Principal
Consultant, Collaboration / Multimedia / Video / AV
Dimension Data
Director of
Emerging Technology
Interactive
Multimedia & Collaborative Communications Alliance
eMail:
David.Danto@DimensionData.com Follow Industry
News: @NJDavidD
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A View From The Road Volume 7, Number 1
-2013 International CES
In This Edition:
·
Football Fields full of Phone Cases
·
The Post-Smartphone Era
·
Crowdfunding, Gamification and Content
Curation
·
Displays and Keynotes
·
TeleMedicine set to Explode
·
Watches and other Gadgets from the
Exhibit Floor
“Thirty-seven
football fields of technology and innovation.”
That’s how the Consumer Electronics association described the just
concluded 2013 Consumer Electronics Show.
“International CES” is the title preferred by the CEA, dropping the
emphasis on individual consumers. That
does make perfect sense though, as the consumerization trends in large
enterprises continue to blur the line between what is a consumer technology vs.
a professional or enterprise one. I’ve
been reporting for years how this trend has made CES the most important
conference of the year for enterprise technologists like myself,
and now Forbes
has reported that their research proves this to be true. This is the largest show that CEA has ever
held in its 45+ year history, boasting 1.92 million net square feet of exhibit
space. The previous record was 1.86 million net square feet of space at the
2012 International CES. More than 3,250 exhibitors unveiled some 20,000 new
products here, drawing more than 150,000 attendees, including more than 35,000
from more than 170 countries outside the United States. While there is no question that the numbers
were impressive, it was more like twenty-two football fields of innovation and
fifteen football fields of iPhone cases.
There
have always been inexpensive (cheapo) accessory companies selling inexpensive
(cheapo) phone covers, screen protectors and related accessories at this
show. Some of them were fun to look at,
but then a savvy attendee moved on to the real exhibitors and the real
news. My wake-up call this year is that
according to the CEA tablets and smartphones are the ONLY CE product showing
positive growth in sales – nearly 50% year over year. There are now more smartphones in the US than
there are people. This means that the
tech companies – the “real exhibitors” – are the ones struggling, while these
bling and aftermarket accessory companies are the winners (at least in terms of
sales volume.) And boy, did it ever look
that way:
I’d
have to say that nearly 40% of the exhibitors on the floor were showing these
accessory products. Yes, there are some
that are more worthy of mention than others – Drycase.com
for one example with finally the perfect solution for carrying your smartphone
or tablet to the beach or pool. But my
point is that as hardware devices continue to get replaced by apps that run on
our smart devices, hardware exhibitors will continue to give way to firms that
carry accessories for the only hardware we are really buying in volume –
tablets and smartphones. (If you do want
to buy one of those dry cases use code CES2013 for a discount.)
Before
the exhibit floor officially opened, at the CEA’s State of the Industry
Presentation we learned the important themes from CEA’s senior analyst, Shaun DuBravac:
1.
We
are definitely in the “post Smartphone Era” as mobile
connectivity is becoming less about telephones.
These devices aren't phones anymore, they're
hubs for all our peripheral services.
Think about how many things we used to buy as hardware are now just apps
(Cameras, GPSs, etc.) Think about how
many new hardware products are being introduced that no longer need controls or
status displays (moisture sensors, health monitors, tracking devices,
etc.) Our smart devices have become our
control hubs and viewfinders for all technology we interact with. This is a key insight, as it marks the
beginning of the end of the hardware centric industry as it changes to a
software centric one. Eventually the
smart device and the appropriate peripherals are the only hardware we will be
buying.
2.
We are also in the age of algorithms. Our devices are connected to “sensors,” and
are being supplied with intelligent algorithms to not only report what is
happening to us (read the news, deliver an email, etc.) but to understand what
that data means. They can provide
recommendations, perform optimization, allow for self-driving cars, provide
medical advice, etc.
3.
The above now allows what is being called Contextual
Connectivity. A "smart" device
no longer just means that it is connected to the internet and services. It now means that the device can act
appropriately based on the data it receives.
Instead of getting an alarm that there is water in the basement, a smart
monitor can now turn the main pump on, turn a secondary pump on if needed, and
then report its actions for follow-up. A
wireless headset no longer just sends and receives audio, it reports where you
are, if you’re wearing it, what room you’re in, who you want to be able to
reach you, etc. Smart devices are now
ones that can act appropriately based on context.
4.
