IBC 2016 Set To Tackle Major TV Transitions

Broadcasters making the trek next month to Amsterdam for the annual IBC conclave at the RAI Exhibition and Convention Centre will do so at a time of accelerated changes in both the technology needed to make and distribute television and the business models employed to monetize content.

“We have seen significant change in the [media] sector, and the conference allows us to debate and explore topics collectively and with editorial rigor,” says IBC CEO Mike Crimp. “This promises to be a great year.”

On the tech side, IBC 2016 — with a conference program Sept. 8-12 and exhibition Sept. 9-13 — will tackle some of the biggest transitions facing the industry with a variety of conference tracks, papers, exhibit zones and special events.

For instance, a major paper session will explore the ins and outs of Ultra HD from four different angles. During “UHDTV Launches Across the World” on Sept. 8, presenters will focus on Europe’s first UHDTV sports channel; the live 4K HDR HLD (high dynamic range, hybrid log-gamma) worldwide satellite distribution of Pope Francis’ opening of the Holy Door; a look at real-world live production of 4K UHD with HDR; and the launch of 4K/8K satellite broadcasting and progress on 8K UHDTV in Japan.

The IBC Big Screen Experience, a perennial favorite of many attendees that consistently shows off the latest in digital theatrical display and audio technology, will for the first time incorporate HDR from Dolby Laboratories into the projection technology used. The theater will once again rely on Dolby Atmos powered by QSC to deliver an immersive audio experience.

To help highlight what high dynamic range brings to visual presentation, the theater will host a screening of a special HDR version of Jon Favreau’s adaptation of The Jungle Book on the evening of Sept. 10.

Another major tech transition confronting the television industry is the shift to IP transport and routing and away from baseband video alternatives in production, playout and distribution applications. This year, IBC will tackle a potential IP sticking point in a big way with its first IP Interoperability Zone, a 500 square-foot area in Hall 8 (stand 8.D10), where IP-based equipment from more than 30 will be used in a real production setting. The Alliance for IP Media Solutions and the International Association of Broadcasting Manufacturers are organizing the zone.

The zone will showcase the work of the Audio Engineering Society and the Joint Task Force on Networked Media — an initiative of the Advanced Media Workflow Association, the European Broadcasting Union, the Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers and the Video Services Forum — to create a common, interoperable roadmap for IP in media applications.

Among the exhibits in the IBC Interoperability Zone will be a LiveIP studio and control room set up by Belgium broadcaster VRT, EBU and 14 tech companies. The VRT-EBU LiveIP control room will feature IP connections to a data center and the IBC TV control room located in other areas of the RAI.

As in years past, this year’s IBC gathering will also devote a special area to the technology projects and prototypes that will help to make tomorrow’s television a reality. In the IBC Future Zone, BBC R&D will demo how IP can enable an enhanced viewer experience with CAKE, or the Cook-Along-Kitchen-Experience, a real-time interactive cooking show that changes as the viewer prepares a dish.

Other Future Zone highlights include a high dynamic range demo from TrueDR that pairs a unique codec with a 10,000-nit display from Italy’s SIM2; the Dreamspace project’s technology for live compositing in a virtual production space; and the Socializing Around Media project’s smart TV app for multiscreen content.

The 2016 IBC conference track — with a theme of “Transformation in the Digital Era: Leadership, strategy and creativity in media and entertainment” — will be organized into seven themes: Platform Futures, Audiences and Advertising, Content and Production, Business Transformation, Advances in Technology, the IBC Big Screen and Rising Stars. 

Here, too, transitions in TV technology and evolving business models will take center stage. For example, the Platform Futures theme on Sept. 8, will focus on “The New Broadcasters” with a number of sessions looking at the impact OTT is having on the industry.

One session will feature Hendrik McDermott, SVP, branded on demand, NBCUniversal International, who will discuss Hayu, NBCU’s multiscreen app allowing individuals to tailor the channel to their tastes and preferences.

Another, “Google’s Plans in Television,” will feature Ben Faes, managing director, partner business solutions, Google, U.K., who will review where the company is headed with its OTT offerings, including YouTube.

The Audiences and Advertising conference track will blend business and technology on Sept. 9 during the “New Developments in TV and Video Advertising Technology” session. Featuring five expert panelists from media and technology companies, including Sky Media, Channel 4 and MTGx, the session will examine the next big thing in advertising and what it means for television.

The Business Transformation conference stream will offer a variety of sessions examining how new technologies are affecting the business side of media organizations, including “Cloud Processing and Changing Business Models” and “Localizing Content, Reaching a Worldwide Audience.”

Once again, the IBC convention will feature exhibits from more than 1,600 tech vendors. Arranged in 14 halls at the RAI, the exhibit area will be divided into three major categories: creation, management and delivery.

There, IBC attendees will find a wide variety of new equipment and software spanning the waterfront of television technology, from the latest 4K and 8K digital cameras and immersive audio encoders to digital TV transmitters and playout automation.  

Of course, IBC 2016 will be about far more than simply technology and media business trends. As in years past, the gathering will offer a special mix of insightful keynotes from industry luminaries, such as Academy Award-winning director Ang Lee and award-winning producer David Puttnam, chair of Atticus Education; multiple industry awards, including the IBC Innovation Awards in three categories (content creation, content management and content delivery); recognition of the best conference paper, “WIB – A New System for Digital Terrestrial Television”; and special convention gems that bring a greater appreciation for what some of the most innovative players in television are doing to advance the industry.

For example, this year’s convention will feature a special showcase on Sept. 11 from NASA by Carlos Fontanot, imagery manager for the International Space Station, and Kelly Humphries, the voice of mission control for more than 50 Space Shuttle launches, on the history of working in space, challenges like shooting video imagery in space where instant 100-degree temperature changes are common, and plans for exploration of Mars.

A little more down to earth, IBC 2016 also will offer insight into the development of the latest TV broadcast systems from around the world on Sept. 12.

The two-and-a-half-hour session, “The Global Landscape for Broadcast TV Systems,” produced in association with FOBTV (the Future of Broadcast Television), will examine the progress being made in the development of new TV standards.

U.S. broadcasters in particular will look to session participants, such as Triveni Digital Chief Science Officer Rich Chernock, Sinclair Broadcast Group VP of Advanced Technology Mark Aitken and Pearl TV Managing Director Anne Schelle for the latest on the ATSC 3.0 next-generation TV standard.

As in the past, it appears this year’s IBC convention not only will present an accurate snapshot of where the industry is on the most important television and media issues of the day but also will offer fresh perspectives from industry heavyweights on where things are headed in the future.

To see all of TVNewsCheck’s IBC 2016 coverage, click here.

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