IBC at 50

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...with their 50th anniversary!

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We have built a strong relationship together, we have learned,
we have grown and we are looking forward to the next 25 years.

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IBC at 50

A reflection on the first 50 years of IBC – the world’s
leading media, entertainment and technology show

5 Introduction by Michael Crimp, CEO, IBC

7 1967

13 Growth

19 Brighton

23 Amsterdam and the New Organisation

30 IBC Council

33 Conference

37 Awards

41 Today and Tomorrow

IBC at 50 Compiled by Dick Hobbs, with valuable contributions from:
Clare Colvin, Martin Connolly, Mike Cox, Chris Dalton, Greg DePriest, Margaret Etheridge, Peter
Garland, John Holton, Paul Kafno, David MacGregor, Andy Marken, Veronica Newson, Brian Scott,
Mike Tooms, David Tucker, Phil White and David Wood

Layout: Hugo Lamb
Printer: Partnion Amsterdam
Publisher: Peter Garland

© International Broadcasting Convention Limited 2017.
All rights reserved. The IBC logo is a registered trade mark of International Broadcasting Convention Limited. No part of this
publication may be reproduced, transmitted or otherwise used in any form or by any means, or stored in any retrieval system
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1988 or equivalent provision under local law anywhere in the world. Application for permission for other use of copyright material,
including permission to reproduce extracts in other published works, shall be made to the publishers. Full acknowledgement
of author, publisher and source must be given.

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5

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Michael Crimp “The people that came together to create the
CEO, IBC very first IBC, in 1967, were not convention
experts, or people looking to make a profit.
IBC at 50 They came from the industry itself: John
Tucker of EMI, Tom Mayer of Marconi, John
Etheridge of Rank.

They were selling broadcast technology every day, and they recognised that the industry
needed a comprehensive, engaging convention at which the latest technology could be
presented. From the very start, IBC was made by the industry, for the industry, and that
is a principle we carry on to this day.
The other key message that struck me as I read the early pages of this book was that the founders
recognised that IBC should be a convention. A simple exhibition was not enough: it needed a
conference as an integral part of the event, all under the same roof and at the same time.

As this book, and the quotations of those who were there at the beginning, shows, IBC started
in the UK because the country was the world leader in the broadcast industry. Very rapidly, though,
IBC grew its international stature. There were representatives from 24 countries in 1967, and 62 by
1976. In 2016 our visitors came from more than 170 countries.

Through this geographical spread we ensure that everyone in our industry has the opportunity to
exchange knowledge. To take this even further, this year we have launched IBC365, a vibrant online
presence which engages with the community worldwide, providing the same level of information,
experience-sharing and networking year-round.

IBC from its very beginnings has been the one global forum at which the industry can come
together to share knowledge and experience. That is true today and it will be true into the future.

Today, of course, our industry is much broader than it was in 1967, reaching out to digital cinema,
out of home media and online creativity and delivery. So the scope of our committees and the IBC

”Council has broadened to encompass these new opportunities.
The IBC Council, for example, still includes members from major broadcasters like NHK and Fox.
Now they sit alongside representatives from Google and Netflix.

A golden anniversary is time to raise a glass of champagne and acknowledge the achievements
of the past. My toast, though, is that the principles set down by our
founders 50 years ago will continue into the exciting media future that is
unfolding around us.

7

8 John Tucker (right) with Lord Hill, then BBC Chairman
IBC at 50

1967

It was the summer of love. All the beautiful people were heading to San Francisco
with flowers in their hair. Nancy Sinatra declared her boots were made for walking.
Janis Joplin was the breakout star of the Monterey Festival. Muhammad Ali had
been stripped of the world heavyweight title for refusing the Vietnam draft.

“ We had pioneered the first On television, Andy Griffith and Lucille Ball ruled the comedy
scene. Westerns like Gunsmoke and Bonanza were the most
public high definition television popular dramas. Bewitched – Elizabeth Montgomery and her
service in the world. So why not twitching nose – was a hit on both sides of the Atlantic. Star
Trek, which had premiered the year before, was fast becoming a favourite.
”an international convention in
The UK was not at all surprised to win the Eurovision Song Contest,
London? with Sandie Shaw singing Puppet on a String. Captivating virtually the
entire nation, though, was a drama, John Galsworthy’s The Forsyte Saga,
which spanned 26 hour-long episodes, broadcast from January to July. It
became a hit globally: it was the first British-made television programme
to be sold to what was then the USSR.

