Intl. CES: Smaller Show, Bigger Crowd

Maybe it was due to encouraging signs of an improving economy. Maybe it was the fact the tradeshow was consolidated under one roof, forcing participants to gather in one place. Maybe it was the draw of more than 20,000 new products, or maybe the industry just needed a good excuse to come to Las Vegas.

Whatever the reasons, the Consumer Electronics Assn.’s Intl. CES, the world’s largest technology tradeshow and conference for the $165 billion U.S. consumer electronics industry, appeared to attract a more robust attendance than expected. Although the event shrunk in square footage, by all appearances, participants were pleased with a smaller, but busier event.

Held at the Las Vegas Convention Center Jan. 7-10, this year’s show marked the first year that the main tradeshow was centralized at one location, following the CEA’s decision last summer to forgo space it had used at the Las Vegas Sands Expo & Convention Center for more than 10 years.

The overall event spanned 1.4 million square feet, with 2,500 exhibitors occupying all three halls of the LVCC. The show utilized meeting and theater space for conference sessions and keynotes at the neighboring Las Vegas Hilton and additional meeting space at the Venetian Resort Hotel Casino for audio exhibits and special events.

Although CEA initially projected more than 110,000 people would attend the event, on the last day of the show the association announced attendance had been higher than expected – 120,000.

This was no surprise to those at the show. Although participation remained a far cry from 2006 when Intl. CES attendance peaked at more than 150,000, there was a robust, bustling quality about this year’s show that had been lacking last year, when 2,700 exhibitors and 113,000 attendees spanned a 1.7 million net sq. ft. showfloor. The show was ranked No. 2 on the 2009 TSW 200.

Despite the show’s shrinkage, CEA President and CEO Gary Shapiro said he was enthusiastic about this year’s show.

“The strategy will be for a more dense show that is also more convenient,” he added. “Despite that it is still a very fragile economy, we have a show that is comparable to last year’s. It gives me hope in the U.S. economy.”

At the show, Tara Dunion, CEA senior director of communications, agreed a more condensed and convenient Intl. CES was just the right fit for the event at this time.

“There’s no sense in growing the show just to grow the show,” she said. “We’re looking to just optimize business and to be as big as we have to be.”

Although the association will remain open to growing the event in the future if necessary, Dunion said CEA had no plans to return to the Sands any time soon. Verified attendance numbers will not be available until after the show’s independent audit in the spring, she added.

At the LVCC, exhibitors, including 330 new ones, showcased the newest innovations and trends in consumer technology, including 3-D TVs, e-book readers and netbooks, tablet computers, in-car technology, smartphones and other mobile devices.

Hallways, aisles, booths and even outdoor walkways were crowded with delegates, with areas of the showfloor turning into traffic jams. Maintaining a sense of careful optimism, many exhibitors said they were pleased with the strong traffic and the fact that the main event now was under one roof, forcing buyers to remain centralized in one place.

Exhibitor Stuart Kaplan, vice president of sales of Augen, said he was satisfied with the showfloor traffic and concentration of buyers.

“The show had gotten too broad,” he added. “I think it’s better it’s condensed, because buyers are coming for less time. It’s definitely busier than last year, and we’re seeing the right people.”

But no one was more enthusiastic about the tradeshow’s consolidation at one venue than attendees, who said they appreciated the greater convenience.

Attendee Clark Heiser, senior program analyst of P.C. Richard & Son, said he was enthusiastic about avoiding the back and forth between the Sands and the LVCC that had been normal in past years.

“It’s nice that it’s condensed, which makes it more convenient,” he added. “It feels like the original crowds have come back. ... After all, this is the big boy’s toy store.”

While the show may have reduced its square footage, that wasn’t the case for content.

With 20,000 new products and services across 30 different technology categories, one of CEA’s fine-tuned efforts to improve and grow its offerings included new product spotlights and categories, Dunion said. This year, the event expanded its market-specific TechZones, with 12 new categories including e-books, 3-D, lifestyle gadgets, mobile digital TV and netbooks.

In addition, new CE Spotlights included the launch of the 25,000 sq. ft. iLounge, featuring 100 companies touting Apple-related products and technologies. Some returning sections expanded their presence, including the Gaming Showcase, which touted the latest in gaming hardware and software, and Sustainable Planet, with 30 exhibiting companies highlighting innovations in green technologies. The spotlights grew 50 and 40 percent, respectfully, from 2009.

The show also expanded its cutting-edge conference content to keep pace with the ever-changing industry, Dunion said, offering more than 250 sessions and 800 speakers covering a range of industry topics from social media to safe driving to technology policy.