It’s that wonderful time of year again—the International Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas, Nevada. Running from January 7-10, 2008, CES is the largest electronics expo in the USA—so big that it’s being held at two separate convention centers: the Sands Expo and Convention Center/The Venetian, and the Las Vegas Convention Center/Las Vegas Hilton. The expo is produced by the Consumer Electronics Association.

Many thousands of people will attend CES, both end-consumers and business-consumers alike. All the major electronics players will be exhibiting: “The International CES features 2,700 exhibitors spanning 30 product categories from markets including audio, digital content creation and distribution, digital imaging, embedded technology, gaming (digital entertainment), high-performance audio & home theater, video, home networking, in-vehicle technology and wireless.”

All the major media and news outlets are covering this event, from CNBC and CNNMoney to TechCrunch.com and Gizmodo.com. Dubbed by some as the “greatest tech show on earth,” CES is not just big business—it drives and defines business. Some businesses will live or die by the public reception of their products at CES. Some businesses are born out of ideas spawned at CES. All businesses will be affected in one way or another, sooner or later, by the technology and electronics on display at CES.

The International Consumer Electronics Show is good for business in many ways. The local Las Vegas market benefits greatly from the influx of conference attendees—the hotels, casinos, public transport, airlines, restaurants, etc. The intense interest and promotion surrounding CES encourages the electronics industry to keep pushing the technology envelope, seeking new ways to upstage their competitors at CES, which helps spur innovation and invention. And of course, the technologies and electronics introduced at CES will directly improve and help countless businesses become more productive, effective, and efficient.