For decades after, audiences talked of the wonderfully colourful
dresses in The Forsyte Saga, but it was shot and broadcast in black
and white. It was only in July of 1967 that BBC2 became the first channel
in Europe to offer colour television, opening with the Wimbledon Tennis
Championships (John Newcombe was men’s champion; Billie Jean King
beat plucky Brit Anne Hayden for her second consecutive title).

The broadcast of the year, though, was a remarkable global co-
production, a live link-up over satellites called Our World. Although the
programme had high cultural pretensions, featuring people as diverse as
Maria Callas and Pablo Picasso, it is chiefly remembered for its closing
segment from the UK: The Beatles performing All You Need is Love for
the first time ever.

Such buoyant creativity meant technology was under enormous
pressure. The English proverb is that “necessity is the mother of
invention”, and the manufacturing industry was working hard to keep up
with constant challenges.

First colour broadcasts in Europe by BBC,
including tennis from Wimbledon.

ATV0 in Melbourne covers the
Pakenham Races in colour
1967
1968 IBC moves to
A new convention for the Grosvenor House Hotel
broadcast industry, IBC, is held
at the Royal Lancaster Hotel 9
in London

IBC at 50

John Etheridge “ It was felt that an

exhibition needed a technical
papers programme to

”run concurrently, the one

complementing the other.

Innovation needs recognition. All those companies developing cutting Britain had provided expertise in the form of equipment, staff (both
edge broadcast technologies needed a showcase. And so a group of engineering and management) and programmes since the 1920s. We
like-minded businessmen came together to create it. had pioneered the first public high definition television service in the world.
So why not an international convention in London?
John Tucker was one of the initiators. By training and instinct an
engineer, he had become a senior figure at EMI, then a leading Note that John used the word “convention”. It was clear from the
manufacturer of television components, including cameras. Along with
John Etheridge (Head of what was then called the broadcast products “beginning that an exhibition was not enough on its own:
division of The Rank Organisation, later Rank Cintel) and Tom Mayer of It was felt that an exhibition needed a technical papers programme
Marconi, he hatched a plan to launch a convention. to run concurrently, the one complementing the other. Naturally,
we had sought the views of our colleagues in industry and the
In 1984, on the occasion of the tenth IBC, John Tucker wrote an broadcasting authorities, as well as other users both here and overseas.
article for International Broadcast Engineer, looking back at its foundation, It would be wrong to record more enthusiasm than that, because there
were several sceptics among our colleagues, who to say the least had
“and why the initiative came from the UK: very mixed feelings about the idea.
British manufacturers were already selling a significant amount
of broadcast equipment overseas, including colour cameras and The founders persevered. But they recognised that they all had regular
telecine, microwave links, transmitters and so on. Something jobs to do, and so could not take on all the organisation themselves.
like £12 million [about $275 million today] of broadcast equipment was They turned to two trade associations for support.
exported in 1966, which represented about 60% of the total industry
output. The Electronic Engineering Association had a broadcast division in
While a large proportion of these exports went to Commonwealth and which many of the leading suppliers were active. The Royal Television
ex-Commonwealth countries – every newly-independent country wanted Society at that time provided a forum for technical debate, and John
three things: a new flag, a new airline and a new broadcaster – there was Ware, the Chair of the RTS, had been recruited to the cause of the
also a steadily increasing amount of export going to the USA. new convention (he later went on to serve as Deputy Chair of the IBC
management committee for many years).

1969 IBC establishes a biennial pattern,
1970 alternating with the
On 20 July, Neil Armstrong International Television Symposium
takes his small step onto the in Montreux, Switzerland

surface of the Moon. IBC at 50

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(Upper picture) Lord Hill is shown around the IBC 1967 exhibition “In December 1966, the EEA wrote formally, asking
…if the RTS would organise a conference of international standing,
(Lower picture) John Etheridge, one of the founders of IBC, to run concurrently with an exhibition which the EEA would be
represented Rank Precision Industries Broadcast Division in 1967 holding, from September 20 – 22 1967.

With their agreement, IBC was born.
The first event was held at the then very new Royal Lancaster Hotel

in London, opened just a month earlier. In part the choice was made
because the hotel was owned by The Rank Organisation, giving founder
John Etheridge a degree of leverage in achieving what was required for
IBC.

