3 minBusiness
Sony to Skip CES for First Time Since 1967, Ending Decades-Long Run
Sony will not attend CES 2027, breaking a streak that began with the show's 1967 debut. The company says it is prioritizing entertainment — games, anime, film and music — over the technology showcase that once hosted PlayStation moments like the PS5 logo reveal.
Sony will not exhibit at CES 2027, ending an unbroken run at the Consumer Electronics Show that dates back to the event's debut in 1967. The company confirmed the decision after what it described as a strategic review of how it approaches events and communications, saying the shift reflects the needs and priorities of its diverse businesses.
The move means there will be no PlayStation news delivered directly from Sony at the Las Vegas show, which runs January 6-9. Sony said it is concentrating more heavily on entertainment — a portfolio that includes games, anime, films and music — while CES remains primarily a technology showcase.
Sony's CES presence has historically centered on a keynote address, with executives and creative leaders outlining upcoming technologies and products. The company rarely used the stage for its biggest PlayStation reveals, but fans came to expect at least some news. In 2020, then-PlayStation boss Jim Ryan appeared at CES to unveil the PS5 logo. At the time, audiences were hungry for any detail about the console, and the reveal drew ridicule for offering only the most predictable possible image. The substantive information — release date, price and technical specifications — was held for later, system-focused events.
Two years later, at CES 2022, Sony used the show to introduce PlayStation VR2 and a new game for it, Horizon: Call of the Mountain. More recently, the company's PlayStation-related CES announcements have focused on transmedia adaptations, including plans for Horizon and Helldivers films.
CES has a long history with the game industry beyond Sony. Microsoft revealed the original Xbox at CES 2001 alongside Dwayne «The Rock» Johnson, though the company did not repeat that kind of major Xbox announcement at the show in later years. Nintendo famously showed the first version of the NES at CES in 1984, unveiling it as a prototype called the Advanced Video System.
Sony's withdrawal removes one of the show's most recognizable consumer-electronics brands from the floor and the keynote schedule. For a company increasingly defined by its entertainment divisions, the decision signals where its communications priorities now sit. CES organizers have not announced a replacement for Sony's slot, and Sony has not said whether it will hold a separate event around the same time.
The absence also leaves PlayStation fans without a familiar, if modest, source of news at the start of the year. Sony has increasingly routed major game announcements to dedicated showcases and events rather than broad technology conferences, a pattern the CES exit reinforces.
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