Trade shows
The International CES (CES) is a major technology trade show held each January in Las Vegas. The CTA-sponsored show typically hosts previews of products and new product announcements.
The first CES was held in 1967 in New York City. It was a spinoff from the Chicago Music Show, which until then had served as the main event for exhibiting consumer electronics. The event had 17,500 attendees and over 100 exhibitors; the kickoff speaker was Motorola chairman Bob Galvin. From 1978 to 1994, CES was held twice each year: once in January in Las Vegas known as Winter Consumer Electronics Show (WCES) and once in June in Chicago, known as Summer Consumer Electronics Show. In 1998, the show changed to a once-a-year format with Las Vegas as the location. CES is one of the largest and longest trade shows held in Las Vegas, taking up to 18 days to set up, run and break down.
SINOCES is a tradeshow held annually in the Chinese city of Qingdao in Shandong. The original organizers of SINOCES appropriated the CES trademark without the permission of CTA. CTA later successfully negotiated for joint sponsorship of the event. SINOCES serves as a platform for both Chinese and American companies to introduce new products into the Chinese market. SINOCES also serves as forum for Chinese electronics companies and their counterparts from overseas.
Issue advocacy
CTA launched The Innovation Movement, a broad based group with more than 200,000 members, in order to spur economic growth and technological innovation. CTA provides Innovation Movement members with tools to contact their members of Congress via social media in support of policies that the group says will advance American innovation and increase the strength of the economy. The Innovation Movement is active on issues including international trade, immigration, deficit reduction, broadband deployment, and intellectual property.
CTA believes that "spectrum is the oxygen of innovation." CTA supports legislation to allow the FCC to conduct voluntary incentive auctions in order to obtain 500 megahertz of new radio spectrum for wireless broadband internet services. CTA supports making this spectrum available for licensed and unlicensed use. In March 2011, CEA and CTIA sent a joint letter to Congress in support of voluntary incentive auctions. In February of the same year, the two groups also released a white paper on freeing up broadcast television spectrum for use by wireless broadband services.
On the issue of net neutrality, CTA states, "We believe that consumers should have the right to attach devices of their choice to broadband networks as well as have unfettered access to content. CTA believes that the government can most effectively address the net neutrality debate by reallocating spectrum for wireless broadband use. This reallocation would ensure rapid broadband deployment and a competitive, pro-consumer broadband marketplace."
CEA supported the FCC's National Broadband Plan in 2010. CEA specifically praised the FCC's efforts to address the "spectrum crunch," competition in the market for video devices, and improved internet access for underserved populations.
On the issue of parental controls, CEA states, "...CEA’s member companies have developed and continue to provide effective products and product features to help parents structure their children’s television experience. Video providers also offer a broad array of parental control tools. Interested parents can take advantage of this vibrant marketplace to find technological tools and services to tailor their children’s viewing experience to meet their family’s particular needs. Because a myriad of options for parents exist, CEA does not support government-mandated parental control technologies."
CEA facilitated The eCycling Leadership Initiative. The CEA eCycling Leadership Initiative is an industry-wide effort to "recycle one billion pounds of electronics annually by 2016, which would be a more than threefold increase over 2010. The eCycling Leadership Initiative seeks to improve consumer awareness of the more than 5,000 collection sites currently sponsored by industry; increase the amount of electronics recycled responsibly; increase the number of collection opportunities available; and provide transparent metrics on eCycling efforts." CEA supported SB 329, a television recycling law signed into law by Governor Rick Perry in June 2011, as it was consistent with the eCycling Leadership Initiative.On the issue of energy efficiency, CEA states, "Voluntary, market-oriented programs and initiatives, including industry-led standards, are a proven and successful approach to advancing energy efficiency in consumer electronics. CEA works cooperatively with governments in the development of energy efficiency initiatives and opposes mandates that stifle innovation, reduce consumer choice, and limit product features and services."About the Energy Star program, CEA states, "CEA has long supported ENERGY STAR as the most effective and proactive program to encourage consumers to make more energy-conscious choices. Home electronics were responsible for 59 percent of the energy savings achieved by the program for residential products in 2008, according to a recent report by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). CEA is concerned, however, that EPA’s recently-mandated changes to ENERGY STAR are creating unreasonable burdens for partners and harming international expansion of the program." CEA supported the EPS Service Parts Act of 2014 (H.R. 5057; 113th Congress), a bill that would exempt certain external power supplies from complying with standards set forth in a final rule published by the United States Department of Energy in February 2014. The United States House Committee on Energy and Commerce describes the bill as a bill that "provides regulatory relief by making a simple technical correction to the 2007 Energy Independence and Security Act to exempt certain power supply (EPS) service and spare parts from federal efficiency standards."
CEA states that, "CEA supports a balanced approach to enforcing intellectual property rights that protects fair use and does not limit advancement of innovation."
Addressing the issue of the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement, CEA states, "CEA worked to ensure that ACTA’s goal of enforcing intellectual property rights did not unduly burden legitimate commerce, impede innovation or restrict the free flow of information. Further, we believe that ACTA should not serve as a vehicle for changing U.S. domestic law relating to intellectual property enforcement. It should be technologically neutral and not create disparate burdens or obligations depending on whether a counterfeit product is sold online or offline."
CEA opposes the Combating Online Infringement and Counterfeits Act.
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