Category: Technology

CES 2017 unveils game-changing innovation to the world

LAS VEGAS: The future of technology was unveiled yesterday on opening day of CES® 2017, as more than 3,800 companies debuted products across a record 2.6 million net square feet of exhibit space. Opening day featured future-focused product announcements and keynotes from the leaders of Carnival Corp., Huawei and Nissan, in addition to a C Space keynote with chairman and senior executive of IAC and Expedia, Inc. Barry Diller and chairman and CEO of MediaLink Michael E. Kassan. Owned and produced by the Consumer Technology Association (CTA)TM, CES 2017 runs through Sunday, January 8, in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Keynotes
CTA president & CEO Gary Shapiro kicked off CES 2017 by exploring how technology transcends industries, transforms lives and fosters innovation. “Today’s innovators are working long hours and late nights to change lives for the better – and in some cases they’re saving lives,” he said. Shapiro announced that CTA will invest $1 million in five initiatives to help create better paying American jobs that maintain U.S. leadership in technology and innovation. “Our industry supports 15 million jobs and it’s time those of us in corporate America take an ethical responsibility and ownership in our national future.” Shapiro also announced CTA’s “Let’s Go Humans” campaign, celebrating innovators and creators who are developing technologies that are improving lives and making the world a better place to live.

Immediately following Shapiro, Carnival Corp president & CEO Arnold Donald took the opening keynote stage to unveil the Ocean Medallion, a first-of-its-kind wearable that acts as a personal digital concierge for cruise guests. The Medallion enables guests to access rooms, make on-board purchases, locate family and friends and so much more to maximize the cruise experience. “Each guest is different and the things that make them happy are different,” said Arnold. “Our mission is to personalize and simplify the vacation experience for everyone.”

During the C Space keynote, IAC and Expedia’s Barry Diller discussed changes in the media landscape and how the advertising industry is being challenged today by fake news. This interview-style session was moderated by MediaLinks’ Michael E. Kassan and addressed the potential negative consequences of the public’s newly-found freedom to publish content. “Before, you needed a distributor,” said Diller, “Now you push a button and publish to the world; while that’s freeing, it has lots of nasty consequences.”

Richard Yu, CEO of Huawei Consumer Business Group delivered a keynote address on Thursday afternoon. He said the company has invested $38 billion in R&D in the last 10 years and announced a new smartphone with a dual-camera – a second generation Leica Dual camera, featuring dual sensors and 2X hybrid zoom. Yu showcased an ultra-long lasting battery with the Huawei SuperCharge, which charges four times faster and lasts 50 percent longer than other smartphone batteries. He also introduced the Mate 9, the world’s first intelligent smartphone to integrate with Alexa, the intelligent voice service.

Wrapping up the day, Nissan Motor Corp chairman & CEO Carlos Ghosn shared the company’s vision for a zero-emissions, zero-fatality world. “The disruptive angle of autonomous drive technology, electric vehicles, connected cars and services means we will see more change in the next ten years than we did in the last 50,” said Ghosn. He then announced that the next-generation Nissan Leaf electric vehicle will come with the semi-autonomous ProPilot system, as well as the company’s plans to launch their Seamless Autonomous Mobility (SAM) system. Developed from NASA technology, SAM enables a “human in the loop” approach to autonomous driving, which monitors a vehicle’s path from a distance, providing peace of mind to drivers.

SuperSessions and Conferences
Opening day featured dynamic SuperSessions and conferences, including the Sports Business Innovation conference, C Space Storytellers panel series and the Innovation Policy conference.

The Stoked About 5G SuperSession, moderated by ReCode Senior Editor of Mobile Ina Fried, featured executives from 20th Century Fox Film, BMW Group, Ericsson and SK Telecom. The panel discussed the possibilities for innovation using the new 5G network – a network that reacts faster than the human brain.

CTA’s Gary Shapiro sat down with Federal Trade Commission Chairwoman Edith Ramirez to discuss consumer privacy, the Internet of Things, patent trolls and the sharing economy. Ramirez emphasized the need for Congressional action to ensure the functions of internet-enabled devices are transparent. “All of the innovation you see on the CES show floor depends on the use and gathering of data, and that’s only going to accelerate, especially in regard to artificial intelligence and machine learning,” said Ramirez.

David Kirkpatrick, founder and CEO of Techonomy, moderated The Challenges Facing an Artificially Intelligent World SuperSession. Speakers included Chris O’Connor, general manager, IBM Watson, Dr. Vivienne Ming, co-founder, Socos, Jeroen Tas, CEO, Connected Care & Health Informatics, Philips, and Paul Daugherty, chief technology & innovation officer, Accenture. The panel discussed the future of Artificial Intelligence (AI), how it will grow to become all-inclusive, similar to IoT, and how AI will enhance human lives, help further develop our abilities and change our society.

CNET’s Next Big Thing SuperSession was moderated by CNET Editor-in-Chief Lindsey Turrentine and CNET’s Editor-at-Large Brian Cooley. The panel explored barriers to unlocking the smart home. Obstacles discussed included cost, complexity and security. When the group turned to discuss security, they were briefly joined on stage by actress Carly Chaikin, who plays the hacker Darlene on the USA television series “Mr. Robot.” Security of the smart home, the panelists agreed, is the starting point of any smart home device.