We’re experiencing the Changing flow of
Storytelling. It’s no longer just an
email or video chat while we watch events on TV. The new concept of the "Second
Screen" is showing that we have become content omnivores – we expect and
manage simultaneous feeds of data on multiple screens – playing games, watching
programming, monitoring smart devices, absorbing related information, etc. –
all simultaneously. Manufacturers and
programmers have realized the offerings in this area can be made far richer
than what has been available in the past.`
5.
Form factors are changing dramatically. With smaller tablets and bigger smartphones
no one really knows where one ends and the other begins. PC’s are no longer just clamshell knockoffs –
they can be tablets with or without keyboards.
The blend and blur is a virtual hardware mashup where the differences
have become less obvious. The
terms “convertible" and
"hybrid" are now not just for our cars but for our shape-shifting PCs
and tablets with multiple forms, uses & interfaces. A good example of this was Lenovo’s new “Interpersonal Computer”
displayed by Intel.
It’s
a tablet that can work on your desk but can be lifted-up and brought to your
living room so four people can play a game together.
In
addition to those themes, we saw the emergence of a few somewhat obscure industry
terms landing squarely in the mainstream at this year’s show. Here are the key ones (with definitions from
Wikipedia):
Crowdfunding – (alternately crowd financing, equity crowdfunding, or hyper funding) describes the
collective effort of individuals who network and pool their money, usually via
the Internet, to support efforts initiated by other people or organizations. Crowd funding is
used in support of a wide variety of activities, including disaster relief,
citizen journalism, support of artists by fans, political campaigns, startup company funding, movie or free software development,
inventions development and scientific research. There were a large number of firms that exhibited at this
conference that are getting their start via this relatively new process (recently mentioned in the New York Times.) One example is Tetherboard, who showed their Tethercell
battery that talks to your smart device.
With
it you’d know how much your batteries are charged, when they are near end of
life, etc. They’re using IndieGoGo
for their crowdfunding. Another example shown at CES is The
Pebble E-paper watch which used Kickstarter.
Through these processes everyday people can become angel investors in projects
and receive perks and privileges that rise along with the monies promised. (I think I get to play a Klingon on a new
Star Trek production because of my support for it on Kickstarter.)
Gamification - is the use of
game-thinking and game mechanics in non-game contexts in order to engage users and
solve problems. Gamification is used in applications and processes to improve
user engagement, ROI, data quality, timeliness, and learning. Essentially, it is a marketing methodology
for getting people to learn something or do something in a specific way by
making the process of learning it like a game.
Firms such as Bunchball and ParWinr are active
in this field. At This year’s exhibition
we saw the entire gamification community bright with glee because Ford Motor’s
formerly closed AppLink service has been opened
for all iOS and Android developers to create apps
that will be able to speak to a number of the car’s services. This could mean gamification software could
assist with making good driving habits rewardable with points or perks the
drivers earn. Imagine getting 10% off
your next purchase at Starbucks for driving under the speed limit for a whole
month. Just wait till this trend and
process spreads throughout the marketing we’re exposed to and we experience the
power of positive reinforcement on changes in consumer’s behavior.
Content
Curation – (This one
is so new it’s not even in Wikipedia) It is the process of gathering rich media
content, sorting it, applying algorithms against it, and making it available
on-demand to consumers who often don’t even realize their likes and dislikes
are tracked and stored. It is how your
TV set or smart device is now or will soon “suggest programs you would like”
and then make them available to you.
Rambus’
Imerz platform is a great example of this, as
they have supplied the logic to many manufacturers, and are now working on a
direct to consumer app.
~~~~~~~~~
What
would a CES conference be without extensive discussion about the latest in TV
displays and their related services and features. This year was of course no exception (though
I personally preferred Albert
Brooks’ tweet on the subject: “Hey CES: Watch
some actual TV before you make them any bigger. #snookie'sbigenough.”
As far as trends in this space are
concerned, 3D was sort of an afterthought – with plenty of it to see, but few
if any discussions that it is the next big thing anymore – acknowledging that
most consumers didn’t care. “4K” or as
the CEA has named it “Ultra HD” was the main talking point. While TV at that resolution is very nice,
there is little if any content available at that resolution, and no
transmission to home services that can carry it at this point. At their press conference Sony announced they
would launch a 4K content distribution to home service this summer.
While that was nice to hear and
would be a much needed boost to the UHD display market, no one at Sony’s booth
(or any of my friends who work at Sony) could find any of the details of this
announcement or what is planned. It is
certainly possible that no work has been done on the project beyond agreeing to
announce it. Hopefully some details will
be ironed-out and explained shortly.
