LAS VEGAS – With more than 150,000 attendees from 110 countries witnessing the introduction of thousands of new products and technologies from more than 2,500 exhibitors, the 2006 International Consumer Electronics Show certainly lived up to its hype as the world’s largest technology tradeshow.
The 2006 International CES, produced by the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA), ran January 5-8 in Las Vegas, Nevada.
The show floor was packed with global executives from the consumer technology, broadcasting, cable, content, engineering, financial, motion picture, music and numerous other industries who converged in Las Vegas over those four days.
As reported by www.cartt.ca throughout last week, thanks to our consumer electronics editor John Bugailiskis, who was there, show attendees heard from technology industry visionaries and viewed a spectacular showcase of hot new products and trends in audio, accessories, emerging technology, home networking, home theater, mobile electronics, video and wireless.
"The 2006 International CES was a success in every sense of the word," said Gary Shapiro, president and CEO of the Consumer Electronics Association. "From the international audience, major media and top buyers in attendance to the top-notch keynotes and conferences, government leaders, entertainment superstars and exhibitors, the 2006 International CES shifted from simply a trade show to a major global event."
The 2006 International CES set several major show records including number of attendees at more than 150,000 and exhibit space at 1.67 million net square feet of space. The show again proved that it is truly the international center of the digital world as it drew more than 23,000 international attendees.
The show featured a broad array of product and exhibitor announcements, many of which provide consumers with unprecedented control over when, where and how they watch movies, listen to music, view their digital photos and access information, education and entertainment content.
Convergence was a big trend on the show floor in 2006 as traditional product categories merged together to create unique, multi-functional digital devices. In addition, the convergence trend transcended the show floor with an exciting array of announcements concerning cross-industry partnerships that promise to give consumers a variety of choices in the way they obtain, view and listen to digital content.
Reflecting the strength of the transition to high definition television, the show floor featured the latest developments in display technologies, such as organic light emitting diode OLED and surface-conduction electron-emitting display SED, along with a variety of products and innovations that build upon HDTV.
Other show highlights included the latest in Bluetooth, digital audio, digital imaging, HD and satellite radio, home video production and in-vehicle entertainment. This year’s CES expanded to Innovations Plus at the Sands which housed new and emerging technologies. Visitors to the Sands were wowed by the latest advancements in robotics, ultra-wideband, IPTV, VOIP and more.
In addition to standing as a product showplace, the 2006 International CES included a star-studded array of 350 industry luminaries serving as keynoters, Industry Insiders and conference speakers. The show kicked-off with a keynote from Microsoft’s Chairman and Chief Software Architect Bill Gates and included keynote presentations from Sony Chairman and CEO Sir Howard Stringer, Intel CEO Paul Otellini, Yahoo! Chairman and CEO Terry Semel and Google Co-founder and President of Products Larry Page. Additionally, Industry Insider presentations from Dell Chairman and Founder Michael Dell, Kodak Chairman and CEO Antonio Perez, Federal Communications Commission Chairman Kevin Martin and retail executives from Best Buy, Circuit City, CompUSA and Radio Shack gave attendees exclusive insights into the top trends and issues impacting the industry.
The 2007 International CES will be held January 8-11, 2007 in Las Vegas, Nevada.