C Space Storyteller Sessions

Thursday’s C Space Storyteller sessions kicked off with Margo Georgiadis, president, Americas at Google, moderating a panel with leaders from Universal Pictures and AT&T. The executives took a deep dive into how each brand leverages mobile to grow stronger and drive business results. They also touched on how to win the war for attention with so much content competition, with the consensus being to hook and hold audiences with compelling content.

Next, executives from Hulu and Live Nation took the C Space stage to discuss how they are redefining the concert experience through a new frontier: Virtual Reality. Kevin Chernett, executive vice president, global partnerships and content distribution at Live Nation Entertainment and Noah Heller, vice president, emerging technology at Hulu addressed the new frontier of leveraging virtual entertainment to give fans unprecedented access into the worlds of top artists both on and off stage.

Mike Parker, president, iCrossing moderated an afternoon Storytellers panel with executives from Bridgestone, PepsiCo and Whirpool Corp. to explore customer behavior driven by technology and innovation. Marketers need to manage the flow of data and leverage the analytics while learning more about their audiences. Brands will be challenged to maintain consistency with their stories, given the new tools coming into the market.

Rounding out the Storyteller sessions, President of Verizon Digital Media Services Ralf Jacob talked with leading content creators about how OTT strategies and technologies have enabled them to engage audiences and further drive opportunities. The goal isn’t to get the most clicks, but to keep their audiences coming back, increasing page time and sharing information with the brand. Engaging new users presents a gamble because marketers are forced to use new strategies with little data.

Sports Business Innovation
David Levy, president of Turner, kicked off the Sports Business Innovation Conference Track on Thursday. Panelists included WNBA player Sue Bird, NBA analyst Grant Hill, NCAA President Dr. Mark Emmert, and NBA Commissioner Adam Silver. The panel, moderated by Turner Sports Sportscaster Ernie Johnson, covered a number of topics related to technology’s effect on professional sports. Seven-time NBA All-Star Grant Hill put it best, “We are all connected. Not just in how you interact with fans, but how you manage your body.”

The three subsequent panels examined topics varying from an athlete’s life outside of sports, the challenges of, and strategies for, consumer engagement and the massive opportunity presented by the growing popularity of eSports. Participants included Chris Bosh of the NBA’s Miami Heat; Draymond Green of the NBA’s Golden State Warriors and Dexter Fowler’s of Major League Baseball’s St. Louis Cardinals, as well as executives from Bleacher Report, Dell and Ford.

To round things out, Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Commissioner Roundtable Session was moderated by Julie Kearney of CTA with panelists FCC Commissioners Mignon Clyburn, Mike O’Rielly and Ajit Pai and FTC Commissioners Maureen Ohlhausen and Terrell McSweeny. FCC Commissioners kicked off the panel with broad agreement on the ongoing broadcast spectrum incentive auction, each commenting they are optimistic the incentive spectrum auction will succeed and make resources more efficient. The FTC Commissioners identified ongoing issues for data privacy and security for consumers with IoT, but stressed that any approach to regulating should be flexible enough to promote innovation.

Thursday also featured the Stuff Wearable Tech Awards, highlighting the 10 best wearables coming to market. The full list of award winners and honorees can be found at Stuff.tv.

January 6, 2017
India’s startup gets J&J support for maiden device

LAS VEGAS: Ray IoT is creating a non-contact wellness and sleep tracker for babies for which it has received support by Johnson & Johnson and HAX. Ray IoT will be introducing its product at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas 5-8 January. This is the first time a startup from India has been given the support of J&J to create a baby product.

Ray IoT’s maiden product is a device to monitor sleeping babies. It lets parents know on their cell phones if their baby is sleeping well, if it’s breathing normally or it has rolled over. Unlike other baby monitors, Raybaby, as it’s called, doesn’t touch the baby, so it’s non-intrusive.

Bangalore-based Ray IoT, creators of the first non-contact sleep and wellness tracker for babies, announced the support extended by Johnson & Johnson and HAX as part of the Joint Consumer Health Device Accelerator Program. Ray IoT is the first Indian company to be supported by Johnson & Johnson Innovation as part of this initiative.

Famous for its baby products, J&J invests US$8 billion annually on research and development and is now keen to look to outside sources to keep its technology fresh.

According to Ray IoT VP for External Innovation and New Business Models John Bell: “What we are learning is that doing everything on your own is no longer possible. We have found out the hard way every now and then that if you try to do everything, it doesn’t work.” Announcing the program launch, Bell added “We are really focused on working together with the external world to co-create new products.”

Ray IoT co-founder and CEO Ranjana Nair said, “Johnson & Johnson is a household name in India. The first gift you think of buying for a new born baby in India is the Johnson & Johnson baby hamper. We at Ray are excited to be the first Indian company to be a part of this initiative.”

Ray IoT will also participate in the demo day by HAX in San Francisco on 10 January, and launch its campaign on Kickstarter on 31 January to collect pre-orders.

Ray IoT has also benefitted from being in China’s Silicon Valley of hardware, Shenzhen.

January 6, 2017
India’s startup gets J&J support for maiden device

LAS VEGAS: Ray IoT is creating a non-contact wellness and sleep tracker for babies for which it has received support by Johnson & Johnson and HAX. Ray IoT will be introducing its product at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas 5-8 January. This is the first time a startup from India has been given the support of J&J to create a baby product.

