AI@IBC Look beyond hype and let’s focus on real-world applications that offer tangible benefits

By Shirish Nadkarni

Taking off on Friday, 13 September, under the theme “Accelerating Innovation”, IBC2024 will be the cauldron in which the future of the global media and entertainment (M&E) industry will be stirred and redefined. Over 43,000 broadcasters, content owners, rights holders and service providers will gather over four days in the 10  halls of the sprawling RAI Convention Centre to discuss the latest trends in the broadcast industry.

Indeed, while AI will continue to dominate the buzz at the convention, IBC CEO Mike Crimp says, “The media industry is ready to look beyond the AI hype and focus on real-world applications that deliver tangible benefits for businesses and consumers.

“IBC2024 will showcase an array of hands-on demos and use-case driven discussions — reflecting M&E’s demand for grounded conversation on how AI is impacting our sector today and in the long term.”

Maria Rua Aguete, Omdia’s Senior Research Director, Media & Entertainment, adds, “AI spend in media is set to reach $13 billion by 2028. It is influencing every element of the content value chain, but businesses need more clarity around where and how it can be harnessed most effectively.

“Spotlighting high-impact use cases and collaborating to overcome adoption challenges will be key to unlocking AI’s transformative potential for the media industry.”

At this year’s IBC, exhibitors and speakers from around the globe will showcase game-changing innovations and tackle the media sector’s most pressing trends and issues – changing perceptions and meeting the needs of all stakeholders in the world of broadcasting, who will be attending the three-day conference and four-day trade show. 

“IBC is the place to go to meet everyone, whether that’s customers, suppliers, or potential future collaborators. There’s nothing quite like IBC for the industry,” says Andy Hook, Director of Technology and Strategy, d&b (formerly Dun & Bradstreet, a business data analytics firm.)

Energising the market, enabling content everywhere, and exploring new trends, IBC2024 will bring together the creative, technology and business communities to collaborate, learn and unlock new opportunities. 

The organisers have unveiled a host of exciting new show features and speaking sessions to showcase real-world artificial intelligence (AI) advances across the IBC Conference, the IBC Accelerator Media Innovation Programme and the show itself, including the new AI Tech Zone, powered by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU).

AI will still be at the forefront of the broadcast space at the show. AI innovators and M&E companies will be able to learn, network, collaborate and unlock business opportunities driven by new AI use-cases throughout the trade event.

With the reopening of Halls 3 and 4 during the 2023 edition, 45,000 square metres of show floor space is now on offer to exhibitors. Virtually all the exhibitors of IBC2023 will be back this year, and there will be 110 first time exhibitors who will find IBC Premium programme structured networking activities, including networking breakfasts, content-led round tables and access to an exclusive lounge, a boon.

AI-focused sessions and thought-leaders will feature across all show floor theatres and at the IBC Conference, where AI will be one of the primary themes explored — with keynotes from industry visionaries charting the evolution of AI in media and presenting new strategies to harness AI for creative workflows. 

The conference will also spotlight a number of AI in Action case studies, unveiling how generative AI and new data frameworks are already transforming live sports fan experiences and enhancing business operations for major broadcasters including ITV, Olympic Channel and SKY. Indeed, the focus will be on how AI can be harnessed by the broadcast industry to best effect.

The newly introduced AI Tech Zone at IBC2024 brings together emerging AI providers, established producers, content creators and innovators looking past the tried and true to re-imagine media creation and operations from the ground up. Powered by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU), the zone will be presented by headline sponsor AWS and partner, NVIDIA, fuelling hands-on AI demonstrations. 

Dell Technologies has been announced as platinum sponsor with partner, NVIDIA. The AI Tech Zone Stage will be sponsored by Wasabi Technologies, while the AI networking zone will empower the IBC community to engage directly with some of the most innovative players pioneering AI for M&E.

Hans Hoffman, Head of Media Fundamentals and Production at the EBU, says, “The AI Tech Zone is a must-attend for show attendees. We are now moving on from ‘future potential’ discussions to seeing how practical AI applications in the workflow can enable public service operators, broadcasters and other media organisations to generate real value.

