Questions Outnumber Answers Preceding First and Only CES Briefing

Questions abound about the briefing CTA plans for Tuesday at 11 a.m. EST for media registered for the all-digital CES 2021. The briefing is the only one scheduled before the Jan. 11-14 online event, and the only one it will have held since canceling the physical CES 2021 in July. The CES website through Monday afternoon showed 926 exhibitors signed on for the virtual event. We asked CTA if there’s a cutoff date for signing on new exhibitors. We also wanted to know about CTA’s exhibitor target, and how that count squares with association goals when it first started planning the virtual event midsummer. CTA, a stickler for auditing show attendance at the physical CES, also hasn’t spelled out plans for doing so in the virtual environment. CTA representatives didn’t respond to our questions Monday. They previously promised the briefing would feature major announcements and a live Q&A. Monday was the deadline for CTA members to register free for CES 2021. They will pay $149 to register beginning Tuesday, same as for industry attendees who are not with CTA member companies. Those fees soar to $499 beginning Jan. 4.