The COVID-19 pandemic set “a new watermark” in the number of PCs per household, Matt Baker, Dell Technologies senior vice president-corporate strategy, told the Raymond James technology investor conference Monday. What was one or two PCs per household before COVID-19 is “now one or two per person,” he said. “The pandemic has reinforced the PC as the prime productivity platform.” The world was saying “the PC was dead when they saw phones and tablets, but we all know that it's no fun working on a phone or a tablet,” he said. If there's any “silver lining” to the pandemic, it’s that the health crisis “placed our business on the critical path for everybody's lives,” he said.
Technology will be the “cornerstone” of brands that try to reestablish relationships with customers and consumers next year “in a new version of the physical and digital world,” reported IDC Friday. The COVID-19 pandemic revealed a “lack of resiliency” in how many organizations engage with customers and deliver differentiated experiences to retain them, it said. Organizations that focus on resiliency in systems, processes, and business models that influence how companies and brands engage with customers will find success in the future of customers and consumers, it said. Among predictions IDC made for brands over the next few years, it said 35% of brands will openly incentivize consumers to share personal data in exchange for cash rewards, services and exclusive experiences; a quarter of brands will build shared customer data hubs to deliver connected experiences and cut data acquisitions costs; 25% of companies will offer tracking transparency for customer complaints, which will become a best practice and driver of brand choice, growing to 75% of companies by 2025; organizations will be forced to revamp their customer authentication process to reduce friction and authenticate customers securely within five seconds of connection; and to counter “digital fatigue,” 60% of top organizations will try to differentiate by delivering memorable engagements that recreate physical experiences.
The labor market outlook is “uncertain," said the Conference Board Friday, citing “mounting downside risks” linked to the COVID-19 omicron variant. Job growth weakened from October to November, while nonfarm payroll increased by 201,000 in November after a revised increase of 546,000 in October. The unemployment rate decreased from 4.6 to 4.2% in November, and the labor force participation rate increased from 61.6 to 61.8%, "well below" its pre-pandemic rate. Elevated delta cases “may still be hampering consumer spending on in-person services and therefore require less need for hiring,” the board said. At the same time, labor shortages -- especially severe for blue-collar and manual services workers -- are making it harder for employers to recruit workers, the board said, saying, “It is more likely now that hiring difficulties will continue into 2022." Employers and policymakers “will likely need to find other ways to deal with labor shortages or ensure continued job growth, such as improving older worker retention rates, automating tasks, or increasing immigration.”
The COVID-19 restrictions in the Netherlands that forced the cancellation of this week’s IBC 2021 show (see 2111230029) compelled TP Vision to scrap its January in-person Philips TV and audio media briefing in Amsterdam and convert it to an online-only event for Jan. 27. “We’ve had to shake things up a little,” said TP Vision in save-the-date emails Wednesday.
U.S. consumers remain undeterred from holiday shopping by inflation or COVID-19 pandemic worries, and more than three-quarters plan to spend the same or more on holiday gifts than last year, an Electronic Transactions Association survey found. ETA hired the Strawhecker Group to canvass 512 adults in late October, finding nearly half (47%) worried about the safety of shopping in-store due to COVID-19, and a majority (55%) concerned about finding empty shelves due to supply chain issues, said ETA. Consumers are turning to options like curbside pickup (71%) or delivery services (80%) “to lessen their worry,” it said.
IBC 2021 organizers’ plans to reconvene the in-person show under the theme “Together Again” came crashing down Tuesday as they canceled the Dec. 3-6 event in Amsterdam with a little more than a week to spare. “The move follows growing concerns about the COVID-19 situation in The Netherlands, which has deteriorated over the past week, and feedback from the IBC exhibitor and visitor community,” said organizers. “The IBC Partnership Board made the decision today in order to prevent exhibitors and visitors from travelling to The Netherlands.” Organizers said only last week they had decided to forge ahead with IBC 2021 because they believed it could “be delivered safely and create the essential business momentum that the industry needs” (see 2111190003). The Netherlands is on a list of more than six dozen travel destinations the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends avoiding for "very high" risk of COVID-19.
Broadpeak, a components supplier to pay-TV operators and videostreaming services, withdrew its in-person participation at the Dec. 3-6 IBC 2021 in Amsterdam after the Dutch government imposed a new partial COVID-19 lockdown through Dec. 4. Show organizers decided to go ahead with the event despite the lockdown. “As eager as we are to meet with industry partners and customers in person, our decision to cancel participation at IBC 2021 was guided by making the safest choice for everyone," said CEO Jacques Le Mancq Friday. "We are concerned about the daily increase of COVID-19 cases throughout Europe, and despite the measures taken by the IBC, we consider that a large international tradeshow in Amsterdam doesn't feel safe enough right now." IBC organizers said they decided to forge ahead with the planned event because they believe “it can be delivered safely and create the essential business momentum that the industry needs.”
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit set masking protocols for in-person oral arguments, which resume Dec. 1 (see 2110150033). Everyone must wear a KF94, KN95 or N95 mask other than judges and arguing counsel when at the lectern, the court said Wednesday. Arguing counsel who would like to speak without being masked must take a COVID-19 test the day beforehand and submit proof of a negative result by that evening, it said. Courtroom seating will be limited, with each arguing counsel getting one guest, and members of the public aren't allowed in the courtroom, it said. Oral argument audio will be livestreamed on the court's YouTube channel, it said. Everyone must wear a mask and practice physical distancing in public areas, it said. The D.C. Circuit said it has taken such precautions as outfitting its HVAC system with high-rated filters and putting auxiliary portable air filters with high-efficiency particular air filters in the courtrooms. It said tables, chairs and the lectern have been spaced out.
Amazon was glad to resolve a California complaint claiming the company kept COVID-19 case information from workers, a spokesperson emailed Monday evening. Attorney General Rob Bonta (D) announced an agreement earlier that day with Amazon to change its policies (see 2111150055). Bonta “found no substantive issues with the safety measures in our buildings,” and Amazon has “worked hard from the beginning of the pandemic to keep our employees safe and deliver for our customers,” spending $15 billion, “and we’ll keep doing that in months and years ahead,” the spokesperson said. The state’s complaint concerned coronavirus notifications sent to employees in bulk; it didn’t raise issues with Amazon protocols for notifying an employee who might have been in close contact to someone with COVID-19, the spokesperson said.
Next month’s New York Audio Show is postponed to March 25-26, emailed organizer Brian Dunne Tuesday. With “significant input” from exhibitors and attendees, plus “market trends,” promoters decided “that this would be the safest course of action in order to provide the very best show for everyone’s benefit,” he said. “There remains enough concern that moving dates is most prudent.”