Arlington, VA—The Consumer Electronics Association (CEA), owner and producer of the International CES, announced that 3,319 exhibitors from around the globe unveiled technology products at the 2012 International CES—a 22% increase over last year’s show.
The show also posted a record-number of international professional attendees, 35,734, from more than 150 countries, representing an increase of 13% over last year. An independent audit, performed by Veris Consulting, confirmed CES’s status as the “world’s most important technology event and North America’s largest annual trade show of any kind.”
The 2012 International CES, held January 10-13, 2012, in Las Vegas, Nevada, spanned 1.86 million net square feet of exhibit space and welcomed a record 156,153 industry professionals overall. After the U.S., the top 10 countries represented in terms of attendance were Canada, South Korea, Japan, China, Mexico, United Kingdom, France, Taiwan, Germany and Brazil.
“The 2012 International CES was the largest in show history and was bursting with innovation as the world’s most important technology event,” said Karen Chupka, senior vice president, events and conferences, CEA. “These record-breaking audit results confirm that CES continues to be the must-attend event that unites the global technology industry, including Fortune 500 executives, retail buyers, content producers, entertainment executives, venture capitalists, engineers, government officials and media from every corner of the world.”
Senior-level executives and top decision makers continue to take advantage of the networking and business opportunities at CES. According to the Veris audit, 43% of the 2012 CES attendees were senior-level executives. Presidents, CEOs and/or business owners made up 15% of attendees. And nearly one-third of all attendees are the final decision makers when it comes to new product purchases or partnerships with other companies, with 97% identified as having buying decision influence.
The Veris audit also confirms that more than 12,000 retail-buying organizations, 5,000 manufacturers and 6,000 engineering companies came to CES. The 2012 CES also brought together top government officials from the Obama administration, U.S. Senate and House of Representatives, Federal Communications Commission, Office of Management and Budget, Office of Science and Technology Policy, U.S. Department of Commerce, U.S. Department of Energy, U.S. Department of Homeland Security, U.S. International Trade Commission and the Environmental Protection Agency.
The CES audit provides absolute verification of exhibition records, including direct on-site observation, examination of registration systems and testing of attendee records. Post-show analysis included direct confirmation sampling, reconciliation of attendance lists, elimination of duplicate names, and verification of demographic data with the source of documentation. ce.org
