The annual Consumer Electronics Show takes place in Las Vegas this week. But because of the economic crisis big electronics manufacturers may not be so ready to find themselves under the spotlight. The event begins January 8 and runs through the 11th.

It may turn out to be one of the quietest shows, or maybe not. "We are down a little bit in terms of exhibit space, but it will be our third largest show in our history," said Gary Shapiro, president and CEO of the Consumer Electronics Association, the industry group that holds the event.

The show's 2,700 exhibitors will be spread over 1.7 million square feet, a smaller footprint than last year's 3,000 exhibitors. They reserved about 1.7 million square feet of space in January 2008, before the worst of the economic downturn hit. Shapiro said about 50 companies have pared back their space, and one or two have pulled out. More than 130,000 people are expected, and free early registrations, beginning in August, were up.

Technologies that have made their debut at the show over the years include the VCR (1970), the compact disc player (1981), high-definition televisions (1998) and Microsoft Corp.'s Xbox (2001).

Last year's show saw several notable debuts, including the first appearance by a car maker, General Motors, which showed off its Volt electric car and its sponsored robot vehicle, designed and built by Carnegie Mellon engineers.
"This may be a year to get back to basics and survey the landscape before going ahead with any major new product releases," says Kevin Restivo, consumer electronics analyst for research firm IDC Canada.