is CES losing it's swagger?

No, I'm not asking this because I'm bitter I'm not there (it's a worthwhile sacrifice to finish up my MBA at an expedited pace!!!).

Now that Apple has been gone from CES for quite some time, and Microsoft has announced that this is their last year there, the NYTimes notes that "the show is unlikely to be where any blockbuster products of 2012 are introduced. Many of the hottest new gadgets in recent years — including Apple’s iPad and iPhone, Microsoft’s Kinect and Amazon’s Kindle Fire — were first announced at other events, even though C.E.S. remains the world’s biggest consumer technology convention."

Why is that?

According to the NYTimes, "this reflects the changing nature of the technology industry — particularly the fact that the most important developments in the electronics business are no longer coming from the makers of television sets and stereos that have been most closely identified with the show since it started in 1967.

And as the industry and its trade show have grown, the need for buzz and branding has become more acute. The most innovative players — like Apple and Amazon — need to stand out from the crowd and so have chosen to introduce their products at smaller, more narrowly defined conferences and company-only events."