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Events & Trade Shows

Events & Trade Shows Market Trends & Analysis HDTV Broadcasting

NAB 2019: Where Does It Go From Here?

Twenty-five years of NAB Show attendance offers a striking vantage point: enormous hardware booths have shrunk, tape has vanished, and software now rules a floor once dominated by six-figure broadcast gear. Attendance dropped 11.6% in two years, and the show's identity feels uncertain. Yet 8K cameras from Sony, Sharp, Ikegami, and others signal where professional video is heading, with the 2020 Olympics poised to accelerate adoption in ways few anticipated.

Pete Putman •
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Events & Trade Shows 4K Ultra HD Market Trends & Analysis

CES 2019 In the Rear View Mirror

CES 2019 delivered a striking reminder of how far display technology has traveled since plasma giants and upscaling DVD players ruled the show floor. Eight-K televisions from LG, Samsung, Sony, Sharp, and a wave of Chinese brands dominated booths, while AI-powered processors scaled standard-definition content with jaw-dropping results. Mini-LED backlights, collapsing TV prices, and near-field wireless technology at 96 gigabits per second signal where home entertainment is heading next.

Pete Putman •
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Events & Trade Shows Emerging Tech Market Trends & Analysis

InfoComm 2018 In The Rear View Mirror

InfoComm 2018 delivered two unavoidable themes: LED displays dominating every corner of the Las Vegas Convention Center and AV-over-IT reshaping signal distribution. Yet beneath those headlines, sharper conversations emerged around 8K video tiling, voice-controlled AV systems demanding two-factor authentication, and 5G networks threatening to upend wireless connectivity as we know it. Our industry is accelerating toward changes that will redefine how professionals design, install, and secure audiovisual systems in the coming decade.

Pete Putman •
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Events & Trade Shows HDTV Broadcasting Codecs & Compression

NAB 2018 In The Rear View Mirror

NAB 2018 felt quieter than usual, with smaller booths and empty halls signaling an industry caught between legacy infrastructure and an IP-driven future. Sharp's 8K production pipeline for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics proved genuinely ready, while the AV-1 codec coalition threatened to upend H.265 licensing economics entirely. ATSC 3.0 deployments and a shrinking VR presence rounded out a show full of questions that may take years to answer.

Pete Putman •
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Events & Trade Shows 4K Ultra HD Market Trends & Analysis

The 2018 HPA Tech Retreat: Digital In The Desert

Over 600 industry professionals converged on Palm Desert for the 2018 HPA Tech Retreat, where HDR format wars, Ultra HDTV commoditization, and gadget fatigue dominated conversation. Cheap HDR-equipped sets are flooding the market, yet HDMI handshake failures and scarce 4K content leave early adopters frustrated. Roundtable discussions revealed that even tech-savvy professionals are questioning whether every device in their home truly needs an internet connection - a tension that defined the entire event.

Pete Putman •
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Events & Trade Shows Market Trends & Analysis Emerging Tech

ISE 2018 In the Rear View Mirror

Amsterdam's Integrated Systems Europe 2018 drew 70,000 attendees and one dominant theme: AV signal distribution migrating to IT networks. Codec wars erupted on the show floor, with Crestron, SDVoE, and HDBaseT trading latency claims in competing side-by-side demos. Micro-LED displays threatened projector dominance, collaboration tools raced toward analytics, and plummeting hardware costs quietly reshaped the entire commercial AV landscape. The full picture reveals just how fast this industry is transforming.

Pete Putman •
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Events & Trade Shows Market Trends & Analysis 4K Ultra HD

CES 2018 In The Rear View Mirror (Or, what a difference a decade makes…)

A decade separates two very different Consumer Electronics Shows, and the contrast is staggering. In 2008, plasma giants ruled Las Vegas while Netflix had just launched streaming and tablets didn't exist. Today, a 55-inch 4K smart TV costs what a mid-range plasma fetched back then, and televisions themselves have been upstaged by AI assistants, autonomous cars, and connected appliances. What the industry looked like then versus now reveals where it may be heading next.

Pete Putman •
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Market Trends & Analysis Emerging Tech Events & Trade Shows

On China, IoT, AI, and Trade Shows

Global electronics manufacturing has shifted dramatically eastward, and the ripple effects are reshaping everything from your living room TV to professional AV installations. Chinese brands like TCL and Hisense now sell 4K televisions under $500, forcing established players to slash prices across the board. Add IoT connectivity and AI-driven automation into the mix, and the entire industry faces a reckoning - one that trade show floor plans are already quietly reflecting.

