How Much Are The Conference Lobby Conversations Worth?

I was really pleased to see on John Battelle’s blog that the video from O’Reilly Media and CMP’s recent Web 2.0 Summit was now available online. I wasn’t able to make it.  I think the tickets are $2k+ each.  That’s just too much, even if someone else was paying.
So… I can now watch John Battelle’s interviews with technology pioneers like Mark Zuckerberg and Steve Ballmer.  This is cool.

But what if I did go to the conference? With the speaker videos available online, it’d have to be for the people i’d meet and for the conversations that I’d have.  But seriously… how much are those worth?$2k?

You can go to a BarCamp event, they’re free, and you’ll meet folks who are just as innovative and imaginative