From 11 to 14 September, the International Broadcasting Convention will once again light up Amsterdam’s RAI Exhibition and Convention Centre. The event’s official website confirms the dates and the venue, and organizers have rolled out a fresh lineup of features designed to deepen networking and spotlight emerging technology.

The show will welcome more than 1,200 exhibitors across 14 halls—a modest rise from the 1,300 that attended in 2025. Mike Crimp, IBC’s president, framed the conference around three guiding pillars: shifting business models, transformative technology, and people and purpose. He said these themes will shape every session and every square metre of the exhibition floor.

A key highlight is the Brain Date Lounge, a pre‑show online platform that lets attendees form peer groups around specific topics. According to Crimp, the lounge will be seeded with expert discussions from IBC consultants and the conference programme. Participants can create groups before the event, meet in the lounge during the show, and then discuss their observations face‑to‑face. The initiative is a direct response to industry demand for more meaningful connections, and it will sit inside Hall 14’s Future Tech zone alongside other new programmes.

Future Tech Ignite will launch as a dedicated area for startups, emerging technologies, future talent, and the creative community. Jo Meyer, IBC’s head of marketing, said the initiative will be backed by a partnership with EIT Culture & Creativity, which will become the innovation partner for Ignite. The collaboration aims to strengthen IBC’s ties with Europe’s creative innovation communities. Ignite Stage, which previously ran for a single day, will now span all four days of the show, featuring startup pitches, future‑focused sessions, and talent‑skills content. Meyer said the expansion reflects the show’s emphasis on transforming sport, trust, authenticity, and new commercial models.

Steve Connolly, IBC’s director of sales, noted that the exhibition space will exceed 45,000 square metres this year, a slight increase from the 46,000 square metres used in 2025. He added that more than 1,200 exhibitors will participate across 14 halls, compared with an estimated 1,300 last year. Connolly highlighted that Future Tech in Hall 14 and Content Everywhere in Hall 5 are both performing strongly, with bookings ahead of the previous year. The expanded Future Tech zone will also host a series of workshops on emerging AI tools and a showcase of next‑generation broadcasting hardware. Crimp expressed confidence that attendance will be strong, citing the show’s international reputation and its resilience in the face of issues that affected the NAB Show in April. He described the event as “very welcoming” and said, “at the moment we are tracking really strongly against last year.”

The conference programme will run from 11 to 14 September, featuring panels, demos and technical papers that address AI‑driven creativity, evolving audience behaviour and new commercial models. The event’s official website lists a preliminary schedule that is subject to change. Registration is available online at https://show.ibc.org, and exhibitors can book space through the site’s exhibitor portal. The partnership with EIT Culture & Creativity and the launch of Future Tech Ignite are expected to attract a mix of startups, investors and creative professionals, while the Brain Date Lounge aims to create lasting knowledge networks. Participants can also network with industry leaders during the evening networking sessions that run throughout the event.

Final attendance figures, financial results and any regulatory developments will be announced after the show concludes.