LG and Samsung displayed visually
stunning yet conflicting products / announcements, each claiming to have the
World’s First Curved OLED displays.
Clearly
they both couldn’t be right (and from the awesome looks and paper-thinness of
it the LG product seemed further along.)
For their part, Samsung said their units “provide an IMAX feel.”
Immersive telepresence is an obvious, immediate use-case for these systems when
they are available – supposedly mid-year this year. Samsung also showed a new, 3D, OLED display
with Dual-View capabilities. Two people
can be watching two different programs on the same display simultaneously. Their electronic shutter glasses carry audio
from their chosen program, allowing for a whole new family viewing
experience. Think cuddling with your
sweetheart in front of the TV, with one of you watching a chick-flick, and the
other a football game – both in HD.
Sharp,
in this year’s first "These
Amps Go To 11" moment, showed an 8K display.
What
about it was drawing the huge crowd?
Well….8K is twice as good as 4K, right?
It was a bold move for a firm that has been having its difficulties
recently, but with no native content even available for 4K displays at this
time one has to wonder what they are thinking.
Also, what will the industry call that - "SUPER,
Ultra HD?”
(Wow, a Spinal Tap and Wile Coyote reference in one product – the Muse
of writers have blessed me.)
Panasonic
finally announced that they will have 16 models of LCD TVs coming out, but in
this year’s “they still didn’t get the memo” moment these will be alongside 16
plasma models they still refuse to part with.
On the bright side for them, they showed a new “My Home Screen” central
control system that uses the front mounted videoconferencing camera to identify
the user and show his or her personalized content and control layout. With both a pen for annotation and “shopping
by remote” they really beefed-up their features this year.
Speaking
of Panasonic, both they and IBM announced that they have joined the SmartTV Alliance, bringing that group
up to 11 members. The Alliance held a
press conference where their president, Richard Choi of LG, announced that they
have settled on HTML5 as the universal platform that all member firms will use
to create and distribute content for their apps.
They
are hopeful that more industry participants will join them so that all
manufacturers can leverage the same library of content and applications much
more easily than today. Their new slogan
is “Build Once, Run Everywhere. I
personally hope this catches on with all the manufacturers as it would
accelerate the inclusion of compatible smart features in displays, and also
accelerate the adoption due to standardization in product function and content.
~~~~~~~~~
As
in CES’ past, there were a number of keynote addresses to enlighten the
attendees on what firms who can afford to buy the speaking slots are
thinking. Some highlights include:
·
Microsoft’s
CEO Steve Balmer (just one year after deciding to
give up speaking and exhibiting at CES) making a cameo appearance during
Qualcomm CEO Paul Jacobs' keynote address.
Ballmer spoke about Microsoft's new Windows RT and Windows 8
Phone products. He called them "stunning" additions to Microsoft's
line-up. He also showed off two of the newest Windows RT devices, the Samsung
ATIV and Dell XPS. Both are powered by Qualcomm's Snapdragon processors. Steve Balmer’s
appearance was just one interesting part of what one reporter called Qualcomm’s
“circus of absurdity”
·
Verizon’s
CEO Lowell McAdam spoke about the future of mobile
wireless technology and the wider tech industry. Some of his key points were that “Cloud
computing is the third wave of the digital revolution” and that over half of
all mobile traffic this year will be video.
·
Samsung’s
President Dr. Stephen Woo presented his ideas on mobility, processors, their
new Youm flexible OLEDs (do watch the
linked video – amazing!), and then introduced former President Clinton.
Clinton
spoke about the benefit of technology to the world’s population, and on how he
missed driving (as presidents are never allowed to do so).
·
Not
at a keynote but rather at his press conference, I thought it important to
highlight that Netgear’s CEO Patrick Lo stated
"Every single electric device in the home will be connected to the
Internet" by the end of this year (for early adopters.) Think about that.
~~~~~~~~~
One
of the key emerging technologies this year was Telemedicine and Digital Health
Technology. This represented a wide
space of ideas from gadgets – like Fitbit,
Withings and BodyMedia – to full Telemedicine suites
from such firms as HealthSpot (with
their remote doctor diagnostic kiosk) and GrandCare
(with remote health monitoring for the elderly and homebound.)