Ray IoT’s maiden product is a device to monitor sleeping babies. It lets parents know on their cell phones if their baby is sleeping well, if it’s breathing normally or it has rolled over. Unlike other baby monitors, Raybaby, as it’s called, doesn’t touch the baby, so it’s non-intrusive.

Bangalore-based Ray IoT, creators of the first non-contact sleep and wellness tracker for babies, announced the support extended by Johnson & Johnson and HAX as part of the Joint Consumer Health Device Accelerator Program. Ray IoT is the first Indian company to be supported by Johnson & Johnson Innovation as part of this initiative.

Famous for its baby products, J&J invests US$8 billion annually on research and development and is now keen to look to outside sources to keep its technology fresh.

According to Ray IoT VP for External Innovation and New Business Models John Bell: “What we are learning is that doing everything on your own is no longer possible. We have found out the hard way every now and then that if you try to do everything, it doesn’t work.” Announcing the program launch, Bell added “We are really focused on working together with the external world to co-create new products.”

Ray IoT co-founder and CEO Ranjana Nair said, “Johnson & Johnson is a household name in India. The first gift you think of buying for a new born baby in India is the Johnson & Johnson baby hamper. We at Ray are excited to be the first Indian company to be a part of this initiative.”

Ray IoT will also participate in the demo day by HAX in San Francisco on 10 January, and launch its campaign on Kickstarter on 31 January to collect pre-orders.

Ray IoT has also benefitted from being in China’s Silicon Valley of hardware, Shenzhen.

January 6, 2017
Whoa! CES 2017 Opens with Next-Generation Innovation

LAS VEGAS: CES® 2017 officially opened its doors today, celebrating the show’s 50th anniversary with a recording-breaking exhibit floor spanning more than 2.6 million net square feet. More than 3,800 companies will launch innovative products this week at CES, including an unprecedented 600 startups in Eureka Park. Owned and produced by the Consumer Technology Association (CTA)TM, CES 2017 runs through Sunday, 8 January in Las Vegas, Nevada.

“What an incredible way to celebrate the 50th anniversary of CES – with the largest show floor in our history showcasing the next generation of innovation that will revolutionize our world,” said CTA president & CEO Gary Shapiro. “The products and services unveiled at CES 2017 will touch nearly every single global industry. From the latest in virtual reality, smart home, self-driving vehicles, robotics, wearables, health and fitness tech and more, CES 2017 is unveiling the future of the connected experience and what it means for consumers around the world.”

CES welcomed NVIDIA founder & CEO Jen-Hsun Huang to the keynote stage Wednesday night, where he made multiple groundbreaking announcements based on the company’s leadership in developing advanced graphics processors and artificial intelligence. Mass Effect: Andromeda, a popular video game made by BioWare, was previewed by NVIDIA along withGeForce NOW™, a streaming service that turns any PC into a powerful gaming PC from the cloud. Huang also unveiled a new version of the Shield TV — now just called Shield — which will support 4K HDR for both games and movies making it the world’s first 4K HDR entertainment platform. To support Shield’s Artificial Intelligence (AI), Huang introduced NVIDIA SPOT, a plug-in device that understands natural language and complex patterns to help build a user’s AI experience. Huang also announced an AI car supercomputer called Xavier used in NVIDIA’s own self-driving car BB8 and a new capability on the NVIDIA AI car computer called AI Co-Pilot, which provides drivers with road alerts and recognizes facial expressions and voice recognition to improve drivers’ experience.

Huang further announced an expanded partnership with Audi to develop artificial intelligence for a new generation of self-driving cars, with plans to have vehicles on the road by 2020. He also provided details on partnerships with mapping companies HERE and ZENRIN; and two of the world’s largest automotive suppliers, ZF and Bosch.

Wednesday also kicked off the C Space Storytellers series, with key influencers and newsmakers sharing best practices surrounding the relationships among brands, entertainment and technology. In the series’ first session, Spotify’s Alex Underwood moderated a panel with executives from GroupM, Nestle S.A. and Wordsworth and Booth providing a 30,000 foot view of the advertising opportunities in audio.

During the Nielsen Storytellers session, Nielsen’s Executive Vice President & Global Retail Practice Leader Louise Keely discussed new technologies for advertising for consumer-facing companies. In this “period of great disruption” in the consumer path to purchase, companies must change measurement tools and methods.

Preshow media events kicked off on Tuesday which included the largest CES Unveiled in history. The official media event of CES 2017 featured a record 190 exhibiting companies, an 18 percent increase over 2016, including 60 startups from Eureka Park, the most startups ever showcased at CES Unveiled. Featuring the latest in virtual reality, companion sensing robots, wireless headphones, sleep trackers, smart lighting, wearables and more, CES Unveiled provided the more than 2,000 media attending with a sneak peak of the innovation launching this week at the show. The official CES Unveiled highlights reel can be viewed here.

