We gathered insights from a selection of broadcast exhibitors, representing different profiles and company sizes, to analyse the role ISE currently plays in their strategies and the main themes that shaped the conversation at this year’s edition

*This content is included in the February issue of TM BROADCAST. You can access the full magazine here.

The latest edition of ISE (February 3–6, 2026, Barcelona) once again broke records in terms of visitors, exhibitors and exhibition space. However, beyond the figures, what was truly significant for the broadcast ecosystem was the confirmation that the sector is no longer understood as an isolated domain, but rather as part of a broader, hybrid and global audiovisual landscape. This was, at least, one of the key conclusions we drew during the event.

TM BROADCAST was present, as every year, walking the stands, corridors and conference rooms and speaking with some of the market’s leading players. One of the underlying questions we reflected on was: what strategic relevance does the show hold today for the broadcast market?

The answer was repeated with nuances, but with a clear consensus: ISE has consolidated its position as a transversal meeting point where integrators, AV installers, manufacturers, broadcast operators, corporate studios and institutional teams from around the world converge.

“We got the chance to meet with systems integrators and AV installers, as well as broadcast and production professionals from all over the globe. Through these interactions, we’re able to better understand the unique challenges they face and innovate with them in mind”, explained Andy Bellamy, Technical Director at AJA Video Systems.

For Grass Valley, the value lies precisely in this intersection of worlds and in the opportunity to engage with players who are redefining the use of video beyond traditional broadcast: “It brings together corporate studios and public sector teams, along with the integrators who design and support these systems over the long term”, noted Jonathan Lyth, Product Director, Enterprise Media, Grass Valley.

This direct contact also makes it possible to detect how rapidly market expectations are evolving. “This was our second ISE as an exhibitor following our debut last year, and one of the most notable differences has been how quickly expectations are moving. Teams are treating video as part of their day-to-day operations, with real demands around consistency and secure, repeatable workflows”, added Jonathan Lyth.

From Panasonic, Álvaro Ortiz, Product Marketing Manager, points to a structural transformation of the trade show landscape itself: “ISE has successfully adapted to other traditional sectors that even had their own tradeshows… ISE has managed to incorporate integrators, rental houses, dealers… also opened ‘channels’ that are attractive to audience: if you are a corporative video filmmaker, maybe ISE is a more proper fair than a purely broadcast-oriented fair or a cinema event”.

This transversal reading of the market is echoed by other manufacturers. Sony underlines that the show reflects the expansion of broadcast into a more interconnected AV ecosystem: “Our customers today operate across cloud, IP, corporate, education, and live event environments, and ISE brings all these worlds together in one place”, stated Patricia Andrés, PR Sony Pro Spain.

From the professional audio field, the perception is equally clear: the diversity of profiles coexisting at ISE reflects the real convergence of applications and environments. “What unites them is the need for reliable, high-quality audio, whether this is theatres, live audio touring, places of worship, field recording, film and streaming, corporate AV or education. At ISE, we can welcome them all: broadcasters, sound engineers, rental owners, integrators, theatre A1s, you name it. This is what makes this show so special for us”, said Tobias von Allwoerden, Manager Broadcast and Film, Sennheiser.

In the field of critical infrastructure, the conversation shifts towards systemic integration and control architecture. Jochen Bauer, EVP Sales EMEA at G&D, highlights the strategic dimension of the event: “ISE is valuable because it brings together the full ecosystem that broadcast operations depend on – AV, IP infrastructure, control, security, and systems integration – in one place”.

For global integrators such as Qvest, the opportunity lies in applying broadcast transformation expertise to AV use cases: “The show is particularly useful because it provides a platform to apply our long-standing broadcast transformation expertise to AV-centric use cases and to design practical architectures, integration models, and service offerings that meet these market requirements”, explained Christian Felder, PR Manager, Qvest.

Along the same lines, Manifold highlights the opportunity to expand its ecosystem into adjacent applications: “ISE offers an opportunity to deepen our engagement with the ProAV market, meet existing technology partners, connect with and train new resellers, and support our ecosystem in expanding into adjacent application areas such as enterprise, events, studios, theatres and live entertainment”, noted Erling Hedkvist, Broadcast Technology Sales & Business Development at Manifold.

Marshall Electronics, for its part, emphasises the international and relational dimension of the event: “ISE provides a valuable opportunity to connect directly with systems integrators, distributors, and end users from across the global broadcast and AV markets. The scale and international reach of ISE make it a key event for strengthening partnerships and showcasing innovation”, explained Bernie Keach, Broadcast AV Consultant at Marshall Electronics.

