IBC Postponed to December

London, UK, May 25, 2021--Following a period of industry consultation, the IBC Partnership Board announced that IBC2021 will now take place on December 3-6 at The RAI in Amsterdam. The Board based their decision on the results of recent IBC exhibitor and visitor surveys and macro evidence of Europe opening up for business.

"We really value the feedback and candid input of our community–we have always been 'By the industry, For the industry' and this ethos continues to guide our daily decision making process," said Michael Crimp CEO of IBC.

Health & Safety will be a crucial consideration for all attendees according to the origanizers. The IBC operations team is laser focused on creating a safe environment that participants can trust. Survey feedback showed:

  • Two thirds of survey respondents said assurance of robust onsite health and safety protocols would encourage them to attend; vaccination passport entry was by far the most popular measure.
  • 86% of survey respondents said they were very likely, and 13% likely to have been vaccinated by December.
  • Two thirds of respondents already feel they are ready to travel, and a vast majority expect any corporate travel restriction policies to be updated by the end of the summer.
  • Macro trends point to accelerated vaccine roll out and opening of borders across IBC’s core markets over the next 6 months. EU commission data shows that Europe is now on track to achieve its 70% vaccination target by July 2021, and to significantly surpass this target by December.

Exhibitor and visitor feedback shows a keen desire for a live show in 2021. Only one in ten (11%) of the visitors surveyed said they would not attend a December event.

The organizers issued a statement saying "IBC’s priority is to deliver a safe and valuable event with tangible benefits for all participants. We believe the best way for us to achieve that is to take advantage of our opportunity to move the event to December. We did not shift from September lightly. However, as the evidence was gathered and considered, there was a shifting sentiment towards December from both exhibitors and visitors. Clearly, IBC will be safest when attendees are vaccinated, and shifting to December allows us to implement the most appropriate safety protocols. In turn, this will enable us to maximise the audience.

We also had to consider the ability of the supply chain to deliver a high quality event. We believe that services such as airports and airlines, and hotels will have established smooth operations and be able to provide a more streamlined service by December.

IBC2021 will bring the content and technology industry together again to discover the future of media and do business face-to-face. We believe the future of events is hybrid, and IBC2021 will lead the way in this new era. Whether onsite in Amsterdam or onscreen at home, the 250,000 strong IBC community will be able to engage and enjoy the insights, innovation, and interaction through IBC Digital. This hybrid digital platform will create a compelling hybrid event that combines the best of the show floor with state-of-the-art online interaction, and delivers new opportunities for exhibitors, speakers and show attendees to share information and experiences.

We will share more updates about the conference and IBC Digital in the coming weeks, but rest assured that IBC Show will still deliver value regardless of if you are attending the show in person or online.

We can’t wait to re-unite exhibitors, speakers, visitors, and all, so they can unlock business opportunities, discover the latest innovations, and explore the exciting world of content together," the statement concluded.