LAS VEGAS ― The chief of the Consumer Electronics Association said Wednesday that tablet PCs are becoming a tremendously competitive field in the industry, since the device has turned into an office item for many firms.

“Tablets are transformational products and something that has developed really quickly,” said Gary Shapiro, president and chief executive of CEA, a U.S. trade association that has over 2,000 members in the consumer electronics industry.

This year’s Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas is also expected to showcase up to 40 gadgets that are called ultrabooks, according to Shapiro, who held a press conference on the sidelines of the trade fair that ends on Friday.

Ultrabook is a concept created by Intel to boost the laptop category and to help the product better compete with tablet PCs. 

“Tablets were a hot item in 2011 and will be a hot item in 2012, but there is something called the ultrabook that has a sleek outside,” he said. “About 30-40 ultrabooks are to be launched at this CES.”

About 3,100 exhibitors are participating in the world’s largest technology trade show, an annual event that many companies across the world take part in to feature their new products or read the following industrial trends.

Regarding news that Microsoft will not be taking part in next year’s CES, it has been confirmed the U.S.-based software giant will not be making a keynote speech, but its participation in the show has yet to be made official, said Shapiro.

“Microsoft will not be keynoting next year and that’s the only thing certain,” he said. “It’s a spectacular company and the only company that had a core keynote spot.”

Shapiro also said that he spoke to Steve Ballmer ahead of the press conference and that he confirmed that Microsoft is still a supporter of the global electronics show.

When asked which company will take over Microsoft’s position for the keynote, he said the association was contacted by many firms and it is still in the process of deciding.

Although the U.S. market is expecting a dip in TV sales, the industry is expecting 3.9 percent growth, he said.

“Wireless technology is driving a tremendous part of the growth and even if there are economic challenges, the consumer electronics industry is a positive one,” he said.

Paul Jacobs, chairman of Qualcomm, also said that mobile has become the biggest platform of mankind and that it touches every part of daily life.

“We are approaching the 6 billion total wireless connections milestone, of which approximately 1.5 billion are using third generation (3G) technology,” he said. “The societal benefits that people receive from that connectivity are unlimited.”

Involving the displayed technologies, it was not only big companies that made up the Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency-organized Korea Pavilion, but also a group of smaller firms, including LC Corp., Sechang Instrument, Micro Display and GT.

Meanwhile, another widely talked-about device throughout the second day of the CES was Apple Inc.’s new iTV, with rumors about it surfacing after late CEO Steve Jobs was quoted in his biography as having “finally cracked” TV.

Jobs introduced the Apple TV set-top box for the first time in 2006 and another updated one in 2010.

According to NPD DisplaySearch, the growth of global TV shipments is expected to increase 2 percent this year, numbering up to 254 million units, while the growth of TV unit shipment was up 0.1 percent in 2011.

By Cho Ji-hyun, Korea Herald correspondent
(sharon@heraldcorp.com)