New for 2017, CES included two full Media Days where companies large and small introduced products to the global market. Setting the stage for a week filled with innovation, 28 companies hosted preshow news conferences, with a wide array of major product announcements:

• A&D Medical/Mobile Health – The MobileHelp Tablet Medical Alarm with MobileVitals Monitoring.
• BMW – Prototype of BMW’s 7-fully automated sedan.
• Bosch – Concept car featuring face recognition and intelligent personalization, gesture control with Ultra Haptics, a crystal-clear OLED display and digital exterior mirrors.
• Carnival – Ocean Medallion, a highly personalized wearable concierge service, which enables elevated service through enhanced guest interactions during the entire cruise experience.
• Casio – PRO TREK, a smart watch, which uses Android Wear 2.0 and is equipped with low-power GPS and new full-color map functionality.
• Continental – High-Resolution 3D Lash Lidar, capable of 3D measurement of the environment in challenging conditions such as fog, dust, rain and light.
• Faraday Future – The FF 91, a fully-electric, fully-connected, self-driving, keyless vehicle experience with a “driverless valet” function that allows the car to park itself from your smartphone.
• FCA – Portal, a concept car, is battery electric, cloud connected and offers fully self-driving capabilities.
• Hisense – The H10D 4K HDR TV, featuring proprietary ULED display technology, quantum dot wide color gamut and full array local dimming.
• Huawei/Honor Brands – The Honor 6X dual-camera, dual-sensor smartphone, retailing for $250 USD.
• Hyundai – IONIC Scooter, a “micro mobility” fold-up scooter aimed at those who live in urban environments with limited parking options.
• LG – LG Signature OLED TV W, or the “The Wallpaper TV.” The 65” model is 2.57 mm wide – 1/10th of an inch – with no gap between the TV and wall.
• Lucaro – iRobotics 7 Medical Massage Chair, a full-body massage chair that also uses blood pressure and heart rate monitoring for added comfort and options.
• Monster – Soundstage 2, to be integrated with Amazon Alexa.
• Panasonic – Lumix GH5 mirrorless camera that excels at shooting video and has 4K and 6K capabilities.
• Qualcomm – Snapdragon 835, the first 10 nanometer mobile processor, with enhanced efficiency that helps to create thinner phones with longer battery life.
• Royole – The Royole Moon, a 3D virtual mobile theater combining 1080p AMOLED displays at over 3000 ppi resolution that simulate a giant 800” curved screen, with stereoscopic 3D and noise-cancelling headphones for a completely immersive experience.
• Samsung – The Wash and FlexDry IoT-enabled washer/dryer system featuring four separate compartments for washing and drying, letting you maximize efficiency and customize how you manage your laundry.
• Sony – Crystal LED integrated structure display, with superfine LED structures serving as a light source, making it virtually impossible to see the pixels.
• TCL – The Xess series – X2 and X3 models – which are edgeless, flat and curved proving ultimate picture quality.
• Toyota – Concept-i, a self-driving car allowing passengers to interact with the car’s artificial intelligence agent named “Yui,” which anticipates drivers’ needs, measures emotions and responds automatically.
• Valeo – The 360AEB Nearshield, an emergency braking system that eliminates drivers’ blind spots, bringing the vehicle to a stop in emergency situations.
• VOXX – Terk delivers the strongest Wi-Fi signals throughout the home, as well as free HDTV. The soon-to-be released Terk Omni features circle beam technology, which will allow you to receive broadcast signals up to 65 miles away.
• ZF – The ZF ProAI, a deep learning software and ZF’s first step into artificial intelligence that goes beyond automotive applications.
• ZTE – The Hawkeye, the world’s first crowdsourced phone.
Wednesday afternoon also featured ShowStoppers LaunchIt, the Official Pitch Event at CES, built around the entrepreneurial companies that exhibit in Eureka Park, the home for startups at CES. Twelve startups pitched their products to a standing room-only crowd. First prize was awarded to Nonda, makers of a family of connected, app-enabled devices for the vehicle. Kino-mo, developer of high tech smart holographic displays, took second place. Third place was awarded to In&Motion, creator of a smart wearable that aims to reduce the risk of serious injury due to falls. Attendees can experience these and other innovative startups at the Eureka Park Marketplace, located in the Sands, Level 1, Hall G.

January 5, 2017
Whoa! CES 2017 Opens with Next-Generation Innovation

LAS VEGAS: CES® 2017 officially opened its doors today, celebrating the show’s 50th anniversary with a recording-breaking exhibit floor spanning more than 2.6 million net square feet. More than 3,800 companies will launch innovative products this week at CES, including an unprecedented 600 startups in Eureka Park. Owned and produced by the Consumer Technology Association (CTA)TM, CES 2017 runs through Sunday, 8 January in Las Vegas, Nevada.

“What an incredible way to celebrate the 50th anniversary of CES – with the largest show floor in our history showcasing the next generation of innovation that will revolutionize our world,” said CTA president & CEO Gary Shapiro. “The products and services unveiled at CES 2017 will touch nearly every single global industry. From the latest in virtual reality, smart home, self-driving vehicles, robotics, wearables, health and fitness tech and more, CES 2017 is unveiling the future of the connected experience and what it means for consumers around the world.”

CES welcomed NVIDIA founder & CEO Jen-Hsun Huang to the keynote stage Wednesday night, where he made multiple groundbreaking announcements based on the company’s leadership in developing advanced graphics processors and artificial intelligence. Mass Effect: Andromeda, a popular video game made by BioWare, was previewed by NVIDIA along withGeForce NOW™, a streaming service that turns any PC into a powerful gaming PC from the cloud. Huang also unveiled a new version of the Shield TV — now just called Shield — which will support 4K HDR for both games and movies making it the world’s first 4K HDR entertainment platform. To support Shield’s Artificial Intelligence (AI), Huang introduced NVIDIA SPOT, a plug-in device that understands natural language and complex patterns to help build a user’s AI experience. Huang also announced an AI car supercomputer called Xavier used in NVIDIA’s own self-driving car BB8 and a new capability on the NVIDIA AI car computer called AI Co-Pilot, which provides drivers with road alerts and recognizes facial expressions and voice recognition to improve drivers’ experience.

