In reply to Morten Rand-Hendriksen.

"The $20 price tag makes WordCamp look cheap perpetuates the perception both inside the community and out that WordPress and WordPress work is not expensive. That is not a sustainable platform on which we can build a solid footing for the future. It was fine when WordCamps were small independently organized events more like extended Meetups, but now that WordCamps strive to become “real conferences” we need to raise the bar and the cost to make it all sustainable."

I'll first off by saying everyone's experience is different (especially for those not in the United States), so I can understand some of where you're coming from.

At the same time, commenting toward WordCamps look "cheap" and we need to raise the bar and make them "real conferences", i couldn't disagree more. WordCamps are LOCAL events and comparing them to "real conferences" (you didn't site examples or what makes something "real" so for the moment i'm thinking of conferences like An Event Apart or smaller like http://convergefl.com/) shouldn't be happening. I don't want WordCamp Miami turning into a higher paid conference. I want it to stick to it's humble roots, which I think we did (even last April when we had over 770 tickets sold). "Real" conferences are also per-profit businesses... unless you plan on donating leftover funds to charity which is a separate topic.

$20 doesn't make WordCamps look cheap. It makes them look accessible. There are other WordCamp related conferences that charge more. Getting sufficient sponsors for the event to accomplish your conference's basic needs at minimum allows your tickets to be at a price where you aren't turning away the very audience that makes WordPress what it is today.

To address "not a sustainable platform", WordCamp Miami has grown from 200 to 770 in the past 5 years. Again, experiences are different but it's hard for me to agree with that comment.

Keep WordCamps local and humble. If you want a "real" conference, there seem to be plenty of WordCamp conferences now that are coming up to potentially fit that bill. If one disgrees, they can start their own. WordCamp Central doesn't stop you.