This
is an absolutely exploding space – including such technologies as
videoconferencing, remote diagnostics, life sensors and lifestyle
applications. Concurrent with the CES
conference, FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski made an
announcement that The FCC would create a $400 million US annual budget to
support telemedicine because of all of the advantages it can provide for rural
medical care. After
years of promise look for telemedicine initiatives to finally take-off.
~~~~~~~~~
This
was also the year of watches as sensors and communication devices. Two examples are Martian Watches and CooKoo.
Just
like your smartphone is not primarily used for phone calls anymore, watches are
transforming into body sensors and tethered extensions of your smartphones to
help you manage your connected life. The
Crowdfunded Pebble (as I mentioned above) was also very
popular at the show.
~~~~~~~~~
As
with any CES there were a whole lot of gadgets and new devices on display. I’m not even attempting to discuss most of
them. Places like CNET, Mashable, The Verge and USA Today can provide you with much
better coverage of the latest “best in show” gamepad and celebrity
sighting. The list below is of items I
found interesting to the AV, Collaboration, Multimedia, Unified Communications
and Video spaces:
Casio
Signage - This is now
the second generation of the virtual, projected assistant they showed last
year, but now in a short-throw, tabletop, touch sensitive version.
It
utilizes a combination LASER and LED based DLP engine that reaches about 2500
lumens. The use-cases are almost
endless.
Huawei
Ascend Mate - Helping lead to a
new colloquial term combining the phone and tablet to make a “Phablet,” here it is shown next to my business card for
some perspective.
Is
it a phone? Is it a tablet? Is it a PHABLET? You decide.
Facecake
Digital Signage –
Bringing gesture control to the point of sale:
Here
is a model trying-on virtual dresses.
The use cases – especially at point of sale opportunities – are very
exciting.
Kingston
MobileLite
– The next generation of their popular Wi-Drive
This
is a wireless hotspot with removable media – so now every iOS
device can has a real USB and SD slot for everyday use. Kingston gave out beta versions for final
evaluation before they take it to market.
Samsung
gets it right – Here
is a picture of a new Samsung display that is correctly identified as using an
HEVC codec:
It
was nice not seeing H.265 when there is no H.265 yet.
Vivitek Quad Display – This projector company was showing
a pretty unique image:
They
had four ultra short throw projectors automatically
edge blending to make one large image.
This application will have some uses.
Plantronics
Voyager Legend UC –
Their latest, top of the line headset now available in a UC version.
It
comes with a USB/Bluetooth dongle and a charging case that can recharge it a
few times. With voice control, “find-me”
applets, seven hours of stand-by, hard switches for power and volume and a
really great, comfortable, intuitive design this is a real winner.
Invoxia iPad Dock – This AudiOffice version adding to
last year’s iPhone dock turned office phone.
It
is the perfect desk phone for those power users that make video calls on their
tablet. It adds a handset and a
speakerphone base, rivaling any low-end appliance for videoconferencing.
~~~~~~~~~
Finally,
I wanted to acknowledge the CEA for doing a much better job with the logistics
than in years past. The mobile phone
coverage and press/analyst Wi-Fi were excellent, making the difficult job of
covering this event that much easier.
I’m also very appreciative for being honored as a CES
Innovations Judge again this year.
It is great to get to see the latest and greatest in electronics as it
comes out.
That’s
it for this edition of A View From The Road. Look for the next one from
Enterprise Connect in March. Or, better yet, come join us in Orlando. If you’re attending, send me an email if
you’d like to meet and chat about the state of the industry (or to find out how
a sharp consultant can help you with your strategy or operations ;~) In the meantime,
feel free to follow me on Twitter (Http://twitter.com/@NJDavidD)
for industry news as I hear about it. I
promise to keep the tweets to a minimum - only when the news is of great
interest. I’ll let Twitter’s actors and
comedians (like Mr. Brooks above) comment on life’s situations – they do quite
well without me.
======================================================================================
This article was written by David Danto and
contains solely his own, personal opinions. David has over 30 years of
experience providing problem solving leadership and innovation in media and
unified communications technologies for various firms in the corporate,
broadcasting and academic worlds including AT&T, Bloomberg LP, FNN, Morgan
Stanley, NYU, Lehman Brothers and JP Morgan Chase. He recently joined Dimension Data as their Principal
Consultant for the collaboration, multimedia, video and AV disciplines. He is
also the IMCCA’s Director of
Emerging Technology. David can be reached at David.Danto@Dimensiondata.com
or DDanto@imcca.org and his full bio and
other blogs and articles can be seen at Danto.info.