As well as the exhibition inside the hotel, there were a number of

“outdoor exhibits, another IBC tradition. Norman Green recollected:
At the first IBC in 1967, you approached the Royal Lancaster
Hotel past two large outside broadcast trucks, one from Southern
Television, the other from ABC Television [both parts of what was
then the federal structure of ITV in the UK].
The ABC unit was revolutionary as instead of the production crews
sitting across and behind one another laterally across the vehicle, as
in all OB units up until that time, they sat in separate, glass partitioned
control rooms longitudinally down the vehicle: sound, production and
vision engineering, all in visual contact.
This Howard Steele design was to revolutionise OB units around the
world just as his semi-circular, glass partitioned control rooms that he
had pioneered at the ABC studios at Teddington had done.
Howard Steele, who was chief engineer at ABC, would become
director of engineering of the ITA which became the IBA. He had an
amazing flair for innovations that affected the whole broadcasting world.

“Norman Green also recalled a key part of the conference proceedings:
There was a lecture where a Marconi Television engineer, Norman
Parker Smith, had given a paper on his Mk VII colour camera. Then,
in the Q&A session, lvan James from EMI Research Laboratories
got up and gave a slide show about his revolutionary camera that used
the constant luminance principle!
This camera, the EMI 2001, became known as the cameraman's
camera and was bought in very large quantities by British broadcasters,
and enabled the UK to enter colour television with very few problems.

1972 Elvis Presley
1973 achieves a global
Sterling Manhattan Cable launches audience in excess
the first pay-TV network: Home Box of one billion
Office, now just HBO people with his
show Aloha from
12 Hawaii, distributed
by satellite

IBC at 50

Lord Hill opening IBC 1967 The world of IBC – and the commercial world in general – was
a completely new experience for me. I had done an engineering
David MacGregor – the only person believed to have attended every apprenticeship with EMI. After the apprenticeship the company asked
single IBC to date – was at the time an EMI engineer, and takes up the me what I wanted to do, and I could say with confidence I wanted to do
television. The EMI personnel people did not know the company had a
“story: television division!
I had been working on the design of an encoder, and the week
before IBC in 1967 I had to get a prototype board working so we At that first IBC I met people who would be important in my career,
could get PAL out of the camera. That meant I was volunteered people like Bob Simmons of ABC (who offered me a job), legendary
to go and help with the build-up. broadcast engineer Phil Parker, and John Wilson who at the time was
The EMI stand at IBC was a studio floor with a control room. This was thinking about starting Prowest, and who of course became pivotal in
operated by staff from what was then ABC. One of the cameraman was the IBC story.
Mike Solomons, who many will remember from his second career as a
toastmaster, complete with his magnificent moustache. IBC in 1967 was opened by Lord Hill of Luton, then Chairman of the Board
ABC wanted to rehearse during the day, so engineers had to work all of Governors of the BBC. There were 30 exhibitors, 40 technical papers
night. That included changing the prism blocks in one of the cameras. and about 550 delegates from 24 countries. Networking opportunities
included a cocktail party and a convention dinner.

Full registration cost £8 (a bargain £174 in 2017 prices) and, despite
the uncertainties of a first venture, it returned a surplus of £371 1s 0d,
or a little over £8150 today.

This positive financial result was of some relief to the founders, as

“John Tucker recalled:
It became obvious to the few that neither the EEA nor the RTS
was in a position to underwrite the costs in the case of failure,
but clearly some means needed to be found to overcome this
very real problem.
In the event it was solved by three of my colleagues and I putting our
jobs at risk by providing the guarantees of our respective companies
to enable the EEA to commit itself. None of us were in any doubt as to
the action that would be taken by our respective chairmen if we failed!

Most important, it was a success in terms of bringing the industry
together, exchanging knowledge and enabling trade, and setting a clear
template for the future.

1975 IBC sees the latest open reel video
1976 tape recorders in B and C formats
The first home video recorders are
introduced. Rank Cintel introduces the 13
Mk III telecine, the first generally available
device to feature a digital framestore

IBC at 50

14 (Clockwise from top) Mike Cox discusses his products with
representatives of ITA at IBC in 1968; John Etheridge, John Tucker,
Peter Mothersole, Tony Lawes and Corny Webster find time for a
drink; a Bosch B-format VTR; John Tucker greets Earl Mountbatten of
Burma, who opened the second IBC

IBC at 50

Growth

In November 1967, following the success of the first IBC, there was
a meeting which brought together the IEE, IERE, IEEE, EEA and the
RTS. The IEE, IERE and IEEE had already announced their intention
to run an international television conference in 1968, and it seemed
foolish to try to compete.

