The ad-man’s view of CES 2012

Along with marketers, the agencies were there in full force to act as intemediaries between brands and technology. Armshaw and his fellow CTCs gave McCann and Mediabrands clients a tour of the conference, while Vivaki organized a “speed-dating” like event where big advertisers including P&G, Nestlé, and Citibank sat down with startups who had just a few minutes to make their pitches.

Quentin George, chief innovation officer of IPG Mediabrands, told Campaign that the media network sees CES as the place to learn about “what’s next”. “It is our obligation to introduce, understand and provide key insights to our clients during the week at CES," George said, "by providing customized IPG Media Lab led tours of the CES floor."

Armshaw shared with Campaign his list of the top ideas with marketing potential from CES:

3D printing

While 3D printers have been available to engineers and designers for almost two decades, this CES saw 3D printers at consumer prices. Makerbot showcased The Replicator, a US$1,750 printer capable of printing objects up the size of a loaf of bread in one colour. Add $250 to get the two-colour version and a spool of plastic (the printer’s ‘ink’) is about US$50. 3D-Systems, which claims to have invented 3D printers, has its own consumer-targeted offering. The Cube costs US$1,200 and uses cartridges instead of spools.

“This is going to make design a social commodity," Armshaw said. "From a toy manufacturer perspective [3D Systems is already in talks with several toy companies] this gives them the ability to truly customise toys to each child. Marketers can offer promotional bespoke designs…it’s a whole new field.”

Post PC-era

The much talked about Ultrabook is essentially the “ultimate and final evolution of the PC” said Armshaw. With Smart TVs, NFC (near-field communication) tags, a plethora of other devices capable of tapping into the cloud for entertainment, surfing, browsing and social networking, the need for PCs in the home is waning.

“One device that’s brought internet to TVs for ages is Microsoft’s Xbox. A client pointed out that if they ever rebranded the Xbox from a gaming device to one that turns your TV into a ‘Smart TV’, Microsoft would make a killing,” he added.

Life on the cloud – content streaming

As more devices have access to the internet, and hence, the cloud, two major trends are emerging: content streaming and body quantification, observed Armshaw. Streaming content will be increasingly popular particularly with new partnerships like LG, Samsung, Sony, Vizio with Google, and Panasonic with MySpaceTV. Other cloudbased streaming entertainment services like Hulu, Netflix and Spotify will become commonplace.

“Content must be free to travel, not locked to a device. Consumers want to utilize the device that best suits their needs at that time,” said George.

“Brands have an opportunity to create or curate content to suit their communities which may bypass media owners. Content providers or events like sports and concerts can directly partner with brands for global distribution,” pointed out Armshaw.

Life on the cloud - body quantification

A number of brands introduced devices that help track fitness levels, calorie consumption, and workout routines while tapping into cloud-based services to help users track their progress. Motorola’s MotoActv, for example, is a wearable microcomputer that not only tracks personal fitness performance, but also determines which songs motivates its user the most and then mines the data to generate suggested playlists.

“The potential here for marketers is endless," Armshaw said. "For example, if users share their fitness data, brands can partner with celebrity fitness coaches to tailor-make exercise routines that consumers can follow via their integrated SmartTVs and personal monitoring devices. Or if you’re a sports shoe manufacturer, there’s the chance to create a social platform where users benchmark their performance against others. A reward system which rewards tracked data – say a user has run 2000 miles in a year – could also be set up.”

Changing nature of retail space

Several devices were launched that could change the way we shop, according to Armshaw. Body Metrics uses Microsoft’s Kinect camera to scan body measurements, which can be used as a profile for accurate online shopping. “Rather than have the whole issue of sizing standards, clothing that fits precisely becomes far more accessible—and from the comfort of home.”

Another gadget at CES makes remote customer service far more personal. Verizon’s VGo is a virtual customer service agent that allows latency free conversations with an agent via a robot and webcam.