Huang further announced an expanded partnership with Audi to develop artificial intelligence for a new generation of self-driving cars, with plans to have vehicles on the road by 2020. He also provided details on partnerships with mapping companies HERE and ZENRIN; and two of the world’s largest automotive suppliers, ZF and Bosch.

Wednesday also kicked off the C Space Storytellers series, with key influencers and newsmakers sharing best practices surrounding the relationships among brands, entertainment and technology. In the series’ first session, Spotify’s Alex Underwood moderated a panel with executives from GroupM, Nestle S.A. and Wordsworth and Booth providing a 30,000 foot view of the advertising opportunities in audio.

During the Nielsen Storytellers session, Nielsen’s Executive Vice President & Global Retail Practice Leader Louise Keely discussed new technologies for advertising for consumer-facing companies. In this “period of great disruption” in the consumer path to purchase, companies must change measurement tools and methods.

Preshow media events kicked off on Tuesday which included the largest CES Unveiled in history. The official media event of CES 2017 featured a record 190 exhibiting companies, an 18 percent increase over 2016, including 60 startups from Eureka Park, the most startups ever showcased at CES Unveiled. Featuring the latest in virtual reality, companion sensing robots, wireless headphones, sleep trackers, smart lighting, wearables and more, CES Unveiled provided the more than 2,000 media attending with a sneak peak of the innovation launching this week at the show. The official CES Unveiled highlights reel can be viewed here.

New for 2017, CES included two full Media Days where companies large and small introduced products to the global market. Setting the stage for a week filled with innovation, 28 companies hosted preshow news conferences, with a wide array of major product announcements:

• A&D Medical/Mobile Health – The MobileHelp Tablet Medical Alarm with MobileVitals Monitoring.
• BMW – Prototype of BMW’s 7-fully automated sedan.
• Bosch – Concept car featuring face recognition and intelligent personalization, gesture control with Ultra Haptics, a crystal-clear OLED display and digital exterior mirrors.
• Carnival – Ocean Medallion, a highly personalized wearable concierge service, which enables elevated service through enhanced guest interactions during the entire cruise experience.
• Casio – PRO TREK, a smart watch, which uses Android Wear 2.0 and is equipped with low-power GPS and new full-color map functionality.
• Continental – High-Resolution 3D Lash Lidar, capable of 3D measurement of the environment in challenging conditions such as fog, dust, rain and light.
• Faraday Future – The FF 91, a fully-electric, fully-connected, self-driving, keyless vehicle experience with a “driverless valet” function that allows the car to park itself from your smartphone.
• FCA – Portal, a concept car, is battery electric, cloud connected and offers fully self-driving capabilities.
• Hisense – The H10D 4K HDR TV, featuring proprietary ULED display technology, quantum dot wide color gamut and full array local dimming.
• Huawei/Honor Brands – The Honor 6X dual-camera, dual-sensor smartphone, retailing for $250 USD.
• Hyundai – IONIC Scooter, a “micro mobility” fold-up scooter aimed at those who live in urban environments with limited parking options.
• LG – LG Signature OLED TV W, or the “The Wallpaper TV.” The 65” model is 2.57 mm wide – 1/10th of an inch – with no gap between the TV and wall.
• Lucaro – iRobotics 7 Medical Massage Chair, a full-body massage chair that also uses blood pressure and heart rate monitoring for added comfort and options.
• Monster – Soundstage 2, to be integrated with Amazon Alexa.
• Panasonic – Lumix GH5 mirrorless camera that excels at shooting video and has 4K and 6K capabilities.
• Qualcomm – Snapdragon 835, the first 10 nanometer mobile processor, with enhanced efficiency that helps to create thinner phones with longer battery life.
• Royole – The Royole Moon, a 3D virtual mobile theater combining 1080p AMOLED displays at over 3000 ppi resolution that simulate a giant 800” curved screen, with stereoscopic 3D and noise-cancelling headphones for a completely immersive experience.
• Samsung – The Wash and FlexDry IoT-enabled washer/dryer system featuring four separate compartments for washing and drying, letting you maximize efficiency and customize how you manage your laundry.
• Sony – Crystal LED integrated structure display, with superfine LED structures serving as a light source, making it virtually impossible to see the pixels.
• TCL – The Xess series – X2 and X3 models – which are edgeless, flat and curved proving ultimate picture quality.
• Toyota – Concept-i, a self-driving car allowing passengers to interact with the car’s artificial intelligence agent named “Yui,” which anticipates drivers’ needs, measures emotions and responds automatically.
• Valeo – The 360AEB Nearshield, an emergency braking system that eliminates drivers’ blind spots, bringing the vehicle to a stop in emergency situations.
• VOXX – Terk delivers the strongest Wi-Fi signals throughout the home, as well as free HDTV. The soon-to-be released Terk Omni features circle beam technology, which will allow you to receive broadcast signals up to 65 miles away.
• ZF – The ZF ProAI, a deep learning software and ZF’s first step into artificial intelligence that goes beyond automotive applications.
• ZTE – The Hawkeye, the world’s first crowdsourced phone.
Wednesday afternoon also featured ShowStoppers LaunchIt, the Official Pitch Event at CES, built around the entrepreneurial companies that exhibit in Eureka Park, the home for startups at CES. Twelve startups pitched their products to a standing room-only crowd. First prize was awarded to Nonda, makers of a family of connected, app-enabled devices for the vehicle. Kino-mo, developer of high tech smart holographic displays, took second place. Third place was awarded to In&Motion, creator of a smart wearable that aims to reduce the risk of serious injury due to falls. Attendees can experience these and other innovative startups at the Eureka Park Marketplace, located in the Sands, Level 1, Hall G.