“Sensibly, co-operation was agreed. John Tucker recalled:
It was agreed that the IEE Conference Department should act as
secretariat and organise the conference part of the convention, and
the EEA should remain responsible for organising the exhibition.
This situation obtained until after IBC1978 when the EEA, while wishing
to remain a sponsor, decided that they no longer were able to organise
the exhibition. So from IBC1980 the IEE Conference Department acted
as secretariat for the whole convention.

The discussions also saw the formation of a management committee for

“IBC, with Tom Mayer its first Chair. John Tucker again:
While we used the services of the IEE Conference Department
on a fee-paying basis, the management committee had the sole
responsibility for planning and implementing the policies of IBC.
The management committee is served by sub-committees formed
for finance, technical programme, exhibition and (from 1984) an awards
panel.

The aim of IBC from day one was to provide an international forum for
everyone with interests in the wide field of broadcasting: to discuss the
latest technology and to provide a showcase where new products could
be seen and understood.

1978 The Neimann-Marcus Christmas catalogue
1979 features, on the cover, a home satellite television
receiver – with a six metre dish!

IBC is held at Wembley NTT in Japan
Conference Centre in launches the
north London world’s first
cellular telephone
IBC at 50 service

15

(Clockwise from top left) The Duke of Kent
watches a camera demonstration; an early
Sony home video recording system; Peter
Owen; David Wood (centre) gesturing as he
edits the first teletext magazine; John Ware
(right) with Tom Bridgewater

David Wood, an IBC stalwart who started his career with the UK’s Thus it was that the first live teletext magazines in the standardised
Independent Broadcasting Authority (IBA) before moving on to the format were broadcast during IBC in 1974. I myself was charged with
writing and editing the IBA magazine called Oracle. The BBC started
“European Broadcasting Union (EBU), posed a question: their permanent service Ceefax in 1974; two great engineers, Norman
How important has IBC been in the story of broadcasting? Even Green and John Hedger, took forward ITV’s teletext service magnificently
in its early years, IBC was the canvas on which its history has in 1975.
been writ.
One example is teletext. We can argue about who invented teletext, Even then, the place to come to hear of and witness the birth of key
but the trigger point was a widely-read paper by Peter Hutt of the IBA at developments in broadcasting was IBC.
IBC in 1972, saying that the unused part of the PAL TV signal (the VBI)
could be used for providing a kind of broadcast newspaper. Later in the While IBC was making its mark on the world, there were other international
year, the BBC demonstrated a simulated system of this kind on the TV forums. NAB, in March or April each year, is aimed largely at North
show “Tomorrow’s World”. America. In the 1960s, though, an event had been initiated in the Swiss
In 1973 and 74 – thank heavens – the BBC and IBA worked together resort town of Montreux, with a plan to be biennial in the odd-numbered
with industry on a common specification, which was agreed in April years.
1974. But where to unleash it on the world? There was only one answer.
It had to be live broadcasting at IBC in 1974. This was the one place Respecting the Swiss event, the new management committee,
opinion formers would come and be stunned. Both the IBA and BBC therefore, decided that the second IBC should take place in 1968, and
showed the technology. that thereafter it should alternate with Montreux, taking place in even-
numbered years.

1980 The IBM PC is
1981 launched: its

maximum memory
specification is
640 kilobytes

IBC moves to Brighton on the south coast MTV goes on air
of England, its home for six editions
BBC, working with Vinten, develops the first IBC at 50
robotic camera operations

16



How important has IBC been in the story of broadcasting? Even in its

“ ”early years, IBC was the canvas on which its history has been writ.

