Angus Kidman05 January 2007, 7:30 AM
It may still be the biggest gadget-fest in the world, but some dangerous planning assumptions and a cheeky challenge from Apple are challenging its relevance to technology enthusiasts as it celebrates its 40th anniversary. Here's a pre-show roundup of rumours and cock-ups.
The organisers of the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) must be kicking themselves. After last year's keynote speakers -- including Google's Larry Page, Yahoo!'s Terry Semel, and the seemingly-unwilling-to-shift-from-the-opening-night-slot-even-when-he's-planning-to-retire Bill Gates -- all spent significant amounts of time discussing how to sell video online, it must have looked like a sensible move to get video content providers to do the keynotes this year.
That's how CES 2007 has ended up with Roger Iger, CEO of Disney, and Leslie Moonves, CEO of US television network CBS, alongside more obvious choices like Michael Dell and the omnipresent Gates.
Quite aside from the fact that CES' alleged international flavour is somewhat diluted by stuffing the schedule with American broadcasters, there's a bigger problem.
 Official CES registration card: Tasteful design clearly an optional extra. |
Online video has indeed been the dominant trend since the last CES event a year ago, but not at all in the way that was expected. Rather than people rushing out to buy pay-per-download movies, they've been rushing out to watch free content on YouTube. Some of this is, admittedly, now officially sanctioned by TV networks, but much of it exists outside the realm of commercial content development altogether.
Short of Iger announcing that Disney will make all its properties freely available online, it's hard to see how these guys can make much of a splash.
CES in Mexican standoff with MacWorld
There's also been something of a hoo-hah over the fact that CES this year is running head-to-head with MacWorld (in previous years, CES has been one week, MacWorld the next). To be honest, the comparison is overstated.
MacWorld, by definition, is largely catering to a niche market, especially if there are no iPod-related announcements. After Jobs' keynote, the whole event will take on something of an also-ran flavour, even if he does go ahead and announce the damn iPod phone already.
With 2700-odd exhibitors, CES is automatically a source of more diversity. The biggest story pre-show has been LG's plans for a dual-format hi-def DVD player, and there's bound to be more activity in that area.
Microsoft's announcements will inevitably largely centre on Vista, so that's less likely to be a source of surprises.
 It's all about the badge: For an allegedly high-tech event, CES places great reliance on paper documentation. |
The real gems of CES, however, come not from the major keynotes (as entertaining as they sometimes are, especially given the propensity to randomly insert celebrities), but from the smaller companies debuting weird technology.
There are some predictable categories -- iPod add-ons, Skype-enabled communication devices, and stupidly large plasma displays -- but there's bound to be something out there, amidst the poker machines, overcrowded show floor and endless streams of people complaining about phone coverage, that's genuinely surprising.
If not, I'll have to start a rumour that the entire event is about to be purchased by Google.