Sony Pictures Plans Splash at CES
by Ben Grossman -- Broadcasting & Cable, 7/29/2007 6:00:00 PM MT
Moving away from traditional sales customs, Sony Pictures Television (SPT) plans to be a major presence at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) Jan. 7-10 in Las Vegas, where it will feature content alongside its parent company’s electronics offerings.
As first reported in B&C (1/22, p. 5), the company is shifting more resources to the CES show in January and is launching a trade-ad campaign to announce the move.
“It is a huge initiative for us and Sony in general,” says SPT chief Steve Mosko. “We want to take a leadership role and let people know we are going to be talking about content at CES next January.”
While plans are still being finalized, SPT wants to kick off the event Monday morning, Jan. 7, with a major presentation. It is considering entertainment acts to make a splash, whether a major musical performance or something like a standup routine by Jerry Seinfeld.
Mosko says the move fits into Sony CEO Howard Stringer’s desire to get more efficiencies from the company, which he calls “Sony United.” Internally, Sony is focused on creating content for such platforms as its PlayStation gaming console and Bravia televisions.
“We are not just a syndication company,” Mosko says. “We are not just producing television shows for cable and network. We are much bigger and broader, and it gives us a chance to show that.”
But in addition to corporate synergies, Mosko also believes there are deals to be made at CES.
“You go where your buyers are, and our buyers are going to be at CES,” he says. “If you go through the list of attendees, in my experience—walking the floor and a quick survey—all major advertisers and agencies attend CES, as well as mobile guys, all the pay-cable networks, broadcast networks, all of our Internet clients.”
Although Mosko believes there is still plenty of business to be done at the National Association of Television Program Executives (NATPE) conference, SPT is going ahead with plans to leave the floor of that convention and do business from a suite, a move that could save about $3 million. Sony will have a 25,000-square-foot presence at CES.
Mosko expects more content companies to end up at CES: “It’s kind of becoming the convention you don’t want to miss. Everyone wants to know what is going on in the tech space and the new platforms, and content creators are looking at that as well. I think you will see a lot more content companies find a way to this convention.”
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