Media Evolution, Health Tech Lead The Way At CES 2023

CES 2023, one of the world's biggest tech shows of the year, has two main themes.

First, medical technology innovations are increasingly living in a post-pandemic world. They are applicable to both the healthcare and technology sectors, with telemedicine showing resilience after a surge in usage amid the 2020 COVID-19 lockdowns.

The other is the changing media landscape, from legacy content sources to streaming platforms. How advertisers and the brands they represent survive in these changing times remains an open question.

Andrea Palmer, President of Publicis Health Media, spoke with MM+M at CES in Las Vegas to discuss the industry trends she is monitoring at the conference.

Telemedicine faces resistance

While the rush to set up virtual help desks early in the pandemic has eased as the world has returned to face-to-face meetings, Palmer thinks telemedicine will definitely play a bigger role in the future.

He noted that while many patient groups have returned to in-person visits, some groups, such as parents with young children and the elderly, continue to rely on telemedicine in the post-Covid world. Although telemedicine is unlikely to be a traditional model of healthcare delivery, it has proven useful in bridging gaps.

"The question is: How will telemedicine become the main support? What is the right role forever? Telemedicine had some effectiveness, had some effectiveness. "Telemedicine has many benefits for the consumer, the healthcare provider and the entire system," said Palmer.

Wearable devices and sensors value simplicity

Many patients have Apple Watches, Fitbits or other similar devices, but the potential of wearables in the healthcare system of the future was not overlooked at CES.

According to Palmer, health sensors increasingly focus on simplified design and user experience to achieve greater consumer acceptance and collect the most meaningful health data possible to positively impact outcomes.

He added that consumers are not looking for more portable devices, but for more efficient and functional devices, prompting manufacturers to focus on pragmatic devices with useful technology "instead of inventing sensors for the sake of inventing sensors."

Streaming continues to grow

On the media side, Palmer said the word "currency" had been used in several shows that focused on the mainstream media space.

Advertisers and media companies want to know how to measure broadcast usage and TV performance to adjust their practices. While there's no consensus among ad buyers, marketers and content creators about the value of streaming analytics, Palmer notes that they're all trying to find common ground.

He added that it is important that streaming is fully mainstreamed in a way that customers can accept.

"We've seen a shift in behavior, and as stewards of our clients' advertising dollars, we've shifted some of those advertising dollars away from traditional ad spend over the years..." he said.

Emphasizing the importance of broadband access and digital health education

Palmer's closing remarks at the conference highlight that panel and session participants are constantly discussing how to improve broadband access and digital health literacy across the country.

Without such a strong infrastructure, this limits the ability of vulnerable patient populations to access digital health solutions and make informed decisions about their health.

He hopes the provisions of the bipartisan infrastructure law will eliminate those disparities and give more people access to services like telemedicine and basic digital health services.

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