it is for the exhibitors. last year, all of this the robots, the gadgets, gizmos weren t here. the show was entirely digital and it was missing something being able to touch products, hear what things sound and look like in real life, all gone. this year, the organisers were determined that the show must go on. however, ces has coincided with record covid cases here in the us, so would anyone turn up? we ve been here at ces for about two hours, it s the opening day and you d expect it to be absolutely rammed. and, to be fair, some people have turned up, but the numbers are way down. right here, you d expect there to be exhibitors, but many simply haven t turned up. google, amazon, microsoft and many more have withdrawn, citing safety worries. that s what mark gooday wanted to do. founder of british headphone company meters, he would ve preferred to have pulled out, but says he d already paid $50,000 and with no prospect of a refund, decided to stay.
that s right. james clayton has been taking a look at how the show has changed and how it is for the exhibitors. last year, all of this the robots, the gadgets, the gizmos weren t here. the show was entirely digital and it was missing something being able to touch products, hear what things sound and look like in real life, all gone. this year, the organisers were determined that the show must go on. however, ces has coincided with record covid cases here in the us, so would anyone turn up? we ve been here at ces for about two hours, it s the opening day and you d expect it to be absolutely rammed. and, to be fair, some people have turned up, but the numbers are way down. right here, you d expect there to be exhibitors, but many simply haven t turned up. google, amazon, microsoft and many more have withdrawn, citing safety worries. that s what mark gooday wanted to do. founder of british headphone company meters, he would ve preferred to have pulled out, but says he d already pai
more have withdrawn, citing safety worries. that s what mark gooday wanted to do. founder of british headphone company meters, he would ve preferred to have pulled out, but says he d already paid $50,000 and with no prospect of a refund, decided to stay. this is a massive investment. we were shocked to see people building booths behind us and literally, overnight, they have obviously pulled out. shows are about people, you know? meeting people, communication and talking through a product, pressing the flesh, saying hello to people, washing your hands a lot they re all drying up, but that s life you can t beat it. so, should this have been cancelled? should it have been a in person event, do you think? oh, i think it should ve been cancelled. it should be vibrant and buzzing. it s not. that s the downside. that said, we re still seeing people and we re still doing business. not all the major companies stayed away. samsung, for example, had a major exhibit, showcasing projectors, fri