What makes ISE attractive

“This was our second ISE as an exhibitor following our debut last year, and one of the most notable differences has been how quickly expectations are moving”, Jonathan Lyth (Grass Valley)

“ISE has successfully adapted to other traditional sectors that even had their own tradeshows”, Álvaro Ortiz (Panasonic)

“ISE is valuable because it brings together the full ecosystem that broadcast operations depend on – AV, IP infrastructure, control, security, and systems integration – in one place”, Jochen Bauer (G&D)

“ISE offers an opportunity to deepen our engagement with the ProAV market, meet existing technology partners, connect with and train new resellers, and support our ecosystem in expanding into adjacent application areas”, Erling Hedkvist (Manifold)

Convergence as the starting point

If the dominant message had to be summarised in a single word, it would be convergence. Sectors traditionally unrelated to broadcast, such as corporate environments, live events or institutional settings, are now demanding production standards comparable to those of television. Multi-camera streaming, cinematic look, remote workflows… What was once exclusive to broadcast has become accessible to other verticals.

Christian Felder (Qvest) identifies the convergence of broadcast, AV and IT as the dominant theme of this year’s edition: “The main topic was the continued convergence of broadcast, AV and IT. Broadcast and AV domains are increasingly relying on the same underlying technologies and architectures. This development is driven by the growth of live streaming, rising expectations for video and audio quality, and the widespread adoption of IP-based workflows. As a result, the boundaries between traditional broadcast production and Pro AV applications are steadily dissolving, fundamentally changing how content is created, managed and delivered”.

From ROE Visual, its Director of Virtual Production, XR and Broadcast, EMEA, Olaf Sperwer, summarised it as follows: “Broadcast is no longer confined to traditional TV studios. It is converging with corporate communications, hybrid events, and in-house content production facilities. ISE provides a platform where this convergence becomes visible”.

Convergence is not only technological; it is also cultural and organisational. Jonathan Lyth (Grass Valley) emphasised that this is no longer an emerging trend, but the new starting point for the market: “For me, the biggest theme at ISE 2026 was that convergence is the default now. Many teams we spoke with are producing content far more regularly than they were a few years ago, often with small crews, and they want setups they can rely on without constant reinvention. Longevity was another key takeaway from conversations. In corporate and government environments, installations are expected to last, so decisions are shaped by governance expectations and how systems integrate into the wider infrastructure. That’s why software-defined approaches attracted so much attention, because they give organisations more control over how workflows evolve as requirements change”.

The sustained growth of streaming acts as an accelerator of this process. Quality expectations are no longer limited to linear broadcast, but extend to any environment where video forms part of day-to-day operations: “Demand for streaming gear across markets is surging, making streaming and remote production tools a continued focus for us. But it’s no longer just about high-quality, low latency streaming productions that can operate across geographies; audiences expect streams to look cinematic”, stated Andy Bellamy (AJA).

This aesthetic ambition also extends to the live events sector, where the boundary between television production and stage production is becoming increasingly blurred: “For venues and live event teams, the ability to introduce a more cinematic look through a Super 35 global shutter camera, while still working within familiar live production workflows, was another point of discussion”, explained Jonathan Lyth (Grass Valley).

IT logic as a common language

The common ground where broadcast, ProAV and IT converge is infrastructure. IP, software-defined architectures, cloud and virtualisation are no longer distinct layers, but rather the shared foundation upon which new production models are being built.

In this context, the conversation at ISE no longer revolves around whether to adopt IP, but how to do so efficiently and sustainably. Andy Bellamy (AJA) summarised it as follows: “As broadcast and proAV continue to converge, we’re taking note of several technologies that have captured the attention of both industries. One thing was clear at ISE: more facilities, productions, and installs are actively investing in IP technology, but need intuitive tools that let them bridge between baseband and all the different IP video standards, protocols, and formats”.

The issue, therefore, is not only adoption, but transition. The coexistence of baseband and IP remains a reality in many environments, making it necessary to develop bridging tools that enable this coexistence without increasing operational complexity.

“I see broader adoption of IP and SMPTE ST 2110 in particular, driving new scalability and efficiency across broadcast and AV environments while ensuring premium quality video experiences for audiences. We’re going to see new tools emerge that solve IP workflow gaps, and more education will become available industry wide. With more implementations, the knowledge base and talent pool will grow, and facilities and workflows will mature. In the near term, many of these pipelines will leverage bridge technology to make moving between baseband and IP more intuitive”, added Andy Bellamy.