Pete Putman •
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OLED TVs Events & Trade Shows Market Trends & Analysis

LG Shows Off Its Commercial Displays and Systems

LG Business Solutions brought its commercial display technology to New York City, showcasing flexible OLED panels, ultra-wide stretch displays, and transparent LED film solutions. VP Dan Smith made clear that LG uniquely offers OLED, LCD, LED, and outdoor LCD under one roof, matching technology to application rather than pushing a single solution. From luxury hotel installations to McDonald's menu boards, the full scope of LG's commercial ambitions reveals a strategy worth watching closely.

Ken Werner •
Bulletins
Events & Trade Shows Market Trends & Analysis 4K Ultra HD

InfoComm 2017 In The Rear View Mirror

InfoComm 2017 delivered a clear signal: AV-over-IT has finally arrived. After nearly 15 hours of presentations covering RF, wireless, 4K, and networked AV, one theme dominated the show floor - TCP/IP networks are actively displacing complex HDMI matrix switchers and distribution amplifiers. LED walls are cutting into projector sales, China's manufacturing dominance is collapsing display prices, and quantum dot technology is accelerating faster than anyone predicted. What comes next for the AV industry may surprise even the veterans.

Pete Putman •
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Events & Trade Shows Market Trends & Analysis Emerging Tech

CES 2017: Afterthoughts and Second Thoughts

CES 2017 delivered more than flashy gadgets and headline TVs. Asian manufacturers now dominate entire hall sections, appliance profit margins are quietly reshaping CE giants' strategies, and LED technology is overtaking every display category imaginable. VR headsets still carry serious comfort and resolution hurdles, while IoT products multiplied beyond any reasonable count. Weeks of reflection reveal which trends actually matter and which shiny, sparkly distractions will fade before next January.

Pete Putman •
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Events & Trade Shows OLED TVs Market Trends & Analysis

CES 2017 In The Rear View Mirror

Overheard on the CES show floor: 'Why do I have to come back to Las Vegas every year? I didn't do anything wrong.' Despite a laid-back atmosphere with few ground-breaking announcements, CES 2017 delivered meaningful signals about where consumer electronics is heading. OLED TVs gained a major new manufacturer, quantum dot displays went mainstream, micro LEDs emerged as a serious contender, and robots moved well beyond novelty. The full breakdown of trends and standout products reveals a technology landscape quietly shifting beneath the surface.

Pete Putman •
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OLED TVs Events & Trade Shows Home Theater

On CE Week, Shoot-Outs, And Flies In The Ointment

CE Week's annual Value Electronics UHDTV Shoot-Out crowned LG's OLED65G6P the 2016 King of TV - but a persistent greenish color cast visible at roughly 35 degrees off-axis raises serious questions about the judging. Neither LG representatives nor the expert calibrator panel appeared to catch it. HDR and wide color gamut genuinely impress, yet one nagging optical anomaly in this year's winner deserves a much closer look.

Pete Putman •
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Events & Trade Shows Emerging Tech Market Trends & Analysis

InfoComm 2016 In The Rearview Mirror

Twenty-three InfoComms in, and the shifts are impossible to ignore. Software and managed services are quietly displacing expensive hardware, laser-phosphor light engines are making projection lamps obsolete, and Chinese manufacturers are reshaping the display wall market with stunning 8K LED installations. AV-over-IP distribution is accelerating fast enough that 185 attendees packed a single class, some sitting on the floor. The full picture of where professional AV is heading may surprise even seasoned industry watchers.

Pete Putman •
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Events & Trade Shows HDTV Broadcasting Emerging Tech

NAB 2016: Thoughts and Afterthoughts

Twenty-two consecutive NAB Shows build perspective, and 2016 delivered plenty to absorb. From live ATSC 3.0 broadcasts bouncing off Black Mountain to Nokia's eight-lens VR camera that genuinely resembles a hair dryer, broadcasting's transformation from tape-and-SDI to IP-and-streaming has never felt more dramatic. Canon now owns the show's biggest booth while Panasonic's once-dominant presence has shrunk by half. Whether virtual reality avoids 3D's stumbles remains the question worth watching.

Pete Putman •
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