“Visitors to the AI Tech Zone will witness first-hand how AI is shaping a smarter, more efficient media world.”

A number of companies will showcase new AI product launches and technologies for the first time at IBC2024; and they include Ateliere Creative Technologies, Backlight, Cinegy, Evergent, farmerswife, HAND, IMAX, InSync, ioMoVo, Media Excel, MediaKind, nxtedition, Operative, Periphery, Pixotope, Profuz Digital, Telestream, Telos Alliance, and Vubiquity.

Another IBC-first is the introduction of the AI Media Production Lab within the IBC Accelerator Media Innovation Programme, exploring a series of specific AI concepts to improve creativity in storytelling, deepen non-bias audience feedback and engagement, and power real-time predictive analytics to personalise live sports viewing. 

The three project strands, ‘Generative AI in Action’, ‘AI Audience Validation Assistant (AAVA), and ‘Changing the Game: Predictive Generative AI’ are being driven by champions, including Al Jazeera, BNNVARA, Channel 4, EBU, Evangelische Omroep (EO), IET, ITV, Paramount Global, Rai, Verizon Business, Vodafone, World Freestyle Football Association, Yle, and Zwart. Technology participants include Magnifi, Plan 9 Labs, Pluxbox, Respeecher, RKG Creative, Somersault, and Xansr Media.

The IBC2024 management has also just announced the line-up of speakers and sessions for the first-ever dedicated IBC Talent Programme, taking place on Monday, 16 September (the final day of the show), in the Showcase Theatre in Hall 8. 

The free-to-attend event will kick off with a welcome at the Networking Breakfast from Tamar Shoham, Chief Technology Officer at video technology and image science software company Beamr, which is sponsoring the morning event alongside Women in Streaming Media. The rest of the Talent Programme will be moderated by multimedia journalist Omar Mehtab, whose background includes work for BBC programmes Click, Panorama, The Travel Show, and Asian Network News.

“The IBC Talent Programme has been created to enable the media and entertainment community to work together to foster new talent, make training more accessible, and develop common standards for diversity and inclusion,” said Jo Mayer, Head of Marketing at IBC. 

“The dedicated sessions will look at how our industry can collaborate on these issues, spotlighting the benefits of partnerships and mentoring in promoting the industry to the next generation of media professionals and driving engagement across the media, entertainment and technology sector.”

On the penultimate day of the show, the IBC Innovation Awards will be announced in a ceremony hosted by presenter and former news anchor Sasha Qadri, taking place in the Auditorium Complex at the RAI on Sunday, 15 September at 6 pm, Central European Time. The awards celebrate and honour collaborative initiatives leading to ground-breaking solutions that address real-world media, entertainment and technology industry challenges.

This year’s awards bring together under one roof IBC’s innovation and social impact awards to create a unified celebration of industry advances, with five categories now being judged: Content Creation, Content Distribution, Content Everywhere, Social Impact, and Environment & Sustainability.

In a year dominated by big sporting events such as the Summer Olympic Games and the UEFA European Football Championship, this year’s awards finalists reflect the power of sports as a driver of innovation, with at least one entry in this area shortlisted in four of the five categories. Overall, the broad array of entries from every corner of the globe underlines the truly international nature of IBC.

“This year’s entries once again showcased the global reach and appeal of the IBC Innovation Awards with projects of the highest quality received from six continents,” said Fergal Ringrose, Chair of the IBC2024 Innovation Awards Jury. 

“Meanwhile, constantly evolving delivery methods and audience consumption patterns demand that content producers around the globe must innovate dynamically in order to stay relevant and competitive in the modern media and entertainment technology ecosystem.”

With a focus on inclusivity, IBC propels change – driving thought leadership, sparking discussion, shifting expectations, accelerating creativity, and enabling real business outcomes.

IBC’s CEO Crimp concludes, “Our mission is to empower our 250,000-strong global community to explore new opportunities, build knowledge, and play an active role in the technological transformation and broader change sweeping the industry worldwide.”