> As a counter example, I have been to a number of conferences where the speakers/presenters/panelists and volunteers were expected to pay the full registration

> As a counter example, I have been to a number of conferences where the speakers/presenters/panelists and volunteers were expected to pay the full registration fee, At TechEd, Microsoft picks you, guides your session abstract wording, reviews and changes your slides, specifies your clothing, tells you when to show up for booth duty at the Microsoft booth, and pays you for it. You're basically a community mouthpiece for Microsoft. This is very much a vendor event.