IBC Still Planning on In-Person September Event But Has Fall-Back Option in December By Jason Dachman, Chief Editor
Wednesday, April 21, 2021 - 10:50 am
Print This Story | Subscribe
Story Highlights
IBC has announced that while it is still focusing on the return of a live event at The RAI in Amsterdam this year Sept. 10-13, it also has a fall-back option of December 3-6, 2021. IBC also announced the launch of visitor and exhibitor surveys to take the pulse of the industry leading up the event, as well as plans to treat the in-person show similar to a large scale sporting event like the Olympics or an arena rock concert in which strict safety protocols and entry points are in place.
The industry is telling us that people are keen to come together again after being apart for a long time, says Michael Crimp, Chief Executive of IBC. In the coming months, a number of factors will help us decide when the event can happen and in what format. From macro trends such as vaccine roll out and testing, to the willingness of our attendees to travel, we will take all things into consideration as we make those important decisions. We are aiming to create a fresh and valuable event experience that enables the industry to engage and explore the future of media together again in a safe way
Crimp adds that in order to gather views from across the IBC community, IBC is launching a visitor survey today and will also roll out a targeted exhibitor survey next week, in partnership with IABM. The visitor survey is live now and can be found here
We all have an opportunity to think differently this year, he says. A good example of this is how we are embracing hybrid/ digital to give IBC more reach than ever before. Also, we are fully prepared to shift to December if that will deliver the safest and most valuable outcome. We would encourage the IBC community to be open to these ideas when they complete the surveys.
IBC has selected ExpoPlatform, an AI-powered platform for hybrid and online exhibitions and conferences, to support its digital offering. The move will enable IBC to create a hybrid event that combines the best of the show floor with online interaction.
With safety a major consideration in the planning of any physical event in today's climate, IBC is focusing on how it can create a safe environment that still delivers the value and enjoyment that attendees have traditionally experienced in Amsterdam.
According to IBC, gaining access to the 2021 show will feel similar to attending a large scale sporting event like the Olympics or an arena rock concert. At such major events there is a perimeter around the venue at which attendees pass through security, bag checks, and ID/ticket validation. IBC 2021 will use a similar approach with a purpose-built perimeter around The RAI, with multiple entry points where attendees will be processed under COVID health and safety protocols. This means that once within the perimeter, attendees will be free to move around The RAI complex, inside and out, without further physical checks - minimizing lines and congestion. Various technology tools will be used, including opt-in facial recognition for contactless registration and badge pickup and Artificial Intelligence to monitor visitor movement and control capacity in all areas.
Crimp concludes, We realize that IBC 2021 may be the first large event that many people will attend for some time. Rest assured, we are putting a lot of time and energy into planning what that experience will be like this year. The world is very different from when we all last went to a trade show, and the IBC 2021 experience will reflect that. We have been working closely with The City of Amsterdam and The RAI to ensure attendees can get the most out of IBC 2021 while keeping everyone safe. We have an overriding duty to get this right and to repay the trust that has been placed in us for over 50 years.
More from Sports Video Group
09/01/2026
Rock-It Sports' Deron Brown & Laura Rowlands on Launching a New Brand, Suppl...
09/01/2026
Warner Bros. Discovery's Chris Brown on the Broadcaster's First French O...
09/01/2026
NFL Playoffs 2026: CBS Sports Travels to Jacksonville With Packed Arsenal of Pro...
09/01/2026
NFL Playoffs 2026: NBC Sports Is Set To Roll Out New Scorebar, Insert Graphics T...
09/01/2026
NFL Playoffs 2026: Prime Video Production Team Caps Historic Season With Iconic ...
09/01/2026
NFL Playoffs 2026: FOX Sports Kicks Off Postseason Slate With Two-Game Wild Card...
09/01/2026
NFL Playoffs 2026: ESPN's Run Brings Monday Night Football' Flagship Op...
08/01/2026
At CFP Semifinals, ESPN Again Flexes Its Operational Muscle With 20+ MegaCast Vi...
08/01/2026
SVG Students To Watch: Sophie Fowler, University of OregonThe Portland product has honed her skills as a producer, director, and TD at Quack VideoBy Brandon Cos...
08/01/2026
Follow the Money, Episode 3: Inside the Sports-Media Biz With Sam McCleery and K...
08/01/2026
SVG New Sponsor Spotlight: Qualstar's Jeff Sengpiehl on the Enduring Power a...
08/01/2026
Legendary February: Production Leaders at NBC Sports Pull Back the Curtain on Ol...
07/01/2026
SVG Summit 2025: All General Sessions Now Available To Watch on SVG PLAYThe SVG Summit celebrated its 20th edition with a loaded agendaBy Brandon Costa, Directo...
07/01/2026
NBCU's Brings Rinkside Live' and Courtside Live' Features to Peaco...