January 5, 2017
Wipro middleware powers integration-ready Hisense 4K; supports HD-PVR features

MUMBAI: Wipro Limited, a leading global information technology, consulting and business process services company, announced that its Digital TV Middleware solution has successfully enabled Hisense 4K TVs in Japan. Hisense Co. Ltd. is a multinational white goods, brown goods and electronics manufacturer.

The Wipro solution supports Hisense 4K TV product features- ISDB-T/S Broadcast and HD-PVR- to enable a premium viewing experience for customers.

Wipro was selected by Hisense as the middleware partner for its 4K TV segment in Japan. As a part of its engagement with Hisense, Wipro integrated its market-ready software stack with Hisense’s 4K TV product portfolio. It also helped the company accelerate the product development lifecycle of its recently launched product variants of 4K LCD TV.

Wipro’s middleware solution is fully compliant with the latest Japanese Association of Radio Industries and Businesses (ARIB specifications) (ISDB-T/S) and is Integration-Ready for Android TV, Linux, QNX and other operating systems. Wipro’s solution enables key Smart TV features such as Hybrid Multi-Tuner (Terrestrial & Satellite), Antenna Diversity, One and Full Segment Services, BS/CS, BCAS Verifier, support for Fixed and Mobile Receivers, and Advanced HD-PVR scenarios.

Wipro senior vice president and global head, product engineering services Anita Ganti said, “The successful deployment is a testament to the best-in-class quality of our Digital TV Middleware Solutions and reinforces our commitment to become a partner of choice for the global media industry.”

Wipro’s expertise in providing Digital TV Middleware solutions based on ATSC, DVB, ISDB and other interactive standards have been leveraged by partners, worldwide. Wipro’s middleware solutions have been powering Digital TV, Set-Top-Box and Automotive Infotainment devices across the globe for over fifteen years.

January 5, 2017
Wipro middleware powers integration-ready Hisense 4K; supports HD-PVR features

MUMBAI: Wipro Limited, a leading global information technology, consulting and business process services company, announced that its Digital TV Middleware solution has successfully enabled Hisense 4K TVs in Japan. Hisense Co. Ltd. is a multinational white goods, brown goods and electronics manufacturer.

The Wipro solution supports Hisense 4K TV product features- ISDB-T/S Broadcast and HD-PVR- to enable a premium viewing experience for customers.

Wipro was selected by Hisense as the middleware partner for its 4K TV segment in Japan. As a part of its engagement with Hisense, Wipro integrated its market-ready software stack with Hisense’s 4K TV product portfolio. It also helped the company accelerate the product development lifecycle of its recently launched product variants of 4K LCD TV.

Wipro’s middleware solution is fully compliant with the latest Japanese Association of Radio Industries and Businesses (ARIB specifications) (ISDB-T/S) and is Integration-Ready for Android TV, Linux, QNX and other operating systems. Wipro’s solution enables key Smart TV features such as Hybrid Multi-Tuner (Terrestrial & Satellite), Antenna Diversity, One and Full Segment Services, BS/CS, BCAS Verifier, support for Fixed and Mobile Receivers, and Advanced HD-PVR scenarios.

Wipro senior vice president and global head, product engineering services Anita Ganti said, “The successful deployment is a testament to the best-in-class quality of our Digital TV Middleware Solutions and reinforces our commitment to become a partner of choice for the global media industry.”

Wipro’s expertise in providing Digital TV Middleware solutions based on ATSC, DVB, ISDB and other interactive standards have been leveraged by partners, worldwide. Wipro’s middleware solutions have been powering Digital TV, Set-Top-Box and Automotive Infotainment devices across the globe for over fifteen years.

January 5, 2017
Harvard Research on kids to kick off Kidscreen Summit 2017

TORONTO: Kidscreen is thrilled to announce that Dr. Richard Weissbourd, director of the Human Development and Psychology programme at Harvard University, will open 2017’s biggest event for leaders in children’s entertainment with the presentation of a new research study exploring why and how we are unconsciously undermining the development of empathy and caring in today’s kids.

In the current socio-economic climate, where tolerance and understanding seem to be in short supply, it’s more important than ever to help kids develop these skills. So join us and find out how kids TV producers and media platforms can help children and parents learn to care for others—and also what kinds of messages and content strategies are important for counteracting the nastiness, scapegoating and incivility that seems to be pervading our culture right now.

