CEA is now the Consumer Technology Association
New name reflects industry expansion, diversity of membership
In an excerpt from It Is Innovation (i3), CTA president and CEO Gary Shapiro underscores the shift in the consumer electronics industry, today’s most important electronics developments come from technological advances:
“We have evolved and changed with the times. Indeed, in 2000 we had 645 members and the CES had some one million net square feet (nsf) of exhibit space. Today we have more than 2,200 members and the 2015 CES exhibitors filled over 2.3 million nsf of exhibit space.
“It’s not only the number of customers which has grown, it’s who they are. In 2000 we had few if any Internet retailers, car companies, 3D printer makers, drone builders, wireless health companies, robotics companies, IoT players, search engines, tablet and smartphone makers, app creators, customer review sites, sharing economy players and content creators. Today, we have all these and more.
“These new members have expanded the CES offerings, partnered with our traditional companies and delighted consumers. They have enhanced CES, joined our association and focused on a range of new issues from privacy to health care, encryption to spectrum. They have made the association better as they infused our world with energy, passion and an aura of modernity. In short, they have strengthened us.
“But one common concern is that the name Consumer Electronics Association no longer fits. The word ‘electronics’ is limiting and does not capture all the innovation swirling around wireless, the Internet, automobiles, health and the new economy. The word ‘technology’ better defines what we have become and who we represent.”
CTA has always ensured its name evolved to reflect the rapidly-developing technology industry it represents. The association began as the Radio Manufacturers Association in 1924, later became the Electronic Industries Association, then the Consumer Electronics Manufacturers Association and, in 1999, the Consumer Electronics Association.
