The Los Angeles Dodgers are into wearables, says the team’s chief financial officer Tucker Kain. “What I’m most excited about is the data coming off many of these wearables,” he said. “At the Dodgers, we’re thinking about how to capture and analyze data and how that informs our future decisions.” Kain isn’t alone among professional sports teams engaged in the same effort of using digital tools to enhance athletic performance, as described in a CES 2017 session on the “Wearable Tech Playbook.” Continue reading Wearables For Professional Sports Still Need the ‘Fun’ Factor

CES always opens with CTA chief economist Dr. Shawn DuBravac’s revelation of the consumer electronics market numbers for the past year, and predictions for the coming year. This year — CES’s 50th anniversary — was no exception. DuBravac identified five trends to watch in the coming year: the new voice of computing; artificial intelligence’s infusion in our lives and businesses; connections and computations; transportation transformation; and digitizing the consumer experience. Continue reading CTA Chief Economist Identifies Tech Trends to Watch in 2017

The Consumer Technology Association and market researcher GfK annually join forces on a comprehensive report on Global Consumer Technology Spending Forecasts, with CTA responsible for U.S. domestic data and GfK for data from over 70 countries around the world. CTA senior director of market research Steve Koenig shed light on the report’s results, revealing that a mere seven products are responsible for about 80 percent of global consumer tech spending: tablets, laptops, TVs, standard handsets, smartphones, digital cameras and desktops. Continue reading CTA Breaks Down Worldwide CE Trends by Product Category

2016 was the year of the unexpected, says CTA senior director of market research Steve Koenig, referencing Brexit and the election of Donald Trump as U.S. President among other global events. In a presentation on the results of a report conducted by the Consumer Technology Association and GfK on Global Consumer Technology Spending Forecasts, Koenig also broke down trends according to regions, looking at North America, Latin America, Western Europe, Central and Eastern Europe, developed Asia, emerging Asia and Middle East/Africa. Continue reading CTA and GfK Report Examines Tech Trends by Global Region

At CES 2017, Scalable Graphics, which specializes in GPU-accelerated cloud computing, is set to introduce a wireless PC solution for virtual reality that is compatible with Oculus Rift and HTC Vive headsets. The company’s one-pound KwikVR is a wireless compression and transmission system that cuts the cord between the VR headset and the computer powering it. Wireless VR and other hardware upgrades or peripherals that make VR experiences better are likely to be trends at CES 2017. Continue reading Scalable Graphics to Feature Wireless KwikVR System at CES

This year Snap Inc. will go on a roadshow to market its expected IPO, and founder Evan Spiegel is expected to play an out-sized role, with the company’s IPO bankers and executives depicting him as a Steve Jobs-like visionary for millennial products. The goal is to portray Snap as a company that will become a media/content behemoth that can meet and exceed its hoped-for $20 billion to $25 billion IPO valuation, in a class with Apple and Facebook, rather than Twitter, which has deflated since its 2013 IPO. Continue reading Snap Preps for IPO Roadshow, Touting Spiegel as a Visionary

Major U.S. corporations are beginning to see acquisitions of startups as a way to purchase rather than develop new technologies, a major turnaround from many decades of avoiding Silicon Valley. Until recently, established manufacturers preferred to build their own new products or buy other deep-rooted companies. Then, in 2015, Ford Motor Company bought Chariot, a crowd-sourced commuter-shuttle startup for $65 million, signaling a change in strategy, not just among auto-manufacturers, on how to move into future technologies. Continue reading Established Companies Look to Startups for New Tech Growth

Using Facebook Live for a year-end video chat, Facebook chief executive Mark Zuckerberg and chief operating officer Sheryl Sandberg discussed fake news and the company’s identity. Although Zuckerberg has steadfastly held that Facebook is not a media company, he changed the message just a bit: “Facebook is a new kind of platform,” he clarified. “It’s not a traditional technology company, it’s not a traditional media company. You know, we build technology and we feel responsible for how it’s used.” Continue reading Zuckerberg Says Facebook ‘Not a Traditional Media Company’

