Everyone experiences the show from a different perspective and probably leaves with different conclusions. Ours, with the aim of providing a broad view across the industry, is that many of the trends that shaped IBC 2026 point in the same direction: connecting, simplifying and unifying

There is no single IBC, but many. Every September, the RAI Amsterdam becomes a major meeting point for manufacturers, broadcasters, production companies, platforms, integrators, technology providers and professionals from virtually every part of the audiovisual chain. Everyone experiences the show from a different perspective and probably leaves with different conclusions.

Ours, after walking the halls and speaking with different players across the industry, is that many of the trends that shaped IBC 2026 point in the same direction: connecting, simplifying and unifying.

The major technology drivers of recent years are still very much present. The transition towards software continues to accelerate, while there now appears to be broad consensus across the industry around IP: the question is no longer so much whether to move towards this model, but when and how to do so, depending on factors that often extend beyond technology itself. Software and cloud, meanwhile, continue to enable more flexible and distributed production models, with a growing ability to operate resources remotely. And artificial intelligence, of course, once again appears across a wide range of solutions, but increasingly less as a standalone addition and more as an integral part of production workflows.

Perhaps the most interesting aspect of this year’s edition, however, was seeing what happens as all these transformations mature and, above all, converge. Software, IP, cloud and artificial intelligence cannot be understood as independent developments. After years of fragmentation across audiences, platforms, formats and workflows, the industry now seems to be looking for ways to reconnect all these pieces.

Fewer visitors, a different show?

Attendance, which tends to generate some debate during the show and in the days that follow, was the subject of a recurring observation in our conversations in Amsterdam: there seemed to be fewer people. In this case, the figures support that impression. IBC 2026 closed with 41,225 attendees, 6% fewer than the 43,858 recorded in 2025. The decline is relatively modest, but it marks the second consecutive year of falling attendance and leaves the figure 8.6% below 2024. Looking further back, the gap compared with pre-pandemic figures is more significant: almost 27% below 2019 and around 28.5% below the record set in 2017.

Interpreting these figures, however, requires some caution. Some companies may have reduced the number of professionals they send to the show; travel and event budgets may be facing greater scrutiny; or the transformation taking place across the market itself may also be affecting its major meeting points. There is probably no single explanation.

There is another consideration worth keeping in mind. At a strictly professional trade show, the total number of visitors is not necessarily as relevant as the profile and decision-making capacity of those who attend. A decline in attendance does not, in itself, imply an equivalent loss of commercial or technological relevance. Perhaps the more interesting question is not simply how many people attend IBC, but who still considers it essential to be there — and why.

Perhaps the more interesting question is not simply how many people attend IBC, but who still considers it essential to be there — and why

Interoperability: from promise to necessity

If we had to choose one of the most frequently recurring concepts at IBC 2026, interoperability would certainly rank highly. The shift towards software-defined infrastructures is forcing the industry to reconsider how technologies that traditionally operated as much more self-contained systems interact with one another. It is no longer enough for each solution to perform its function effectively in isolation; it must also be able to integrate into architectures where tools from different manufacturers coexist.

In this context, Dynamic Media Facility (DMF), an EBU-led initiative that proposes a reference architecture for moving from hardware-based infrastructures towards flexible, interoperable, software-defined production environments, takes on particular importance. Beyond individual implementations, the underlying message is clear: the transition towards software requires a move towards multivendor environments, where solutions from different manufacturers can work together.

And this search for interoperability is not limited to DMF. In the days leading up to IBC and throughout the show itself, a series of integrations between technologies from different manufacturers provided further examples of the same trend.

The audiovisual industry expands its boundaries

These partnerships also highlight another development: the traditional boundaries of broadcast are becoming increasingly blurred. Audiovisual companies are working with major technology players to incorporate cloud infrastructure, GPU processing, artificial intelligence and new management and distribution capabilities.

The convergence of broadcast and IT has been part of the industry’s conversation for years, but its growing maturity brings an additional challenge that we have addressed many times in these pages: how to build effective relationships between professionals, manufacturers and providers coming from different technology cultures.

Making increasingly complex technology easier to use

This issue connects with another recurring theme we encountered across the halls: ease of use. It was striking to see how many of the new solutions presented at IBC highlighted more intuitive interfaces, task automation or reduced operational complexity among their key benefits.

Audiovisual infrastructures are becoming increasingly sophisticated, but the people interacting with them do not necessarily fit the traditional profile of a specialised broadcast engineer. This creates a new challenge for manufacturers: making systems easier to use even as the technology beneath their interfaces becomes increasingly complex. Ease of use could therefore become an increasingly important factor in the adoption of new technologies by organisations and professionals.

After years of fragmentation across audiences, platforms, formats and workflows, the industry now seems to be looking for ways to reconnect all these pieces

Sport as a laboratory

If there was one area that was particularly visible at IBC 2026, it was sports production. The presence of organisations such as OBS, FIFA, UEFA and LaLiga in the conference programme once again reflected the role of sport as a testing ground for many of the transformations that later extend into other areas of the industry.

At the same time, major sporting events illustrate another of the trends we encountered in Amsterdam: the move towards increasingly distributed architectures. Resources located at the event venue, remote production centres, cloud infrastructure and geographically distributed teams can all form part of the same workflow. The case of Olympic Broadcasting Services, which we have covered extensively in the pages of this magazine, is particularly illustrative.

Distributing without losing control

And as architectures become more distributed, another concept that appeared in different forms throughout IBC becomes increasingly important: content sovereignty. The adoption of cloud and software provides flexibility and scalability, but at the same time raises questions around technology dependency, asset location, costs, security and an organisation’s ability to retain control over its own content and workflows.

The audiovisual industry has spent much of the past few years multiplying possibilities: more platforms, more formats, more destinations, more tools and more ways to produce and distribute content. IBC 2026 leaves the impression that a different phase is now beginning — one in which the challenge is to ensure that all these possibilities can be integrated and work together as a whole.

Our coverage of IBC 2026 will continue in the next issue of TM BROADCAST, where we will bring together perspectives on this year’s show from a selection of leading exhibitors and industry professionals.