The Entertainment Software Association is currently revising its membership fees policy.

The group's announcement follows revelations that it had spiked its membership fees by nearly 1700% in the past two years, quite possibly being the reason why several publishers - from Activision to LucasArts - have recently left the association.

The group's price hike was in line with the revenue it received from E3, as the annual extravaganza became a more low-key and thrifty endeavour. In 2006 E3 gave the ESA $18.46 million in income, in 2007 - the first of two downsized events - the group received a mere $3.49 million.

But now that E3 is set to return as a full-size show, the ESA have more leverage in managing membership costs. Speaking to news site Gamasutra, ESA CEO Mike Gallagher explained: "The positive restructuring of the E3 Expo allowed us to revisit the ESA’s dues structure."

"It is our hope that this new model will make the ESA an attractive and accessible option for small and mid-sized publishers so we can more fully represent our industry’s diversity," he added.