arlier this year, CES 2021 had planned to go ahead business as usual, however, as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic continuing to be a cause concern and uncertainty in the United States and the rest of the world, organisers have made the decision to put a pause on the physical event and transformed the 2021 Consumer Electronics Show into an innovative, all digital event.
For over 50 years, CES has been the global stage for innovation, most commonly held in Las Vegas, Nevada. The popular event attracts a considerable number of exhibitors and attendees each year and is the global stage for technology and innovation, making it one of the largest and most influential annual tech conferences in the world.
According to the Consumer Technology Association (CTA), CES 2020 had 4,419 exhibitors including high profile companies such as Sony, Samsung and Panasonic as well as innovative start-up companies. The event also drew in an astonishing 171,268 attendees.
CES organisers have announced that the 2021 event will be held exclusively online as opposed to its usual venue, the Las Vegas Convention Center. Despite the lack of a physical event, the all digital CES will continue to be a platform to launch products, host a number of different virtual panels, Q&As, product showcases, keynotes, and networking events to engage with global brands and define the future of the tech industry.
In an official statement, the CTA commented:
“With the growing global health concerns about the spread of COVID-19, it is not possible to safely convene tens of thousands of people in Las Vegas in early January 2021 to meet and do business in person.”
However, organisers of the event stated that CES will return to its usual format in 2022 as long as the world is in a safer place.
When discussing the return of events in a recent interview, CEO and cofounder of Eventbrite, Julia Hartz commented:
“Consumers are not going to want to flock back to really crowded large-format events for quite some time… I would say that’s the furthest out that we would see in terms of consumer confidence”.
CES is well known for attracting a vast range of bleeding edge software and hardware. With immersive technology in the spotlight over the past five years, with more AR developers occupying the space than ever before. In the CES 2020 alone, we saw a live demo of Samsung’s prototype AR headset and Panasonic reveal of the world’s first ultra HD VR eyeglasses.
The all digital CES 2021 will allow the entire tech community to safely share ideas and reveal inventions which will shape our future. Virtual attendees will be able to be a part of the awe-inspiring moments of CES wherever they are in the world. CTA is designing a unique experience for the tech industry.
CES 2021 kicks-off next January. More details regarding scheduling will arrive at a later date.
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