico City, but no other international locations have been announced. In August 2024, Paramount Global sold VidCon to Informa, the UK-based company behind Fan Expo. Following the acquisition, Informa executives stated their ambition to eventually bring VidCon back to global markets, describing Anaheim as the “Super Bowl for creators” and indicating that international expansion may be revisited in the future.