As tens of thousands of media professionals prepare for IBC 2025 in Amsterdam (September 12-15), the broadcast technology industry faces significant shifts. This year’s International Broadcasting Convention reflects an industry grappling with economic pressures, technological transformation, and evolving audience expectations, impacting content creation, distribution, and monetization.
Economic headwinds demand operational efficiency, forcing companies to rethink strategies. Rising content licensing costs and pressured traditional revenue streams accelerate industry adaptation. “Global economic pressures are intensifying the need to ‘do more with less,’ pushing media organisations to streamline operations and maximise existing resources,” said Aaron Kroger, director of product marketing and communications at Dalet. “This pressure is accelerating the demand for faster ROI, with new investments expected to deliver measurable returns within months rather than years.”
The impact is particularly strong in sports broadcasting, where licensing costs are escalating. Archive content is gaining traction as a cost-effective revenue source, and hybrid infrastructure emerges as a cost control measure. The proliferation of streaming services has led to platform fatigue, with consumers becoming selective about subscriptions. “Platform fatigue and shifting loyalty are pushing content owners to secure broad distribution, and to focus on viewer retention and engagement, and fresher programming strategies,” said Blair Harrison, founder and CEO of Frequency. “FAST channel creators need to use data to optimize programming in near real-time.”
Free ad-supported TV (FAST) and AVOD services are becoming more sophisticated, utilizing AI and real-time optimization. Scaling streaming remains technically challenging, requiring operators to balance quality and efficiency. AI has moved beyond experimentation into core production processes, automating tasks and expanding creative possibilities. “AI is transforming content production end-to-end. Automating scripting, enriching live production with real-time tagging, and accelerating post with instant highlights, edits, and localization,” said Ross Tanner, senior vice president for EMEA at Magnifi.
Operational AI applications are also valuable in less visible areas like automated metadata management and insight generation. Infrastructure automation, using AI to monitor performance and adjust resources, shifts from reactive to predictive management. Hybrid infrastructure, combining on-premises and cloud workflows, is becoming standard for modern content production. “Hybrid production environments have become the new operational standard — not just a steppingstone — as media companies balance the economics of 24/7 broadcasting with the agility of cloud-based workflows,” said Steve Reynolds, CEO of Imagine Communications.
Live sports production benefits greatly from this hybrid model. Remote production workflows reduce on-site personnel, while cloud resources provide scalability. However, scaling cloud-native infrastructure globally remains challenging due to protocol bottlenecks, cost unpredictability, and legacy integration complexity. “The biggest barrier isn’t bandwidth or storage capacity, it’s the protocol bottlenecks that choke your infrastructure when you need it most,” said Duncan Beattie, market development manager at Tuxera.
The shift to cloud-based remote workflows in sports broadcasting is redefining content production, processing, and distribution. AI plays an increasingly integral role, automating key moment detection and clip generation. Challenges around reliability, timing, and integration persist. With fragmented audiences across multiple devices, maintaining fan engagement is crucial. While 64% of fans prefer traditional TV, a significant portion watch on smartphones or tablets, driving the development of interactive, personalized experiences.
“We’re moving into a multi-screen culture where data, interactivity, and gamification play a central role in fan engagement,” said Mark Cooke, VP of sales in EMEA at Ross Video. Virtual and augmented reality are evolving into viable commercial platforms. The scale of live streaming demands sophisticated ad insertion systems complying with privacy regulations. The lines between programmatic and broadcast advertising are blurring. “As viewing habits evolve and technology advances, the divide between programmatic and broadcast is quickly disappearing,” said Avi Yampolsky, vice president of international accounts at Operative.
Media companies are adopting audience-centric business models, treating viewers as primary assets. “We’re seeing a foundational shift in how media companies approach monetization,” said Reynolds. “Many are moving away from selling discrete ad slots in favor of treating audiences themselves as the inventory.” AI facilitates personalization, impacting content creation, curation, and scheduling.
IBC 2025 aims to foster industry-wide initiatives on standards, interoperability, and shared problem-solving. Vendors emphasize breaking down vendor lock-in. “As an industry, we have to push for interoperability certification programs, like the ones we saw in the early days of on-prem IP adoption,” said Miroslav Jeras, CTO of Pebble. “We will all benefit when broadcasters can freely choose the best option for each function.” The in-person format is seen as crucial for collaborative progress.
IBC 2025 serves as a platform for showcasing solutions and fostering collaboration to address the industry’s challenges.