IFA organizers landed testimonials from the merged Azione Unlimited and Nationwide buying groups in touting the Sept. 2-6 Berlin show as “the first opportunity” for global retailers “to connect at full scale with brands and manufacturers of the consumer electronics and home appliances industries.” COVID-19 forced IFA to run a scaled-down show in 2020 and prompted its outright cancellation in 2021. CES 2022 went ahead with a three-day run in Las Vegas that drew significantly fewer audiences than usual. IFA organizers said Tuesday that retailers told the IFA team “this year they are more eager than ever to come to Berlin, because they want to make sure that the surge of demand during the first 18 to 24 months of the pandemic will not become a one-off that subsides during the coming months.” They quoted Azione President Richard Glikes as saying: “Who in the world wouldn’t love to go to the largest electronics show in the world? I’m excited to see the latest and greatest new gear in one of the coolest cities on the planet!” IFA isn’t just “one of the largest CE and home appliances trade shows,” said Nationwide President Tim Hickman. “It’s also an innovation epicenter that draws the best, the brightest and the most exciting new technology, year in and year out. Every time we attend, our team walks away invigorated and inspired to bring these emerging trends to North America’s independent retailers.”
The Society for Information Display is dropping its requirement that Display Week 2022 conference attendees in San Jose show proof of COVID-19 vaccination or a negative test result, in keeping with California’s April 1 directive that converts those mandates to strong recommendations for large indoor gatherings, said the society Friday. SID recommends “all in-person attendees wear masks for indoor conference activities unless actively eating, drinking, or speaking on stage,” it said. Display Week is planned as an exclusively in-person show May 8-13 at the San Jose Convention Center.
IFA 2022 “has the potential to be the first truly global trade show” for the consumer tech industry since the March 2020 start of the COVID-19 pandemic when it's held Sept. 2-6 in Berlin, said show organizers Wednesday. IFA 2019 was the last full-scale physical Berlin show before COVID-19 turned IFA 2020 into a hybrid "special edition" format with a scant in-person audience (see 2008310024) and forced the outright cancellation of the 2021 event more than three months in advance (see 2105190023). “It’s finally time to ‘get real’ and once again organize a full-size trade show at the grounds of Messe Berlin,” said IFA Executive Director Jens Heithecker. “Only a limited number of COVID-19 restrictions are in place” in Berlin, said organizers. Participants since April 1 are able to attend trade fairs in Berlin “without having to present any proof of testing, recovery or vaccination,” they said.
COVID-19 theater closures limited Imax’s global box office for The Batman, Colliers analyst Steven Frankel wrote investors Tuesday. The company’s Q1 gross box office as of March 27 was $170.2 million, on track for $175 million for the quarter, about $10 million below the analyst’s estimate. Despite lower-than-expected results, Q1 was a “good start to what should be a strong year at the box office,” Frankel said. The Batman produced over $52 million in Imax gross box office, he said.
Reported cases of consumer fraud spiked in 2020 and 2021 compared with the years leading up to the COVID-19 pandemic, “presenting a growing challenge for public safety agencies to find new strategies to counter the trend,” reported Accenture Monday. Accenture compiled consumer fraud data from Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Singapore, the U.K. and the U.S., finding reported cases increased 6.8% annually between 2013 and 2019, it said. Cases then spiked 22.5% annually during 2020 and 2021, “in parallel with the large shift of workers and consumers to digital channels and greater use of technology during the pandemic,” it said. “Our analysis revealed the cost of consumer fraud during the pandemic exceeded the level seen over six years prior to 2020.”
February demand for commercial office space was down 47.1% from February 2020, the last month before the World Health Organization declared COVID-19 a global pandemic, said real estate analytics company VTS Wednesday. Office space demand has had fits and starts” throughout the two-year pandemic, peaking at 87% of “normal” in the summer of 2021 after “bottoming out” at 16% in June 2020, it said. The company tracks “unique new tenant tour requirements,” both in person and virtual, of office properties in core U.S. markets, and is an “indicator of upcoming office leasing activity,” it said.
Inflation concerns are affecting consumer shopping patterns for the Easter holiday, reported the National Retail Federation Monday. If the price of an Easter-related item is higher than expected, 42% of consumers said they will look for it at another retailer; 31% will find an alternative brand or color, NRF said. Consumers are prioritizing in-person celebrations, with virtual holiday plans declining sharply since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, said the trade group, saying only 13% of respondents in a Prosper Insights survey are planning to visit family and friends virtually, down 62% from 2020. Virtual church service attendance is also expected to be down, with only 12% of respondents planning to attend by phone or video compared vs. 32% in 2020. Consumers plan to spend an average $169.79 this year on Easter-related items. The survey of 8,155 consumers was fielded March 1-9.
Business leaders continue to express “strong sentiments” about their plans to implement hybrid-work models “that include substantial presence in the office, with a growing number already having taken the step,” said Steelcase CEO Sara Armbruster on an earnings call Thursday for fiscal Q4 ended Feb. 25. The office-furniture manufacturer’s financial well-being has been a bellwether of work-from-home trends during the COVID-19 pandemic. It reported a 7% revenue increase for the year to $2.8 billion. CEOs “resoundingly” talk about their “desire to reshape their culture, and that includes changing their spaces and bringing employees together in person,” she said. “While we're still seeing companies make a variety of choices about the role of the office and their future workplace plans, these plans almost always involve some aspect of hybrid work.”
When the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit resumes in-person oral arguments March 30 (see 2203040069), everyone other than the judge and arguing counsel at the lectern must be masked, per court COVID-19 protocols Wednesday. A judge or arguing counsel can choose to be masked, it said. Arguing counsel wanting to speak without a mask must take a COVID-19 test the day before oral arguments and submit proof of a negative test result by that evening. It said the media and public can attend oral arguments as space permits, but audio of oral arguments will continue to be livestreamed via the court's YouTube channel.
FCC commissioners held their monthly meeting Wednesday at the agency’s new headquarters for the first time, making it the first in-person meeting for commissioners since the COVID-19 pandemic caused the agency to shift to remote work. "We hope to use today's open meeting as a first step toward welcoming the agency and the public into our new building," Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel said at the meeting, which was also in part held virtually. Media and the public were barred from attending in person. The hybrid meeting, which combined in-person commissioners and staff appearing by videoconference, was the first in the FCC’s new meeting room in their new headquarters in Washington's NoMa district. The hybrid set-up was intended to assess the possibility of returning to in-person open meetings, Rosenworcel said on a post-meeting press call. She didn’t say if the April meeting will be in-person or hybrid or return to all virtual but said she wants to get back to physical open meetings “as soon as safely possible.”