The full conference programme for Kidscreen Summit 2017is now available online (http://summit.kidscreen.com/2017/agenda/), and it’s chock-full of keynotes, panel discussions, presentations, debates and networking/pitching formats. Here are just a few highlights:

Emotional Scheduling: How kids are organizing their own media lives
Kids today are accustomed to having access to what they want, whenever they want it. But as it turns out, programming schedules still make sense to them, and they organize their media lives around factors like where they are, who they’re with, and what they’ve been doing or are about to do. Dubit’s David Kleeman discusses this new concept of “emotional scheduling,” which is critical to driving discovery and retention for anyone creating media for children.

From Toys-to-Life to Life on Netflix: A Skylanders Academy case study
Activision Blizzard’s Skylanders almost single-handedly created the US$4-billion toys-to-life category. And tasked with bringing the bestselling video game franchise to TVs around the globe, content arm Activision Blizzard Studios scored a worldwide deal with Netflix for Skylanders Academy, created by showrunner Eric Rogers (Futurama). In this session, the creative team behind the show will delve into its adaptation process and what we can expect to see next.

Little Big Kids: Preschoolers ready for life

Viacom recently undertook a huge global study of preschoolers—an adventure spanning 12 countries, 6,500 families, social media diaries and in-depth ethnographies—to find out what it means to be under six years old today. Christian Kurz, the company’s SVP of Research, Insight and Reporting, will for the first time unveil these latest findings on our youngest generation. And as an added bonus, real preschoolers—equipped with GoPro cameras—will give you a glimpse into their world.

Surviving, Scaling and Making Money in the Kids Digital Space

Is there a way to create and deliver fun, engaging and strictly regulated digital content to this generation of kids, but also build market share, profits and long-term brand loyalty at the same time? In this fireside chat, Jeff Imberman, CRO of kids ad platform SuperAwesome—and former SVP of Sales and Marketing at Nickelodeon—will answer this critical question and show how the kids digital ecosystem is something to be embraced, not feared. He’ll also divulge how the under-13 audience is already telling brands and content creators what they want—delivering success is just a matter of really listening to them.

Set to run from February 13 to 16 next month, Kidscreen Summit 2017 will once again take place at the InterContinental Miami, a contemporary luxury hotel located on prime waterfront in downtown Miami, and just minutes away from South Beach, the Design District, Coconut Grove’s bohemian village, and the many galleries, restaurants and boutique shops in Coral Gables.

In 2016, the event welcomed nearly 1,800 attendees from more than 50 countries around the world, including more than 450 kids programming buyers and investors looking for new content and partners. Its unique positioning as a conference AND a market lets delegates customize their Summit experience to suit their goals and priorities. Offering an unparalleled conference programme and networking opportunities, the event is the perfect place to learn about the latest trends, issues and opportunities and connect with the industry’s top decision-makers.

Registration for Kidscreen Summit 2017 is still open. To sign up online or get more information, visit the event website at http://summit.kidscreen.com/2017/.

January 5, 2017
Harvard Research on kids to kick off Kidscreen Summit 2017

TORONTO: Kidscreen is thrilled to announce that Dr. Richard Weissbourd, director of the Human Development and Psychology programme at Harvard University, will open 2017’s biggest event for leaders in children’s entertainment with the presentation of a new research study exploring why and how we are unconsciously undermining the development of empathy and caring in today’s kids.

In the current socio-economic climate, where tolerance and understanding seem to be in short supply, it’s more important than ever to help kids develop these skills. So join us and find out how kids TV producers and media platforms can help children and parents learn to care for others—and also what kinds of messages and content strategies are important for counteracting the nastiness, scapegoating and incivility that seems to be pervading our culture right now.

The full conference programme for Kidscreen Summit 2017is now available online (http://summit.kidscreen.com/2017/agenda/), and it’s chock-full of keynotes, panel discussions, presentations, debates and networking/pitching formats. Here are just a few highlights:

Emotional Scheduling: How kids are organizing their own media lives
Kids today are accustomed to having access to what they want, whenever they want it. But as it turns out, programming schedules still make sense to them, and they organize their media lives around factors like where they are, who they’re with, and what they’ve been doing or are about to do. Dubit’s David Kleeman discusses this new concept of “emotional scheduling,” which is critical to driving discovery and retention for anyone creating media for children.

From Toys-to-Life to Life on Netflix: A Skylanders Academy case study
Activision Blizzard’s Skylanders almost single-handedly created the US$4-billion toys-to-life category. And tasked with bringing the bestselling video game franchise to TVs around the globe, content arm Activision Blizzard Studios scored a worldwide deal with Netflix for Skylanders Academy, created by showrunner Eric Rogers (Futurama). In this session, the creative team behind the show will delve into its adaptation process and what we can expect to see next.

Little Big Kids: Preschoolers ready for life

Viacom recently undertook a huge global study of preschoolers—an adventure spanning 12 countries, 6,500 families, social media diaries and in-depth ethnographies—to find out what it means to be under six years old today. Christian Kurz, the company’s SVP of Research, Insight and Reporting, will for the first time unveil these latest findings on our youngest generation. And as an added bonus, real preschoolers—equipped with GoPro cameras—will give you a glimpse into their world.

Surviving, Scaling and Making Money in the Kids Digital Space

Is there a way to create and deliver fun, engaging and strictly regulated digital content to this generation of kids, but also build market share, profits and long-term brand loyalty at the same time? In this fireside chat, Jeff Imberman, CRO of kids ad platform SuperAwesome—and former SVP of Sales and Marketing at Nickelodeon—will answer this critical question and show how the kids digital ecosystem is something to be embraced, not feared. He’ll also divulge how the under-13 audience is already telling brands and content creators what they want—delivering success is just a matter of really listening to them.

