Despite COVID-19 Threat, IFA 2020 Special Edition Opens in Berlin

IFA, gfu and GfK have opened the IFA 2020 Special Edition expressing their confidence that the tech industry is ready to bounce back from the disruption and economic uncertainties of the pandemic. They were addressing the IFA Global Press Conference, speaking to international media who have come to Berlin and thousands others around the world who were following the event at the IFA Xtended Space, both live and on demand.

"When it comes to doing business, nothing beats the personal connection. This is why having IFA 2020 as a real-life event is such an important sign. It is a symbol to show that together we can look beyond the pandemic and its consequences. There is a normal ahead, and now it is up to industry, retailers, media and consumers to build and shape the 'normal' that is going to emerge," said Jens Heithecker, Executive Director of IFA Berlin.

"Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, IFA had to be run as a scaled down event, of course, but already we can see that this year’s Special Edition of IFA is set to be a success. Together with our partner Messe Berlin we have built an innovation platform that offers both virtual and the all-important real-life experiences. The many presentations of new products here at IFA will provide important impulses to the market just when it is needed most - in the run-up to the period with the highest turnover across the global consumer electronics and home appliances industry," added Kai Hillebrandt, Chairman of the Supervisory Board of gfu Consumer & Home Electronics, organizer of IFA.

Providing the all-important industry and market context for this year’s IFA 2020 Special Edition, both GfK and gfu delivered new insights on how the global consumer electronics and home appliances market developed during the first half of 2020. The data showed that the value of the global technical consumer goods (TCG) market, excluding North America and South Africa, fell to €306 billion during the COVID-19 retail shutdowns. GfK’s panel market recorded a decline of 5.8 percent for TCG global sales for the first half of 2020. However, compared to other industries, this was a relatively small decline as this market benefitted from the opportunity to fulfil “at-home“ needs and a trend towards digitization during the lockdown.