The 2021 Consumer Electronics Show (CES) will not be held in Las Vegas, but will shift to an online-only format due to Coronavirus concerns.
In an announcement overnight, the show’s organisers confirmed “it is not possible to safely convene tens of thousands of people in Las Vegas in early January 2021 to meet and do business in person”, as such next year’s show will be “an all-digital experience”.
Although the in-person event has been cancelled for 2021, the Consumer Technology Association, which runs CES, has stated its desire “to return to Las Vegas for CES 2022”.
Sony Vision-S concept
CES has typically been held in the first or second week of January at multiple locations along the city’s gambling strip.
In addition to being a stage for technology companies to launch their latest products, CES also hosts conferences, and serves as a convenient way for a large number people from across the industry to meet and network.
Keynote speeches, conferences, product reveals, demonstrations, and interactive discussions will now all take place online for the 2021 show.
Over the past decade automakers and their suppliers have shown greater interest in CES, with some debuting new models and concepts there.
Its increasing popularity and temporal proximity is one of several reasons the Detroit motor show decided to move its timing from January to the middle of the year.
The cancellation of the in-person component of CES 2021 follows the axing of next year’s Geneva motor show.
While the majority of motor shows are cancelling in-person events, SEMA is pushing ahead with its show later this year.
