Beverly Hills, Calif.—The 2017 CES—the 50th installment of the trade show—may be two months away, but the Consumer Technology Association (CTA) hasn’t wasted any time gearing up.
Several CES Unveiled events are already in the bag, with the CTA previewing the show in Prague, Paris and Los Angeles, with another set for New York Nov. 10 at the Metropolitan Pavilion. That half-day event has more than two dozen exhibitors—covering virtual reality, wearables, and smart home products—set to preview what they’ll have on hand in January in Las Vegas.
Speaking at the recent CES Unveiled event in Los Angeles, Karen Chupka, senior VP of CES and corporate business strategy for CTA, said more than 3,800 exhibitors and a record number of attendees are expected Jan. 5-8 in Las Vegas and shared that due to the sheer number of announcements expected from major consumer electronics companies, this year will see two media days, Jan. 3-4, instead of just one.
Qualcomm, LG, ZF Friedrichshafen AG, Bosch, Monster, Panasonic, Stream TV, TCL, VOXX, Hisense, Valeo, Casio, Toyota, Samsung, Hyundai, the UHD Alliance, Intel, ZTE Corp. and Sony all have press events planned before the show floor opens.
“It’s a really big year for us,” Chupka said, pointing to 4K Ultra High-Def (UHD) and virtual reality as two of the top technologies to keep an eye on at the show. “Technology has changed the way we see and view our content.”
The CTA also shared that it’s named comedian and actress Aisha Tyler as its CES ambassador, with the host of CBS' The Talk and Criminal Minds actress being the CTA’s entertainment rep at the show.
“Because of the advantages of technology I was able to shoot a film in 4K in [a short time],” Tyler said. “Technology has made things so accessible to the artist. As a podcaster, author, producer and filmmaker, I can attest to how technology has not only made my life better, but more creatively robust, dynamic and productive in every way.”
