January 9th, 2009
Apple at CES? Don't believe it.
I wouldn’t believe any buzz that might surface this weekend about Apple looking to “go large” at CES next year, now that Steve Jobs and company have dumped Macworld. No way. First of all, how do you give credit to something like that when the only source of information is a blogger who’s citing an unnamed source with “friends who work at Apple.” (No link love from me. I’m sure you’ll find it if you Google it.)
Come on. Really? Cubicle gossip? I know the Apple rumor mill tends to run wild with all sorts of crazy predictions. But this one makes no sense - at all. Why would Apple opt for CES, a venue where even the largest tech companies struggle to be heard above the noise, when it was the king of Macworld? Why haul all the way out to Vegas and pay travel expenses for the staffing entourage when Moscone is just a short hop up 280 from the home office in Cupertino? And what would Apple gain by making a splash at CES? Customers? (Got ‘em and still growing.) International exposure? (Is there anyone on the globe that hasn’t heard of Apple or the iPod?) Press attention? (Haha. I won’t even make a comment on that one.)
I’ll say it one more time: trade shows are so 20th century - at least for a company like Apple. Sure, I think CES has some life left in it still. I’m not so sure about Macworld, though. And some trade shows still make sense. OracleWorld, LinuxWorld, Dreamforce and IDF are a few that I hit in 2008 and they seemed to be attracting their specifically-targeted audiences.
Also see: What does Apple’s MacWorld departure say about future of trade shows?
Lastly, I was originally going to not post anything on this rumor and help spread it. But I decided that, if people Google this rumor over the weekend, I’d prefer that a counter-argument post also be listed in the results.
Sam Diaz is a senior editor at ZDNet. See his full profile and disclosure of his industry affiliations.
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