CES: The Consumer Electronic Show

Though it has been a couple weeks since the Consumer Electronic Show, I have been re-reading my notes from some of the insightful keynote speeches. More than ever, technology and entertainment are evolving hand-in-hand, and there was a point or two made during the conference that have been eating at me, encouraging me to share some key points in this article.

The thousands of exhibitors at the Las Vegas Consumer Electronic Show proved once again that technology is at the height of innovation. The evolution of technology is a powerful force that continues to shape the future of the entertainment industry.  Keynote speaker, Robert Kyncl, the head of global partnerships for YouTube boldly stated, “In the next decade, 75 percent of all channels will be born on the Internet.” Indeed, with entertainment and connectivity advances in internet powerhouses such as Google, Youtube, and Facebook, the Web is on its way to becoming the premium distribution platform for entertainment. Technology is where audiences are, and being a part of the Entertainment Industry requires an understanding of the direction of technology in order to make sure to be a part of it.

Videos streamed on the Web will take on traditional television as a means of distribution. This movement online will not only service established brands as yet another medium to market and distribute content, but will also give smaller brands a platform to gain audiences. Simply put, there will be more content than ever before, tailored to a wide variety of niche audiences. If a producer wanted to make addicting pet videos, he would be able post them easily find and audience for his content online. In his speech, Kyncl predicted that “soon, 90 percent of Web traffic will be video.” In effect, more and more entertainment will be revolved around the consumer. The viewer will have an abundance of choices for entertainment, and will have the power to choose what to watch and how to watch it.

CES Attendees at the SAMSUNG Technology booth

We have all heard of the three screens: TV, Internet, and Mobile, and the importance of tailoring distribution to each screen, allowing content to be more social, local, and mobile than ever before. However, advances in technology are seeking to consolidate our devices into one screen. Advances such as the Cloud and Mediashare are connecting our devices and sharing our content between the traditional three screens.

Most importantly, the future of technology is a web that is built around people. Facebook Timeline has already put entertainment content sharing at the center of the social networking site. Innovations in technology will allow consumers to be connected with each other. Communication will be facilitated at a scale never before seen. We will be able to look to our friends for what to watch and what to listen to. In essence, audiences will be empowered with the ability to become distributors themselves and play a role in circulating content.

Attendees of the Las Vegas CES 2012 show

The future of entertainment undoubtedly goes hand in hand with the future of technology. In order for the industry to stay afloat, we will need to keep up with the level of content availability, device mobility, and social connectivity made feasible through innovations in technology.