For boardgames and toys "Spiel" is the business; the world's largest trade fair. The "Internationale Spieltage SPIEL" - in the trade it's just called "Essen". Spiel is the boardgame industry's most important (public) international gathering. It takes place over four days in October each year in Essen, Germany. It is the place for anyone involved in the industry to catch up, network, present, announce, and do deals. See http://www.merz-verlag-en.com/
The Spielwarenmesse International Toy Fair in Nürnberg is a business-only trade show held annually in February: http://www.spielwarenmesse.de/
The ESA (Entertainment Software Association) holds E3 annually around May/June. E3 stands for the Electronics Entertainment Expo. Initially a trade-only exposition launched in 1995 after the game industry became frustrated with its positioning and treatment within the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) it is now open to the public. E3 (along with GDC) is considered one of the key opportunities for announcing and launching titles, for pitching to publishers and seeking funding, attendance has grown every year. For more see the ESA website: http://www.theesa.com/about-esa/overview/
