Innovation and Inspiration! Day Two was filled with cutting-edge demos and inspiring keynotes from over 1,350+ exhibitors, with structured networking opportunities and an unparalleled content program.

IBC CEO shares update on show sustainability
Mike Crimp, IBC CEO, revealed plans to make the show as sustainable as possible. “ESG has always been an important focus for IBC. Tell me about some of the steps taken to improve sustainability across the organisation in recent years.

At IBC, we’ve been committed to integrating environmental, social and governance principles into our operations for many years as we recognise how important it is that we contribute to a sustainable future for our industry and society.

As an organisation we have undertaken a yearly carbon footprint audit since 2018 and offset the organisation’s carbon footprint through international social development schemes. To give you some idea of the level of success, our annual offset for IBC’s activities at the show and during the year has been just around €5000 per year. The wider events industry is working towards becoming Net Zero by 2050. IBC has signed up to this but we are determined to move more quickly where possible.

We are committed to reducing emissions by taking action as an organisation and collaborating with our value chain, including suppliers, exhibitors and visitors, to lower both direct and indirect emissions. Additionally, we are developing our offsetting strategy aligned to best practice to support our sustainability efforts further and maintain carbon neutrality,” said he.

Sharing his plans for making the show more sustainable, “While we’ve made good progress on our sustainability journey as an organization, we want to be even more proactive and coherent going forward, and we have huge ambitions around making IBC a more sustainable show. A key part is bringing in Hope Solutions, a sustainability consultancy that works with major global businesses, events, and artists, including BBC, Coldplay, Live Nation, and Netflix. I think working with an organisation with specialist knowledge and works in the wider space will greatly impact future shows. Of course, we can’t do this without the help and support of all our stakeholders. Therefore, we will ask for your input, beginning with focus groups here at IBC2024,” he added.

Tech Strategies Propel New Broadcaster Business Models.
Broadcasters are focusing on redeveloping their streaming platforms, which generate 25-30% of their revenue. “We have to be on platforms where our consumers are,” said Boswood. “We don’t have all the answers yet but if we don’t meet our target and double our social views, our audience will watch something else,” said Grace Boswood, Technology Director at Channel 4 at the session at IBC2024 on Day Two.

Excited that cloud enables more content delivery and more personalized fandom experiences, “For the US Open, we are covering 16 tennis court feeds for the first time, not just the top two courts. Suppose you work differently with technology and with production efficiencies. In that case, it can become financially viable and enable a better customer experience,” said Cristina Gomila, MD, Content Technology and Innovation at Sky.

Sinead Greenaway, Director for Broadcast and End User Technology, BBC, outlined how the public service behemoth has fully refreshed its technology strategy over the past two years, with a focus on both delivering more content to more audiences on all platforms faster and on giving the best possible experience. “The best tech in the world doesn’t move the dial unless you make the right investments,” she concluded.

Building the future of technology. “We have partnering in our DNA, and that translates through to our technology strategy as well,” said Boswood. “I’m not here to have thousands of in-house technologists, but some really, really bright people who can pick the right solutions for us to meet our outcomes. A key focus is efficiency – Channel 4 is looking for practical solutions that fit as seamlessly as possible into their existing workflows and help them to either “make money or save money.”

Expressing a theme that has been running through several presentations this year, Boswood says that the use of AI for data analysis takes precedence over generative AI – helping to deliver recommendations to viewers. Another application of the technology is for news. She used the term, ‘algotorial’ to describe the process of algorithms and editorial teams working in concert to produce programming.

For Gomilla, technology is not an end in itself. “Technologies are not drivers, it’s all about what we do with them,” she said. She identified four major transformational trends that are guiding technology decisions at Sky:

• Cloud and IP Migration – internal guidelines are cloud first – bringing flexibility and scale;
• Software first – dynamics and speed;
• AR and graphics – flexibility and experience; and
• AI and data – automation and observability.

Greenaway presented the BBC’s technology roadmap, stating: “Everything for us starts with the strategy – Value for All,” and that BBC Technology’s role is to enable that strategy.

Because the BBC is a PSB funded by a license fee, it has a mandate to provide universal access, and according to Greenway, that requirement drives the choices made by the organisation. She emphasised four key elements of those choices:

– SaaS first, cloud second, on-prem only where necessary;

– A smaller set of interoperable systems;

– A core of systems the BBC needs to protect; and

– Enable colleagues to work from anywhere.

After the individual presentations, the three sat down for a panel discussion to share their collective experiences.

All the panel members agreed that it is important to create technology strategies by starting with the audience and working backward. They also emphasized the role of internal technology teams in connecting new technologies with existing workflows.

On Day Three, Amsterdam’s RAI will offer more valuable insights, topical trends, and groundbreaking discoveries.

Day One. https://www.broadcastandcablesat.co.in/ibc-2024-day-one/

BCS Bureau