"I guess my 37 years of calling on OEM's has my thinking flawed...lol."

No necessarily flawed, it's just you have a different perspective in business than I have.

I have management (Director responsibility in all functions) experience in Marketing (15 Years) Manufacturing (7 years) Finance (8 years) Consulting (10 yeras) and other Corporate assignments, all for a world wide multi billion dollar Corporation in the Oil Industry.

And I know for a fact that trade shows do generate new business and substantial revenue contracts.

And many of the products shown and discussed are manufactured and sold with patents applied for, but not approved. The technology changes too fast, just like the electronics, to hold off marketing any new technology.