For the second IBC, the committee moved a short distance to the In his 1984 article, John Tucker set out his formula for what makes a
other side of Hyde Park in London, and Grosvenor House, because it
gave room for the exhibition to expand while delivering all the services “good venue:
required. IBC ideally requires exhibition space with easy access for loading
and unloading; lecture halls; press office; authors’ briefing room;
Mike Cox made a point on the move to Grosvenor House which audio-visual control room; and a hotel environment providing bars,
restaurants and hospitality suites, all under one roof.
“shows how things have changed in the intervening decades: In addition, an outside exhibit area for OB vans, satellite dishes etc.
Parking was reasonable, at least in the side streets off Park in the immediate vicinity of the exhibition areas. Adjacent car parking
Lane facilities. First class hotel accommodation and restaurant facilities within
walking distance are all required for the convenience of the participants.
It is unlikely that anyone would choose a central London venue today on
the basis of the ready availability of parking for cars and trucks! Then, as To those requirements we might reasonably add good air conditioning to
cope with the heat generated by a lot of equipment and, indeed, adequate
“Cox describes, it was a very useful consideration. power supplies to serve all the demonstrations. Today we would also
By 1972 we had added a vision mixer to our range of products. expect a huge capacity for high-speed data connections.
Dave Bryan and I finished the mixer off before lunch on Sunday.
We went and had lunch, then came back to the plant and But it is clear that, for the events of the time, the first ever IBC
performed a line-up. management committee had got their priorities well defined.
We then took it to Grosvenor House and installed it on our stand,
ready for the formal opening on Monday morning, The move to Grosvenor House in 1968 saw a modest increase in IBC:
747 delegates (550 in 1967) and 49 exhibitors (up from 30). Perhaps
Even in those early days, vendors quickly recognised that the exhibition most significantly, the first IBC had seen 40 technical papers over three
needed a dash of style. This was no ordinary technology show: it was days: in 1968 it was 100 papers over five days.
television, and needed to be eye-catching. We have already seen that
the very first IBC featured at least one complete studio operation. David By 1976 IBC was attracting 2,280 delegates (not including exhibitors)
from a remarkable 62 countries, to see the products of 72 companies.
“MacGregor recalled another stand: It was rapidly outgrowing a central London hotel, and a better solution
Those years were memorable for the entertainment provided by was urgently needed.
Crow of Reading, the agents for Barco who made the first reliable
colour monitors. Corny Webster [Cornelius Roy Osborne Webster: For 1978 the event moved to the Wembley Conference Centre, but
hence Crow] used to have live entertainment like a jazz band on the stand. for many reasons this was not the right venue for IBC and proved no
more than a stop-gap. Wembley was popular with neither exhibitors nor
delegates. A better solution had to be found.

1982 In the UK Channel 4 The tenth IBC is marked by the
1984goes on air, the first inauguration of an awards programme.
broadcaster to use The first winner is Dr Geoffrey Philips of
automated playout BBC, for 30 years’ work in efficient use
of the radio spectrum

Sony launches Trials of stereo sound for television Apple launches the Mac
the Betacam format start, including The Tonight Show
with Johnny Carson on NBC

18 IBC at 50

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STAND 10.B41

20 (Clockwise from top) Sony moves to the beach in Brighton; an early
software product; IBC Reception in the Corn Exchange in Brighton;
the outside exhibits in Brighton; Maggie Etheridge (left) and Noreen
Tucker with writer, broadcaster and Brighton resident Alan Melville, a
guest of the Ladies’ Programme as it was then called

IBC at 50

Brighton

IBC had outgrown the available venues The decision-making process is recalled by John Holton,
in and around London. A major move who first came into contact with IBC in 1972 when a young
was required. But where offered the engineer at Aston Electronic Developments. He went on to
right combination of larger exhibition become a key figure in IBC’s growth, including an extended
space, conference rooms and local
accommodation and networking “period as Chair of the Exhibition Committee:
venues? The IBC management team, headed by the three Johns (Etheridge,
Tucker and Ware) had to find a larger venue, and quickly.
The pubs in Brighton were They looked at the National Exhibition Centre in Birmingham
with its 100,000 square metres of exhibition space, but this was rejected
“great, as were the places to eat – because the technical programme would have had to be held in The
”and oh what fun we had. Metropole Hotel – a seven minute walk away. The lack of hotels in the
immediate area was another point taken into consideration.
Earls Court and Olympia in London were also considered, but rejected
on the grounds that they lacked adequate outside exhibition space,
had poor off air reception and, most important, there was nowhere to
accommodate the technical programme.
Other possible venues considered were The Barbican in London,
Bournemouth, Harrogate and Manchester.

It came down to John Tucker’s careful list of requirements. The venue
that best matched was the Metropole Hotel in Brighton. It became IBC’s
home from 1980 to 1990.

Perhaps it is more correct to say that it became the hub of IBC’s
presence in Brighton. The exhibition space in the Metropole was quickly
outgrown, and the event spread to the adjacent Grand Hotel and, just
another block along the seafront, the Brighton Conference Centre. The
exhibition and conference was not under one roof, but they were very
short walks away.

The walks, though, could be problematic. Brighton is a popular seaside
resort on the south coast of England, but the weather in September could
vary wildly. In 1982, for example, IBC took place in one of the hottest
September weeks the UK had ever seen, resulting in the Metropole’s air
conditioning system being completely overwhelmed.

