The Return Of IBC

With 1,400 exhibitors set to showcase the latest in broadcast technology to over 50,000 visitors from 160 countries worldwide, it seems this year's IBC will continue the success that has seen it become one of the most popular annual events in the industry.
The show has certainly grown since its debut in 1967 at the Royal Lancaster Hotel in London, when just 32 exhibitors featured alongside 500 conference delegates.
Over the years, Europeans have made up the vast majority of attendees and exhibiting companies; however, visitor numbers from Asia, Africa, South America and the Middle East continue to grow.
This year, the International Broadcasting Convention will welcome a number of key note speakers, including Andreas Bereczky, Executive VP of ZDF German Television, Kantar Media Chairman Andy Brown, Bob Harris of UK broadcaster Channel 4, CEO of France's TDF Group Olivier Huart and Tony Wang, UK General Manager of Twitter.
The key themes to be covered at IBC2013 have already been announced, with Bill Scott of Easel TV leading a conference on how the internet has changed the traditional notion of television for contemporary, modern viewers.
John Dillion, VP Marketing at Rightster will be looking at the increasing number of Telcos in the broadcast market, with one session focussing specifically on whether Telcos are the "Transformers of The Future of TV".
‘The New Language of Digital Spaces’ will be headed by Andrew Jordan, SVP of International Operations and Technology at NBC Universal. The conference will seek to examine the way in which digital spaces have changed with the influx of social media networks and an increased desire for up-to-date information from viewers. Andrew Jordan will be looking at the set-top box and asking whether it can continue to exist in an increasingly on-demand world.
Robert Ambrose, Media & Entertainment Industry Director, EMEA at Oracle, will helm the discussion ‘Creating A More Engaging Entertainment Experience’. This talk will examine the latest developments and theories in engaging viewers and maximising added value within the viewing experience.
Cassidy Media Partnership CEO Fran Cassidy will be looking at ‘Understanding the Power of Big Data’. Ms Cassidy says: “Applying the power of Big Data to the electronic media and entertainment industry and establishing its commercial significance is key for one of the hottest topics of 2013. We will have plenty on the subject and will be investigating it from all angles, with some compelling examples that demonstrate how it is currently being used by content owners and broadcasters alike.”
‘Running Your Business: Technologies, Systems Standards and Skills’ is being hosted by Martyn Suker, Head of Production Innovation at ITV Studios. The conference will explore the latest advances in industry collaboration and standards, examining the newly-coined roles of Preditors, DITs and Data Wranglers. “Will we need a Social Network Producer or perhaps a Second Screen Director in the gallery for future projects? These sessions will provide the clues,” Mr Suker says.
Also at this year's show will be a discussion of the influence of new technologies and techniques on the production process. Richard Welsh, Head of Operations Digital Cinema at Technicolor, will discuss the theme 'Production – Innovation in Techniques'.
Of course, the IBC Awards will be returning this year, providing a run down of the big broadcasting events of the past year.
Shortlisted projects for this year's Content Creation award include the BBC's coverage of the Olympic torch relay and the world-first HFR 3D post for Peter Jackson's adaptation of The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey.
The Content Management category will feature Irish broadcaster RTÉ's new FAST project, which has enabled the channel to move to a completely file-based infrastructure.
Content Delivery has shortlisted a number of recent innovations, including the Japan Commercial Broadcasters' Association's uncompressed HD transmission project and Spanish Abertis Telecom's new cloud-based solution MPEG-DASH.
The awards ceremony will take place on 15 September, on the closing day of the conference.
IBC's partners are the International Association of Broadcasting Manufacturers (IABM), The Institute of Engineering and Technology (IET), The Institute of Electrical and Electonics Engineers (IEEE), the Royal Television Society (RTS), The Society of Cable Telecommunication Engineers (SCTE) and the Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers (SMPTE).
IBC2013 will take place at the RAI, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, with Conference sessions running 12-17 September and Exhibitions running 13-17 September.
www.ibc.org
(IT/CD)