Few if any car audio suppliers are planning to exhibit at CES 2023, and some said they do not expect to return to the iconic show for the foreseeable future.
Last year, Pioneer, Kenwood, Alpine and others opted out of CES due to COVID. But many are continuing to pass on CES ( January 5-8, 2023) because it is no longer geared to the 12 volt audience, they said.
Instead just about every leading vendor plans to exhibit at KnowledgeFest in Las Vegas, February 3-5, including JVCKenwood, Sony, Alpine, Metra, AAMP Global, Kicker and others, all of whom are not at CES.
Some said CES has become “a car show” for OEM exhibitors. Others said 12 volt dealers are now attending shows such as SEMA.
Kicker (Stillwater Designs) Director of Marketing Communications Ron Burnett said, “The industry-specific show (KnowledgeFest), being so close in early February, definitely plays into the decision. But most of the clients we need to see are now making the SEMA Show a priority, so it only makes sense for us to make that our priority as well.”
Additional shows that vie for exhibitors and dealer-attendees include the MasterTech Expo in AZ in March and the Mobile Electronics Specialists Summit in September.
A few vendors that do plan to exhibit at CES include VOXX, InstallerNet (under the name Connect2Car, which leads a series of seminars at CES), and XS Power. Harman will display during CES at the Virgin Hotel in Las Vegas, and will introduce many new products under both JBL and INFINITY.
In the past, CES has attracted over 170K attendees and this year expects 100K in-person attendees as it gradually recovers from the pandemic. About 2,200 companies plan to exhibit at the show, 1,000 of which are start ups.
Three hundred vendors will show cars, boats and farm machines at CES this year in the West Hall at the Las Vegas Convention Center, said the Consumer Technology Association, which runs CES.
source: https://www.ceoutlook.com/2022/12/13/12-volt-exits-ces-2023/
