At Cuez, we have two colleagues who have walked the IBC floor more times than they can count. Here's what they've learned, and why IBC2026 is the one to talk to us.
One could have expected it, but ask our very own Chris Ketelaer and Jan 'JDW' De Wever how many IBCs they've attended, and they have to do the math. Together, they're well past 50 editions. This calls for a Q&A and some advice for IBC2026.
IBC used to be in another location
Chris's first IBC wasn't even in Amsterdam. It was held in Brighton in the late '80s.
"Not the most glamorous edition," the Business Development Manager laughingly says. Back then, IBC ran every 2 years, alternating with the Montreux show in Switzerland. It moved to Amsterdam in 1992 and never left.
JDW visited IBC for the first time in 1999, as a journalist. Our Product Owner of Automator has seen the show from every side since: press, buyer, and now as a vendor.
The biggest change
Both agree on the industry's most defining shift: IBC went from a hardware show to a software show. An abundance of OB trucks, cameras and other equipment made some room for software vendors. The equipment didn’t disappear, but it just stopped being the story.
3 hypes and 1 new standard
"The only constant is change," says Chris. "New technology arrives, and the sector most of the time evolves with it."
Not every technology made the cut:
- 3D TV: dead on arrival. "Nobody was ever going to set that up at home," says JDW.
- Same for 8K: great for production but not for living rooms.
- Idem for immersive sound systems.
And now we have AI, which they are glad to see turning into real, working tools.
Yet the rhythm of the industry hasn't changed: NAB is for releases, and IBC is where you can actually play with said releases. And the visitors apparently haven't changed either. "Everyone knows everyone," Chris laughs. "The faces stay the same, only the business cards change."
And the exhibitors? They get wiser.
Chris and Jan gladly share some advice to those in need:
The problem that never goes away
What do broadcasters say year after year that still isn't solved? Chris didn't hesitate. “Do more with less. I've heard it for 15 years. Budgets don't grow. Ad revenue keeps shifting. The glory days are over in the industry.”
JDW annotates: “And automation in all its aspects. Other industries automated long ago and broadcast is still catching up. The biggest broadcasters in the world already run on it, but it has to trickle down some more.”
Why Chris and Jan keep attending IBC
JDW: "Our team released a lot of new integrations, so I’m looking forward to wandering the halls and seeing Cuez appear on multiple (many!) booths.”
Chris agrees: “Modern times brought complex media workflows, and that makes untangling and automating them such a pleasure.”
JDW: “And somewhere on the floor, there's always that one revolutionary product that makes 30-year veterans like us walk over just to look.”
"That's passion," says Chris. "That never changes."
Talk to the people who've seen it all
Chris, JDW, and the Cuez team are at IBC2026, booth 6.A23.
Twenty minutes with them tells you whether Cuez fits your workflow. No pitch, just people who know live production inside out.
