CES 2012 Press Day Full of Developments

Before The 2012 International CES even officially started there were some interesting developments on press day.
Read more »

Three Black Friday Observations

With Black Friday now behind us, it’s time to find out what was hot and what we can expect over the final weeks of the holiday shopping season. With NPD’s Anatomy of Black Friday study data as a gauge, a couple things struck me as I reviewed both the results and my experience at the stores.

Read more »

They Came With A Purpose

Preliminary results from The NPD Group’s The Anatomy of Black Friday study show that the aggressive pricing posture taken by the CE industry appears to have paid off. Significantly more tech shoppers were driven into the stores (or online) by the prospect of a great, desirable product at a great price. Almost 65 percent of tech purchasers bought in 2011 because they saw what they really wanted on sale. In addition, 28 percent were enticed by the big sales available at the specific retailer where they were shopping. Both of those numbers were approximately 50 percent higher than the overall population of Black Friday shoppers and 10 percent higher than last year.
Read more »

The Rollercoaster Ride of Cable Innovation

At the Cable Show last month, the most significant surprise that I encountered was the cable companies’ collective fascination with the headend. This is, of course, where all content congregates, prior to being sent to cable company-connected TVs around the country. From a cable company perspective, the headend is fundamental to how content is – and possibly even “should be” – distributed. Read more »

As TV prices push down, brands try pushing back up

While the economy continues to weigh down manufacturers, its pressures were not strong enough to crack the rose-colored glasses worn on their public faces at the 2009 Consumer Electronics Show. Among the causes for optimism cited were a long-term view of economic cycles, faith in the appeal of technology and the “next big thing,” the value of electronics versus spending on other leisure activities such as travel, the trust that consumers put in brand driving investment, and the competitive urge to “keep up with the Joneses” (or, if you’re the Joneses, to stay ahead of those wannabe Smiths).

Read more »