IBC2026 brought the global media, entertainment and technology community together for four days of business, innovation and collaboration at the RAI Amsterdam, welcoming 41,225 attendees from 170 countries and more than 1,300 exhibitors. First-time exhibitors were up by more than a third in 2026, with 256 companies making their IBC debut, while many established global brands expanded their presence.
Mike Crimp, CEO of IBC, said: “IBC’s superpower is the power to convene our industry. Our industry has always been at its best when people come together, embrace new technology, and work through challenges to create real opportunity. That’s why IBC remains so important. We bring together all corners of the industry to demonstrate how innovation can solve practical challenges.”
Ashish Agrawal, founder and CEO of EON Media, added: “The Future Tech zone has been the ideal place for us to make our IBC debut and launch into Europe. We’ve had great customer conversations and a lot of drop-by visitors who were truly engaged.”
Kara Martin-Beijer, vice president of corporate marketing at Avid, said the company had seen “a real buzz on the booth this year, with high-quality visitors and customer conversations throughout the show”, while Jeff Moore, executive vice president and chief marketing officer at Ross Video, cited a first-day sale of one of the company’s new solutions as evidence of the show’s value.
Future Tech, introduced in 2025, expanded its role as a focal point for emerging technologies and new industry talent, with the new Future Tech Ignite initiative bringing together more than 70 start-ups and emerging companies with investors and established organisations, supported by EIT Culture & Creativity as innovation partner. The IBC Accelerator Media Innovation Programme saw broadcasters, streamers and technology companies work together on nine real-world challenges spanning agentic AI, immersive experiences, private 5G, accessibility, content provenance and live-event streaming.
The three-day IBC Conference brought leaders from organisations including Banijay, BBC Studios, CNN, FIFA, Globo, Google, ITV, JioStar, Meta, Netflix, Snap, UEFA, Warner Bros. Discovery and YouTube together to address AI in practice, shifting business models, the economics of live sport and content discovery, among other topics.
Guy-Laurent Epstein, executive director of marketing at UEFA, said: “IBC is a great place to network for my team with the relevant people in the industry in order to grow their knowledge and to grow our opportunity to be better going forward.”
As IBC approaches its 60th anniversary, the organisation said it will build on the business activity, partnerships and practical innovation generated at IBC2026. The show will return to the RAI Amsterdam from September 10-13, 2027.
Click here for the list of FutureB2B’s IBC2026 Best of Show winners.
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