06/01/2026
Peacock Bringing Dolby Vision and Dolby Atmos to Live Sports ContentPeacock is the first streamer to embrace Dolbys full suite of advanced picture/sound innovat...
06/01/2026
SVG Europe Audio: Listening to the sounds of powder and ice at Milano Cortina wi...
06/01/2026
Quintar Meta Spatial SDK Integration Promises Next-Level XR ExperiencesBy Ken Kerschbaumer, Editorial Director
Tuesday, January 6, 2026 - 9:41 am
Print This...
06/01/2026
Milano Cortina 2026: BBC Sport Previews Broadcast Ops, Studio Setup, Social Medi...
06/01/2026
Dolby's Jason Power on Elevating Live Sports Through Immersive Audio and HDR...
06/01/2026
DAZN's Global CRO Walker Jacobs on the Streamer's Breakout Year in the U...
06/01/2026
California Dreamin': LA28's SVP of Media Jim Bell Previews the Olympic a...
06/01/2026
One Month Out From Winter Olympics Opening Ceremony, NBC Sports in Final Prep fo...
06/01/2026
Advanced HDR by Technicolor and Zinwell Integrated onto ATSC 3.0 Conversion Boxe...
06/01/2026
FOX Sports President and COO Mark Silverman Shifts to Consulting RoleHis successor will be announced soonBy Ken Kerschbaumer, Editorial Director
Tuesday, Janu...
05/01/2026
NFL's Blake Jones on How the League's Latest Video Additions Change How ...
05/01/2026
Spiideo's Scott Bushman on How AI Is Already Powering Live Sports ProductionFrom a line of camera systems to its automated production platform, the tech ven...
02/01/2026
Freezing Florida: NHL's EVP, Entertainment Bob Chesterman on Taking the Wint...
02/01/2026
NHL Winter Classic 2026: TNT Sports Prepares for First NHL Outdoor Game in Sunsh...
30/12/2025
As the College Football Playoff Enters the Quarterfinals, ESPN Blows Out Its Meg...
30/12/2025
SVG's Best of 2025: Original ArticlesTake a look back at all our coverage of big-time productions, game-changing technologies, and state-of-the-art new faci...
29/12/2025
San Francisco 49ers Strike Gold With Halftime Laser SpectacularStunning display caps $200 million renovation of Levi's Stadium techBy Dan Daley, Audio Edito...
29/12/2025
The Cup's Around the Corner: An Inside Look at Broadcast Preparations for th...
29/12/2025
SVG's Best of 2025: Longform VideoWatch the standout keynote conversations, deep dives, and panel discussions from the year for free on SVG PLAY!By Brandon ...
23/12/2025
How guilas Cibae as Dominican Winter League Games Are Locally Produced for Glob...
23/12/2025
BitFire's Jim Akimchuk on Supplying Scalability and Customization in the Clo...
23/12/2025
CAMB.AI Enables European Athletics to Offer Multi-Language SupportPlan is to eventually offer translation into all languages spoken in EuropeBy Ken Kerschbaumer...
23/12/2025
Analysis: As sports media values trend negative, scarcity and quality are king By Callum McCarthy, Editor-at-Large
Monday, December 22, 2025 - 14:08
Print ...
23/12/2025
ESPN, Disney, and NBA Return to the Animated Altcast Fray With Second Edition of...
23/12/2025
End the Year on a High Note and Donate to the Sports Broadcasting Fund Today!By Ken Kerschbaumer, Editorial Director
Tuesday, December 23, 2025 - 12:25 pm
P...
22/12/2025
SVG New Sponsor Spotlight: Presidio's Neerav Shah on the Role of Its Captiva...
22/12/2025
Hitting the bullseye: Sky Sports readies itself for the biggest PDC World Darts ...
22/12/2025
Unique skillset: Bringing new directors to the world of darts at The Worlds with...
22/12/2025
Gravity Media prepares for a flight of fancy with the PDC World Darts Championsh...
22/12/2025
One hundred and eighty: Gravity Media on hitting the production bullseye at the ...
22/12/2025
The Famous Group's Jon Slusser on Fascinating Fans Through Immersive Content...
22/12/2025
ESPN's Meg Aronowitz on Continuing High-Quality Broadcasts of Collegiate Spo...
22/12/2025
ESPN Takes Data-Driven Storytelling to New Heights with MNF Playbook with Next ...
19/12/2025
SVG Sit-Down: Diversified's Jared Timmins on AI for Broadcast Sports and Cre...
19/12/2025
2025 SVG Summit Audio Recap: Say What?The Audio Production and Distribution Workshop at the SVG Summit 20 took on issues including speech intelligibility, Next-...
IBC Still Planning on In-Person September Event But Has Fall-Back Option in December By Jason Dachman, Chief Editor 
