Why does "In-House" Hotel AV Cost So Much?

And why do so many people still use hotel AV?

Well, I guess it's the easiest thing to do; just pay the money and get through the event. And some hotels do have excellent staffing to ensure your event runs smoothly. Some...

But back to the cost. While this is surely not true in every case, most hotels have a formal contract with a single audio-visual agency. In order to get this contract, the AV agency needs to "pay back" the hotel for the opportunity. Usually, that means about 60% of what the AV agency charges you goes right into the hotel's pockets. I'd call that a sizeable mark-up.

I can pretty much beat hotel AV pricing 99 times out of 100. And when you then add technical experience into the mix, there are often better options that result in better events.