Nigel - I fully respect your point of view on the subject of publicising slot applications, and certainly most major airports can list many occasions on which slot applicants have not followed through to service launch. However, that is a normal feature of the airline business. A company may apply for slots at (for example) three potential destination airports in the full knowledge that only one will eventually be selected for the deployment of scarce resources. The advance slot allocation smooths the start-up process at destination once the final decision is made; slots elsewhere not required can easily be returned to the pool.
However, I respectfully disagree with your assertion that it is better not to know which carriers are showing interest in serving an airport. Why is ignorance preferable to knowledge? The airline which hands back unused slots this season could be the new operator of next season. It happens. Some enthusiasts may be disappointed when an airline they dreamed about fails to show up, and perhaps they would have preferred never to have entertained the possibility of the exotic new tail. However, for those who work in the industry a comprehensive knowledge of trends in the marketplace is a very valuable thing. It pays to be as fully informed as possible, and whilst this forum welcomes enthusiasts it ultimately strives to meet the needs of aviation professionals. News of slot applications has a place here.
I don't blame anybody who chooses to skip over reports of slot applications or those who attach no credence to them. However, I do not extend that understanding to a scenario which would see those who are interested in such information denied access to it. Live and let live, if you like. Those who wish to disregard slot info can do so; those interested in it can enjoy access to it. The "provisional" nature of slot applications is widely understood and accepted by those within the industry. And remember too, whilst many slot applications do fall by the wayside there is also the other side of the coin: genuine new services make their first appearance as slot applications too.
If we are to wait for press releases announcing new services we might as well shut down this forum and just read the mainstream media or an airport
PR twitter feed. Although on second thoughts, some of MAN's services don't get a mention in the press even when they are launched ...
P.S. I see that PPRuNe's software has subtly changed the name of a well-known internet phenomenon beloved of celebrity obsessives and sycophants to read "PPRuNe" instead. Hmmmm ... well if you really want to be thought of as a substitute for them it is your choice, I suppose! :-)
There must be good money in it, anyway ... they who must not be mentioned have a big money stockmarket flotation coming up.