End of an Era: Microsoft Pulling Out of CES after 2012
Microsoft is going to make one more big splash at the annual Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, and after that, the Redmond software giant will barely keep up appearances at CES. After 2013, there will be no more Microsoft keynote presentations and no more Microsoft booths. While some are wondering if this is a sign that CES is on its last legs, Microsoft contends it's simply a matter of timing.
"We’ll continue to participate in CES as a great place to connect with partners and customers across the PC, phone and entertainment industries, but we won’t have a keynote or booth after this year because our product news milestones generally don’t align with the show’s January timing," Microsoft explained in a blog post.
Microsoft's upcoming keynote -- it's last -- marks the end of an era and caps off a relationship that's nearly two-decades old. It's also hardly surprising when you consider the lack of major announcements from Microsoft at CES. Still, it's a big loss for a convention that, quite frankly, seems to have shrunk a little bit in recent years, though it appears to have been a mutual decision.
"In the fourteen years that we have invited Microsoft to deliver a keynote address at CES, the company has unveiled some great innovations, from operating systems to gaming platforms to mobile technologies," the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA) said in a statement. "Both CEA and Microsoft have agreed that the time has come to end this great run, and so Microsoft will not have a keynote at the 2013 CES."
"We’ll continue to participate in CES as a great place to connect with partners and customers across the PC, phone and entertainment industries, but we won’t have a keynote or booth after this year because our product news milestones generally don’t align with the show’s January timing," Microsoft explained in a blog post.
Microsoft's upcoming keynote -- it's last -- marks the end of an era and caps off a relationship that's nearly two-decades old. It's also hardly surprising when you consider the lack of major announcements from Microsoft at CES. Still, it's a big loss for a convention that, quite frankly, seems to have shrunk a little bit in recent years, though it appears to have been a mutual decision.
"In the fourteen years that we have invited Microsoft to deliver a keynote address at CES, the company has unveiled some great innovations, from operating systems to gaming platforms to mobile technologies," the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA) said in a statement. "Both CEA and Microsoft have agreed that the time has come to end this great run, and so Microsoft will not have a keynote at the 2013 CES."