Twitter is collaborating with the Hollywood Foreign Press to live-stream the Golden Globes’ red carpet pre-show event and source questions from fans’ tweets. “The HFPA Presents: Globes Red Carpet Live” will be live-streamed on Jan. 8 from 6:00 to 8:00 pm ET, and will include exclusive interviews with celebrities and other “celebrity content” from Twitter in addition to the live video feed. The interview hosts, who have not yet been determined, will ask celebrities some questions chosen from among those posted by Twitter users. Continue reading Twitter Scores Another Live Event: Golden Globes Red Carpet

According to SuperData Research, games were a $91 billion global market in 2016, with mobile games accounting for $41 billion (about 18 percent). In second and third place, retail games were valued at $26 billion, and free online games at $19 billion. SuperData also noted virtual reality, e-sports and gaming video content, all of which were characterized as small but growing fast, thus promising for 2017. “Monster Strike,” “Pokémon Go” and “Clash Royale” were among the blockbuster hits that made mobile games a winning category. Continue reading Global Game Industry Earned $91 Billion in Revenues in 2016

Disney-ABC Television Group has signed an agreement with Snapchat to produce several original shows for the social media platform. The first production will be “Watch Party: The Bachelor,” an aftershow for ABC’s “The Bachelor” that will debut Jan. 3, the day after the premiere of that reality dating show’s 21st season. The original episodes will run three to five minutes each and be available for 24 hours on Snapchat, appearing in the Discover section. The season finale will be produced as a Snapchat Live Story. Continue reading Disney-ABC to Produce Short Form Video Series for Snapchat

With tighter integration between Twitter and Periscope, updated iOS and Android Twitter apps now feature a “LIVE” button on the screen that activates the camera and starts live video. Since Twitter acquired Periscope early last year, it enabled Periscope broadcasts within the Twitter stream, introduced a way to alert a Twitter user when someone you followed began live streaming, and debuted high-end tools for streaming to Twitter from professional cameras and VR headsets. The company is also introducing a pared down version of its previously shuttered Vine. Continue reading Twitter Debuts Live Video From Mobile Apps, Pares Down Vine

AT&T just unveiled its new Facebook Messenger chatbot, dubbed Atticus, that’s full of interesting trivia about a range of broadcast television programs, including “Modern Family,” “How to Get Away with Murder,” “The Big Bang Theory,” “American Horror Story,” “Pretty Little Liars,” and “The Office.” Described by AT&T as a “goofball,” Atticus has been known to say, “If the Dunphy family is looking for another kid, I’d be happy to join them. I’d be no trouble. Especially since I don’t physically exist. We’d be a real ‘Modern Family’.” Continue reading AT&T Unveils Atticus Chatbot to Answer Questions About TV

Television displays are must-see products at CES. Last year saw LG’s 98-inch 8K display and that company’s prototype 18-inch rollable display among other highlights. This year, expect to see more manufacturers unveiling what was shown last year — 4K and 8K, HDR and OLED — in more varied and mature versions. But the biggest, brightest TV displays don’t matter a whit for an entire generation that’s happy with a few streaming video services and a laptop. They too will have more choices at CES 2017. Continue reading CES: Advances in OLED, 4K, HDR TVs and Streaming Options

Streaming TV service Sling TV is debuting its own TV tuner box, according to news on the company’s website. The AirTV Player features the ability to receive local over-the-air TV channels via a digital antenna, as well as Sling TV’s standard streaming services, with optional Netflix. EchoStar’s Sling Media subsidiary and Dish’s Sling TV appear to have collaborated on the AirTV box, since “AirTV Player” and its logo are copyrighted by EchoStar. By offering local channels, AirTV might encourage more viewers to cut the cord. Continue reading Sling TV to Offer Local Broadcasts, Streaming via AirTV Player