By contrast, exhibitors at CES are prohibited from selling anything to passersby. In fact, some of the companies who attend CES are there looking for distribution deals—in other words, you might not even be able to buy those products for a long time, if ever. True, you might see prototypes or even mockups on the show floor at Moscone West, but the companies showing them generally already sell products to the public, and will be able to offer anything new when the time comes.

The same company that owns —IDG—also owns IDG World Expo, which organizes this week’s show. But I would have the same opinion even if I were attending Expo on my own, and I think other attendees would feel the same way. After all, attendance seems to be in line with last year’s Expo, the first one that Apple opted to skip. So it seems that Macworld Expo continues to serve the needs of attendees and exhibitors in ways that CES doesn’t—or doesn’t even attempt. The two shows exist for different reasons, and that’s reason enough that they can both continue for years to come.