And how much of that is the anime con actually advertising and making use of the internet to promote itself, as opposed to Swancon, which is still in the 70s or 80s with it's advertising?

Personally, I love Swancons, was rather underwhelmed with the two Perth anime cons I've been to, but I love that they are both available. Although I wonder if the anime cons are going to be a big deal for a short while and then fade away.

I dunno. I'm a big fan of anime, but I am most definitely *not* an anime fan, based on the Perth anime conventions.

Thanks for posting this, Danny. Interesting to hear more about the history of Melbourne and East-coast fandom.