1986 Texas Instruments develops the DLP chip,
1987 enabling the modern digital projector
The IBC Council
is formed 21

Sony demonstrates
the first digital
video recorder,

the DVR-1000, at IBC

IBC at 50

(From left) Tony Lawes, John Wilson, John Tucker, Noreen Tucker and The subjects for discussion at all the management committee
John Ware debate over lunch meetings included the air conditioning, lack of space (no surprise there),
the search for larger premises in the UK or elsewhere in Europe, and the
In response, IBC took a course which has come to be part of its champagne for the champagne reception – John Ware was put in charge
standard practices today: it called in experts. A consultancy was of the champagne and his final choice came after hours of tasting and
appointed to work with the venue on ensuring the problems did not recur. dedication to duty on his part!

In other years, very different weather could be the cause of the Great characters from within the industry emerged, such as Corny
problems. Over the years Dick Hobbs has been an IBC exhibitor, visitor Webster, who would hold court in the Grand Hotel throughout the day,
distributing large amounts of advice and gin to whoever took the time to
“and part of the support team. He recalled: visit him. Another great character was Derek Henry, a Brit from Canada
My first IBC as an exhibitor – I had visited before – was in Brighton who, like Corny, would hold court, in the Hole in the Wall pub, conveniently
in 1986. Our stand was in the Metropole; I was staying in the Old located next to the exhibition halls.
Ship Hotel, maybe 400 metres down the seafront.
The challenge was the wind, blowing at high speed from the east. One of the attractions of the Brighton Metropole as the IBC base was
It felt like I was at 45˚ as I tried to push my way back to the hotel at the that, just across the road, the outside exhibits could be parked along
end of the day. the lower promenade, making an ideal display space and giving a clear
view of the southern sky for those with satellite dishes.
Weather worries aside, the feeling was that IBC suited Brighton.
Given that networking is an important part of IBC’s overall appeal, the Paul Kafno was a director and producer, whose first IBC experience
atmosphere of the eclectic, inclusive town was an important part of the
appeal. According to John Holton: “was in the Brighton era:
I had my first glimpse of IBC while working at Thames TV. I had
The pubs in Brighton were great, as were the places to eat – and to go down from London to edit a high definition programmes
oh what fun we had. in the ITV HD scanner, which had somehow got itself parked on
the Brighton sea front. It seemed an unusual place to leave a production
Holton was invited to join the management committee: truck.
Night Music was ITV’s first HD production, to show the virtues of
“My role was to ensure that adequate equipment and personnel this bright, clear new widescreen way to make television. There does
were made available for the conference information TV channel, not seem anything remarkable about HD now, but then, when viewers
which, if my memory serves me correctly, used Aston’s range of had small 4:3 cathode ray sets, it was the bleeding edge of technology.
Editing analogue HD was not for the faint hearted, and occasionally
“teletext encoders and decoders. strong words were uttered. I remember opening the door to recover
composure by looking at the sea and listening to gulls when I spotted a
banner advertising IBC. What was that? Work over, I blagged my way
into the hall and saw an Aladdin’s cave of TV equipment.

HD played a big part in IBC in the Brighton years. Perhaps inevitably,
some of those debates were about standards and formats, and IBC

“certainly played its part in resolving potential conflicts. David Wood:
Another area of historic contribution by IBC is the HD-MAC story.
In the mid 1980s there was a tense standards battle. The US,
and particularly CBS, wanted all the world to use a 60Hz HDTV
standard, and were using tactics to get what they wanted that were not
exactly cricket.

1988
1989
Avid introduces the concept of the Sky launches its first direct to home
non-linear editor satellite service, in the UK, using the
analogue D-MAC format
Thomas and John
Knoll develop IBC at 50

picture editing
software they call

Photoshop

22

Legendary engineer Phil Parker networking with John Ware Artist David Hockney working with a Quantel Paintbox

To avoid the broadcasters’ claimed “one million dollars per converter” While the planning was being carried out we asked the Brighton Council
bill, the 50Hz world got together in a large project, termed HD-MAC officials what was the highest ever tide mark they had experienced, and
(high definition multiplexed analogue components). 75% of the world then the pavilion was built a reasonable distance up the beach from
uses 50Hz. that mark.

