At Show, Watching Gadgets For Now and Tomorrow; TV execs at CES will scan technologies that help the industry evolve

With media companies struggling to keep up with rapidly changing consumer electronics trends and dramatic increases in the viewing of video on Internet-connected devices, the International Consumer Electronics Show has morphed into a must-attend event for top TV technologists and digital executives, who will be eyeing an ever-widening array of products on display January 6-9 in Las Vegas.
Some obvious areas of interest are new TVs, streaming media devices, 4K production technologies and developments in the mobile world. But the two dozen executives interviewed by &B also say they’ll be paying close attention to some more obscure areas such as eye motion technologies for better understanding of how consumers view video and wearables, which probably won’t have much of an impact on their businesses for several years.
“The thing I’m most interested in looking for is the expansion of video on alternative devices, whether it’s phones, watches or what have you,” says Vito Forlenza, senior director of TV Everywhere content and product strategy at Comcast Cable. “So we’re always watching for new ways for people to consume video at home or on the go.”
Matthew Strauss, senior VP and GM of video services for Comcast Cable agrees. With the operator already offering some 75 channels for live streaming and 300,000 pieces of on-demand content on various platforms, he stresses that the lines between TVs and other devices are very much blurring. “You could say that a TV is now a piece of glass and any device that can securely renders TV,” he says. “When you approach it that way, a computer, a laptop, a mobile device, a tablet becomes a TV where we can deliver the full cable TV experience .”
“The hardest part of deciding which platforms we should be on is having to say no. There are a lot of them that look amazing but the audience potential is pretty low. So you have to be strategic about it.”
-David Wertheimer, president of digital, Fox Broadcasting Co.
As competition for online and mobile audiences heats up, new features on these connected devices are particularly important, others say. “We believe we have the most innovative shows on TV so we want to provide the most innovative experience of consuming that content,” says David Wertheimer, president of digital at Fox Broadcasting Co., which has seen more than 16 million downloads of its Fox Now app.
“The hardest part of deciding which platforms we have to say no,” he adds. “There are a lot of them that look amazing but the audience potential is pretty low. So you have to be strategic about it.”
In those device strategies, connected TVs are getting more attention. “We were an early partner of Google TV,” says Jimshade Chaud-hari, Dish director of product management. “It seems like Android TV will be their next attempt and we’ll be looking closely at the Android TV platform.” Others agree. “Google TV was a botched attempt by Google to get into the TV business but I think the latest version is really fascinating,” says Josh Cogswell senior VP of multiplatform product at Viacom, who says he’ll also be looking closely at streaming media devices and gaming consoles.

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