Normally I plug tournaments closer to home, but I'd like to make mention of the 2008 Queensland Australia Day Weekender. It is running over the Australia Day Weekend (26-28 January 2008), and is trying a multiple Round Robin format for the first time. Not just the first time for this event, but possibly the first time for any Australian weekend event.
The format has the 10 highest entries in RR 1, then next in RR 2 etc The advantage of this format is that for most RR's you will be playing players of your own strength for prizes, so no lucky/unlucky pairings to trip you up. The only exception might be the top section with the higher rated players being 200+ points ahead of the middle of the field, but event then the opportunity to play a RR event with such good opponents shouldn't be sneezed at.
I hope the tournament is successful, and the format is well received. Too often chess players complain about how unfair the existing swiss system is on them (tournament 'bouncing' or tough last round opponents), but at the same time shy away from trying anything that addresses those problems. If this event does work, hopefully other organisers will be encouraged to try it themselves.
Details of the event can be found here, including a discussion about the merit of the format and time controls.
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