The effects of the infectious Omikron virus variant do not stop at the leading US IT trade fair: CES 2022 is coming under increasing pressure due to cancellations. The organizers of the consumer electronics trade fair planned for January 5th to 8th in Las Vegas are still confident that it will take place.
In view of the drastically increasing number of infections in North America, however, more and more corporations are canceling their personal trade fair presence or focusing on online activities.
The following companies canceled their participation on site before Christmas or announced that they would concentrate their activities on virtual offers: Amazon, AT&T, Google, General Motors, Hisense, Intel, Lenovo, Magna, Meta, Microsoft, MSI, Nvidia, OnePlus , Pinterest, Procter & Gamble, T-Mobile, TikTok and Twitter. AMD, IBM, Panasonic and GfK recently followed suit.
BMW and Mercedes-Benz with limited activities
BMW and Mercedes-Benz, which had been represented with large stands for years due to the increasing importance of IT and electric mobility in the automotive sector, have now also announced that they will concentrate on the virtual presence and minimize on-site activities .
For example, BMW wants to exhibit a car on site whose color can change at the push of a button. Otherwise, the Munich-based company wants to control the activities purely virtually from Germany. Mercedes-Benz plans to present a particularly efficient electric vehicle, the EQXX, at the Media Days on January 3rd. It will then be possible to view this on site for the first time when the CES opens on January 5th.
(Image: Mercedes)
The organizers remain confident
“CES will and must continue,” said Gary Shapiro, President and CEO of promoter CTA, in a guest commentary in the Las Vegas Review-Journal. The organizers are confident despite the Covid 19 pandemic: 42 exhibitors restricted or canceled their on-site activities. But over the same period, 60 new exhibitors have confirmed their participation.
Last year, the CES was a purely online event due to the corona. With vaccinations and a strict hygiene concept, the makers want to enable an on-site experience again. All visitors must be vaccinated and wear a mask. In addition, only industry professionals and journalists are admitted to the specialist event.
(mawi)