At the same time, security is consolidating its position as a decisive factor in the design of architectures and workflows: “We also spent time discussing the security side of the architecture, because many enterprise and government environments want the flexibility of software workflows while still keeping media processing and content inside their own network”, noted Jonathan Lyth (Grass Valley).

More intuitive solutions

The third axis identified at ISE relates to usability. The market is no longer composed solely of highly specialised broadcast engineers. New profiles — corporate, institutional, small production teams — are working with increasingly sophisticated technologies and demand tools that reduce friction without sacrificing performance.

In this context, technical complexity tends to move “behind the screen”. Álvaro Ortiz (Panasonic) illustrated this with two specific developments: “I would dare to say that the main one [distinctive technology] is Advanced Auto Framing: the complexity that it involves behind the screen, but transformed in a very friendly, easy-to-use solution when you are in front of it, makes the multicamera production outstanding even if the production staff is shortly manned or with not specialist operators”.

He added: “The second one could be the autofocus system in a 2/3” lens: it has been long time since we have been using autofocus with other kind of lenses, especially with those ones coming from still photography or video production with large format sensor, but, paradoxically, in a standard like the 2/3” lenses, the mostly used in broadcast, we have been surviving assuming ‘everything was focused’, independently of the nature of the glass and the sensor, and it wasn’t necessarily true”.

In audio, the evolution points in the same direction: “From a pro audio perspective, the No. 1 topic is certainly wideband wireless audio. The continued interest this topic has met with at ISE reflects its importance for professional audio applications and workflows. We also see the importance of brand-agnostic tools grow, and generally a new level of user-friendliness being achieved in the industry”, explained Tobias von Allwoerden (Sennheiser).

At the same time, artificial intelligence is emerging as a structural layer that enables this operational simplification. Sony underlined this point: “The dominant theme at ISE 2026 is undoubtedly the acceleration of AI driven workflows across the entire professional AV ecosystem. AI is no longer an add on or a future concept; it is becoming a foundational layer that enhances image quality, automates operations, and enables more efficient, scalable production environments”, stated Patricia Andrés.

ROE, however, introduced a relevant nuance: “AI will certainly dominate discussions, particularly in content generation, virtual production, and workflow automation. However, beyond AI, the fundamentals of studio production remain critical. Broadcast environments still require display technologies that meet strict standards in color accuracy, contrast performance, surface reflectivity, and mechanical stability”, added Olaf Sperwer.

This pursuit of greater intuitiveness also extends to the heart of critical infrastructures: the control room. From G&D, Jochen Bauer describes a modernisation centred on the operator, where interface coherence and system predictability are as important as technical power:

“In our field, the most significant trend is the push toward operator-centric control room modernization: improving usability and speed without compromising security or reliability. We see strong attention on secure, software-defined control that still behaves predictably under pressure -especially when multiple systems and stakeholders converge in one room. Another recurring theme is simplifying operation across heterogeneous sources (IT, security, broadcast, OT) while keeping the operator interface consistent, so training effort and human error are reduced. Finally, there’s growing interest in integrated, desk-level interfaces that reduce peripheral clutter and make complex actions repeatable – because in critical environments, workflow clarity is often the difference between quick response and confusion”.

Finally, this adaptation to new profiles and environments also translates into a more contextual approach to equipment. Marshall Electronics summarised it from the camera perspective: “Rather than focusing on a single ‘best’ camera, the key conversation this year is about which camera performs the best depending on the application. No two environments are exactly alike, and customers are prioritizing factors such as sensor size, lens and zoom options, form factor and integration flexibility”, stated Bernie Keach.

Key themes and industry trends

“The main topic was the continued convergence of broadcast, AV and IT”, Christian Felder (Qvest)

“The dominant theme at ISE 2026 is undoubtedly the acceleration of AI driven workflows across the entire professional AV ecosystem”, Patricia Andrés (Sony)

“Broadcast is no longer confined to traditional TV studios. It is converging with corporate communications, hybrid events, and in-house content production facilities”, Olaf Sperwer (ROE Visual)

“Demand for streaming gear across markets is surging, making streaming and remote production tools a continued focus for us”, Andy Bellamy (AJA)

“We also see the importance of brand-agnostic tools grow, and generally a new level of user-friendliness being achieved in the industry”, Tobias von Allwoerden (Sennheiser)

 “Rather than focusing on a single ‘best’ camera, the key conversation this year is about which camera performs the best depending on the application”, Bernie Keach (Marshall Electronics)