Camera, accessory, audio vendors vie for sales at broadcasters show

They just want to be noticed.

Row after row, booth after booth, they're all smiling. They're all vying for attention. The camera manufacturers, audio experts and accessory people, they're all the same.

In the shadow of Sony's ginormous exhibit, Sofradir-EC's inside sales manager, Michelle Intiso, was holding her own. Her booth, though tiny when compared to Sony's stately layout, had something that others didn't have -- infrared and low-light camera sub-systems.

Although small, Intiso scored a sweet spot on the 755,000-square-foot floor of the 2012 National Association of Broadcasters trade show at the Las Vegas Convention Center. This year, NAB is expected to attract nearly 100,000 attendees, almost 8,000 more than in 2011.

Intiso's product, marketed primarily to military and law enforcement buyers, also comes in handy for newscasts and reality TV shows -- The SyFy Network is a client. The gadget fits between a camera's body and its lens, while maintaining communication so your camera still senses which lens is being used. Prices range from $7,000 to $9,000.

"So far the show has been really good. I've met with a lot of good customers who have purchased our stuff," Intiso said. "The traffic has been very good this morning; it's a nice, steady flow."

PSSI Global Services, a company with an office in Las Vegas, was taking meetings.

Matt Bridges, president of strategic television, said booth traffic has been steady, in part because of his exhibit's close proximity to Intelsat, a fixed satellite and telecommunications company.

"Our customers are anybody that does television of any kind," Bridges said.

PSSI is a full-service satellite transmission company that can provide live streaming, broadcast production services, HD/SD international flyaways and HD fiber encoding. Other companies with a Las Vegas presence at NAB are iStream Planet, Morpheus Lights and Reflex Technologies Inc.

Nestled in its own title haven of safety, 15 start-ups new to NAB chose to exhibit inside the Startup Loft.

Gordon Taylor, co-owner of My Area Card, said Tuesday that there was a spirit of collaboration in the loft.

"We've gotten quite a few tips," he said.

Taylor, a programmer, devised an advertising application for broadcast and other industries. Thus far, he's secured a few business leads for My Area Card at the show.

When planning to come to NAB, cost was the driving factor in Taylor's decision to exhibit in the loft. It's substantially cheaper at $1,200 than the starting cost of $10,000 to exhibit in the main halls.

"And we figured we'd get lost in there," he theorized.

The 2012 NAB Show floor is open for industry professionals through today.

Contact reporter Laura Carroll at lcarroll@reviewjournal.com or 380-4588.