“Norman Green takes up the story: Well, a couple of days before the opening of IBC there was a extremely
There were 12 working groups covering every aspect of HDTV, bad storm that went on for days, with high winds and horizontal rain and
plus a production chain group which would mount demonstrations at each tide the water came closer and closer to the pavilion! Luckily
at various exhibitions, conferences and high-profile meetings. The the sea never actually entered the pavilion but it was lapping at the
first real demonstration would be at IBC in Brighton in 1988: the time to foundations - it was a very close run situation! The weather changed
achieve this target was extremely short. on the Monday of IBC, the storm subsided, the sun came out and the
As exhibition space was limited at The Metropole Hotel it was decided afternoon demonstrations to representatives of the European Union,
that a huge pavilion would be built on the beach to accommodate a British and European MPs and other opinion formers of the time where
demonstration theatre and displays of all the specially designed HDTV done without any problems!
equipment including HD-MAC coding and decoding, and direct
broadcasting satellite transmission. To one side of the pavilion was a large Although little of that pioneering technology is used today, it established
concrete area attached to the lower promenade on which the various the principle that 50Hz and 60Hz HD systems could co-exist, opening
OB units were parked. the way to the global transition to bigger, brighter pictures that has proved
The BBC had a one camera recording truck which contained a so popular with consumers.
Quadriga, a recording device using four digital 625 line VTR's each
recording a quarter of the 1250 line picture. The ITV HDTV production It was not just special projects which needed to move to the beach.
unit had two Bosch 1250 line analogue recorders in it along with two By 1990 IBC had far outgrown Brighton, to the extent that Sony took the
cameras, a caption camera, slide scanner and a telecine. It was from here decision to risk the incoming tides and build a huge pavilion on the beach.
that the demonstration programmes were put together for transmission. It commissioned students from the local art college to decorate the
underpasses between the hotels and the beach: enraged local authority
workers who had not been told of the plans thought they were creating
graffiti on a grand scale.

The pavilion solved the problem for one year but it was not a
sustainable solution. The next step, though, required a lot of political as
well as practical effort.

1990 Finnish student
1991 Linus Torvalds
The IBC conference includes a paper on digital television to builds, as a hobby,
the home, the first full-scale discussion of advanced an operating
compression and COFDM to transform broadcasting system for his
Intel PC, which
Tim Berners-Lee, SMPTE standardises he calls Linux
a researcher at CERN the SDI serial digital
in Geneva, proposes interface 23

the principles
behind the World

Wide Web

IBC at 50

Centre left Mike Cox and John Holton taking a break; IBC at 50
Centre right IBC TV was another of the innovations introduced as the event moved to Amsterdam

24

Amsterdam

AND THE NEW ORGANISATION

IBC had been founded in 1967, by the “David MacGregor remembered offering his services:
industry, for the industry. In fact, it had IBC had a small management committee, led by John Etheridge,
been founded by the UK industry: the John Tucker and Tom Mayer. Even when we went to Brighton, the
leading lights in the early days were organisation of the exhibition was largely done by John Etheridge.
John Tucker of EMI, John Etheridge of I asked him if he wanted a hand, but he knew everything about the IBC
Rank, Tom Mayer of Marconi and John exhibition, and he was happy like that.
Ware of the Royal Television Society.
When John Etheridge died in 2001, John Tucker wrote in his obituary in
Their aim was not parochial in any way. That first event attracted
visitors from 24 countries, and by as early as 1982 it had “the Journal of the Royal Television Society that he
a global reach of 60 countries. From the first it was the …went on to organise every IBC Exhibition until 1992. After he
International Broadcasting Convention. gave up the chairmanship of the IBC Exhibition Committee he
But its development, from London hotels to Wembley and then to became treasurer, a position he held until he died. John was
Brighton, had been driven by largely UK-based committees, supported always so supportive of his colleagues and helpful to exhibitors who
by a secretariat at a UK-based professional body, the IEE. remember his ability to get a quart into a pint pot, particularly in Brighton.

Indeed, much of the organisation was undertaken directly by those IBC’s reputation as the leading place to discuss the latest in technology,
on a global level, meant that it needed to expand further. It needed a
“keen initiators of the event. John Tucker recalled in 1984: new home, and it needed a heavyweight administrative team to guide
I sometimes wonder why we give up no small amount of our time its future.
to IBC – it is, I think, because we like to serve the industry in which
we work. “Rubbish,” says John Etheridge (Chairman of each IBC At this point in the story we need to introduce another John: John
Exhibition Committee since 1967): “we are masochists, all of us!” Wilson. He did a graduate apprenticeship with EMI in the 1950s, where
he developed rare skills with the latest in technology: the transistor. He
spent two years as a ground radar signals officer in the Royal Air Force,
before returning to EMI and its television division.

