Adrian Pennington

The next decade will redefine broadcasting more profoundly than any transition since the arrival of television itself – and if broadcasters don’t grab it then YouTube will eat them all, concluded an expert panel at IBC2026.

IBC2026 session report: The Women’s Super League’s (WSL) rapid growth globally is forcing the organisation to rethink how it distributes and commercialises its content, said Zarah Al‑Kudcy, Chief Revenue Officer, WSL.

When speaking at the IBC2026 conference, it became clear that YouTube is now a TV‑first cultural stage, and broadcasters, operators, and platforms should rethink collaboration rather than competition.

Media technology has evolved far beyond its traditional broadcast boundaries. “It’s no longer just a sector,” said Saleha Williams, CEO, IAMT, in an IBC opening address.

IBC2026 session report: Evan Shapiro delivered a forceful critique of modern media leadership at the WorldSkills Café 2026, arguing that the industry’s long‑standing reliance on “inbreeding” a narrow, elite talent pipeline has become a structural threat to its survival.

Broadcasters everywhere are facing the same pressures: rising production demands, distributed workflows, sustainability targets, and the need to scale without endlessly expanding hardware footprints or cost. Software-defined operations offer a route out of the impasse – but there’s a problem. 

Alex Charalambides, Senior Vice President, Chief Technology Officer, CNN, brings digital reinvention to the IBC2026 stage.

With the Edinburgh TV Festival’s Global Icon Award in hand, Sir Gary Oldman delivered a candid acceptance speech, revealing how his unique techniques, mindset, and early experiences in the industry brought his most iconic roles to life.

Speed, flexibility, and reliability – that’s the dream for many a live production. However, when public network coverage is patchy, what’s a broadcaster to do? The 2026 Accelerator Project, Network Control, deploys standardised network APIs to tackle this problem head-on.

As traditional broadcasters battle decreasing budgets and attention spans, brands have come to the fore as collaborators in an increasingly lucrative and creatively fertile strand of the media business.