Set to run from February 13 to 16 next month, Kidscreen Summit 2017 will once again take place at the InterContinental Miami, a contemporary luxury hotel located on prime waterfront in downtown Miami, and just minutes away from South Beach, the Design District, Coconut Grove’s bohemian village, and the many galleries, restaurants and boutique shops in Coral Gables.

In 2016, the event welcomed nearly 1,800 attendees from more than 50 countries around the world, including more than 450 kids programming buyers and investors looking for new content and partners. Its unique positioning as a conference AND a market lets delegates customize their Summit experience to suit their goals and priorities. Offering an unparalleled conference programme and networking opportunities, the event is the perfect place to learn about the latest trends, issues and opportunities and connect with the industry’s top decision-makers.

Registration for Kidscreen Summit 2017 is still open. To sign up online or get more information, visit the event website at http://summit.kidscreen.com/2017/.

January 5, 2017
TCL reveals new TVs with top tech featuring Dolby vision

TCL reveals newLAS VEGAS: TCL®, one of the world’s largest and America’s fastest-growing television brand, today announced an innovative portfolio of new products at the 2017 International Consumer Electronics Show (CES). The latest additions feature Dolby Vision™ high-dynamic range (HDR) technology for powerful imaging, advanced LED phosphors to experience vivid colors closer to reality, and Contrast Control technologies to yield deeper blacks and brighter whites. A total of 25 new TCL Roku TVs are coming to the North American market this year across three series – C, P, and S – touting even better picture, sound, design and content than before. TCL’s C and P series meet the highest standards for content with stunning picture quality via Dolby Vision. Using Dolby’s universal HDR solution, these sets will support both Dolby Vision and generic HDR (HDR10), providing consumers maximum choice when it comes to content.

“We’re excited to partner with TCL to deliver Dolby Vision to more consumers than ever
before,” said Dolby Laboratories senior vice president – consumer entertainment group Giles Baker. “With Dolby Vision, you are able to enjoy a premium entertainment experience that is more life-like. Preserving the artistic intent of the content creator, watching Dolby Vision is more like looking through a window than at a screen.”

TCL continues to build on its partnership with Roku which began in 2014. The 2017 4K HDR TCL Roku TV models combine premium picture quality and industrial design with the latest version available of Roku OS and its extensive line-up of streaming channels – more than 4,500 channels and 450,000+ movies and TV episodes. With Roku OS 7.5, TCL Roku TVs can pause live over-the-air programming as well as stay current with automatic software updates providing new channels and features to offer an exceptional smart TV experience.

TCL Roku TV C-Series: Contemporary Design

The high-end C-Series marries stunning 4K high-dynamic range and super slim, elegant design for an upscale TV experience. The set supports Dolby Vision, which delivers the ultimate HDR imaging experience. Dolby Vision delivers images that are brighter than those that can be seen on today’s standard TV sets, deep darks that provide a new level of richness and precision, as well as expanded contrast while still maintaining lifelike color and detail.

Additionally, HDR Dynamic Contrast allows the contrast to be optimized for each HDR scene, delivering brighter whites and deeper blacks. They also feature wide color gamut with advanced LED phosphor for more realistic colors, brighter highlights and increased light-to-dark contrast. The C-Series smart TVs are equipped with TCL 4K Creative Pro up-scaling so viewers can enjoy their existing HD content with increased detail and realistic clarity, an enhanced Roku TV remote with headphone jack for private listening and voice search, high-speed 802.11ac wireless and Ethernet networking for faster streaming, and three HDMI® 2.0a ports with HDCP 2.2 so users can enjoy optimal functionality. The C-Series will be available this Spring with sizes ranging from 49 to 75 inches.

TCL Roku TV P-Series: Powerful Picture PerformanceTCL combines superior 4K UHD picture quality with Dolby Vision, which delivers the ultimate HDR imaging experience, in the P-Series. With HDR Contrast Control Zones, contrast is individually optimized across 72 zones to achieve deeper blacks and brighter whites. A wide color gamut with advanced LED phosphor steps up playback performance with exceptional colors, brighter highlights and increased light-to-dark contrast. Furthermore, P-Series TVs come packed with TCL 4K Creative Pro up-scaling, an advanced remote offering voice search and a headphone jack for private listening, high-speed 802.11ac wireless and Ethernet networking, and three HDMI 2.0a ports with HDCP 2.2.

Delivering premium Dolby Vision HDR picture quality at a great value, the 50 inch model will launch at $499.99 as part of a lineup that ranges from 50 to 65 inches.

TCL Roku TV S-Series: Smart Value

TCL brings together crisp 4K UHD picture performance, HDR and Creative Pro 4K upscaling for precise clarity and detail in the S-Series TCL Roku TVs. The television sets integrate a variety of innovative technologies and features to provide consumers with an exceptional viewing experience, including endless streaming entertainment, fast dual-band wireless connections and three HDMI ports for flexibility. Plus, the simple and intuitive user interface makes switching from streaming to cable and other devices a breeze. The S-Series will be available beginning this Spring with sizes ranging from 43 to 65 inches. TVs with top tech featuring Dolby vision

January 5, 2017