January 2026

You Had One Job
Consumer electronics show promoters should look at trends carefully.
Editorial By J. Martins

  The audio industry events calendar is looking busier than ever for 2026. At the time of writing for this issue of audioXpress, we are looking at a busy CES and NAMM Show, even with clouds of uncertainty hovering above both events. The surprising part is that, even with Trump tariffs and the erratic US administration policies, China is returning to CES in force. The Las Vegas Convention Center (LVCC) will reopen its doors in full after extensive multiyear renovations, and remarkably, the South Hall ground level is already fully booked by manufacturing and design suppliers from China. The South Hall upper level will not be used for this edition, but CES exhibit numbers are still impressive considering the economic and political climate.

The LVCC North Hall is again a vibrant space for connected, smart devices, AI, language translation, mobility, and sustainability. The Central Hall will return to the traditional Gaming and Audio and Video hub, with China taking over 50% of the area, replacing the dominant position once held by Japanese and Korean brands. This will be the first time in many years that Sony Electronics will not have its traditional corner at the end of Central Hall. Instead, visitors will find only the Sony/Honda automotive joint-venture Afeela. And once again the new West Hall and outside lots will be dedicated to automotive technology industries and affiliated businesses.

The two large Venetian Expo halls will once again welcome the Eureka Park (Level 1), while Level 2 will be busier than ever with all semiconductor, computing, and IT companies, plus all the large cloud and consultancy providers, with exhibit halls filled with wearables, health, sports, and fitness, lifestyle, smart home, and large country pavilions. Increasingly B2B-oriented, most audio technology companies will again take hospitality suites and B2B meeting rooms in the Venetian and Palazzo, as well as the exhibit suites in the 29th, 34th, and 35th floors. Dozens of non-listed audio technology companies will also take suites at the Venetian and other hotels all over Las Vegas.

As for the NAMM Show, the traditional Anaheim, CA, gathering will be as vibrant and colorful as ever, but more domestic-focused. The once-envisaged "pro audio" expansion of NAMM will again be hampered by a single-week separation from the largest-ever edition of Integrated Systems Europe (ISE) in Barcelona, with a record number of exhibitors and halls. As I wrote about ISE 2025, I don't think that a systems and installation-focused event replaces the needs of the entertainment and live performance technology, which should continue to promote dedicated trade shows. NAMM is where professional audio manufacturers should consider launching such new products, because at ISE they will be buried by a massive amount of "other stuff."

After ISE, the 2026 calendar looks strongly China-centric, since that's now where the largest trade shows are held. Following the still unexplainable demise of Musikmesse, Messe Frankfurt—the world's largest trade show and event organizer—promoted Music China in Shanghai.

And guess what? After all the talk about "ISE killing Prolight+Sound,”" Messe Frankfurt has now announced that they "made the difficult decision to no longer hold Prolight+Sound in Frankfurt in the future." No problem at all apparently since Prolight+Sound Guangzhou attracted more than 2,200 exhibitors and 110,000 visitors in its last edition, and Frankfurt Messe will premiere Prolight+Sound Bangkok in 2026.

Bear in mind, Frankfurt Messe also now promotes Premium Audio Shanghai in the Autumn, in direct competition with the Shanghai International Audio & Video Show (SIAV), which takes place in April and is now one of the best hifi shows in Asia. The thriving Chinese domestic market is embracing the "boutique" nature of hifi audio products from the US and Europe, attracting the most famous brands from all over the world.

Other trade show promoters should look at these trends carefully and use them to consolidate their unique value proposition—always with an eye on how to remain relevant globally. There's only space for one CES or NAMM and such unique events. No need to repeat them in China. They will have their own. Bigger and different.

Killing Musikmesse was always going to be the demise of Prolight+Sound as I long predicted. It wasn't ISE.

J. Martins
Editor-in-Chief

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