In 1965 he was instrumental in starting a new company, Prowest
Electronics, to develop and market transistorised studio monitors and
other broadcast hardware. Prowest was one of the exhibitors at the first
IBC in 1967, and John Wilson visited, recognising it as a vital showcase
for technology.

1992
1993
IBC moves to Amsterdam. For one year only it is The Moving Picture Experts Group – better
held in July to avoid a clash of dates known as MPEG – publishes its first
standard
The IBC Award is renamed in honour of John Digital Betacam is launched
Tucker, one of the event’s founders. Added to
the awards programme are honours for the best 25
stand design, named the John Etheridge
Awards, after another of the founders

IBC at 50

John Wilson The RAI had excellent conference facilities alongside 11 exhibition
halls, giving IBC room to expand. The city provided a selection of hotels
From technical development he moved into sales at Prowest, before at all levels, and perhaps most important it offered a convivial atmosphere.
becoming sales director at Link Electronics. While there he developed
a new line of business in large-scale electronic displays and projection, The locals, recognising that few outsiders speak Dutch, are all
which he span out into a new company, Anna Valley (named after his comfortable with several European languages. The airport is one of
beloved home village in Hampshire), taking the role of Managing Director. Europe’s largest hubs, with direct passenger and freight services to all
parts of the globe. All in all, Amsterdam was an ideal choice.
In 1980 the Royal Television Society asked him to act as its
representative on the management committee of IBC, the start of an The idea, though, had to be sold to the rest of the IBC organisation, to
association that lasted 25 years. It largely fell to John Wilson to create IEE which provided the secretariat, and most important to the exhibitors
the new IBC. who held the power to make or break the move. It all called for diplomacy
of the highest order.
John Tucker’s original founding principles of IBC – that it should be a
concurrent exhibition and professional conference under a single roof, John Wilson, from his work with Prowest, Link and Anna Valley, had
with sufficient hotels and restaurants near the venue to ensure the most developed a remarkable list of contacts around the world. He was also
was made of networking opportunities – was stretched to breaking point famous for his quiet, courteous manner which nonetheless was matched
in Brighton. 10 years previously they had looked at all other UK venues with a clear vision of what needed to be achieved. Supported by the
and found nothing else suitable. Repeating the exercise in 1990 achieved committees of IBC, he drove forward the move to Amsterdam.
exactly the same result.
The one slight hitch was that the RAI was not available for IBC’s usual
Moving the event outside the UK had significant ramifications. But September dates in 1992, the year of the move to Amsterdam. For one
Wilson, by now the Chair of the Management Committee, was convinced year only IBC took place in very balmy weather in July, making strolling
that it was the only solution. He led a team to review the options, and between bars and restaurants in the evenings an absolute delight, but
found a warm reception in Amsterdam, both in its large convention centre, causing some concern around the RAI’s air conditioning, a perennial
the RAI, and from the city itself. issue.

One of the key figures who made the move to Amsterdam much less
painful than it might have been was the new Chairman of the Exhibition
Committee: a Dutchman. Bob van der Leeden started his career with
Dutch broadcaster NOS straight from university, before moving to
Ampex’s European operations, based in the UK. After his sadly early
death in 2005, Dick Hobbs wrote in an obituary for Broadcast Hardware

“magazine:
He was one of the founding fathers of the International Association
of Broadcasting Manufacturers, and I first met him in that context
when I was invited to sit on a couple of IABM committees. I
soon found that his urbane manner and always impeccable appearance
masked both a steely determination and a sharp sense of humour.
His IABM work, and his Dutch background, inevitably led him to
the Chair of the IBC Exhibition Committee, masterminding the move to
Amsterdam. It is easy to forget now that IBC is such a smooth operation
that in 1992 the RAI Centre did not know what had hit it when IBC first
moved in. It was largely down to Bob’s skills – including, I suspect, the
very occasional burst of some strong Dutch – that made it a success
from day one.

IBC reverts to September, in its new home of the RAI in
Amsterdam, and becomes an annual event
1994 Canal Plus transmits DVB format
1995The Winter Olympics digital broadcasting over satellite
from Lillehammer in Sony launches the
Norway are covered Playstation, creating a new Sergey Brin is assigned to show
in HD, using the category of media business: potential student Larry Page
recently agreed gaming around Stanford University. They
1080 line form a partnership to develop a
format web search engine which they call
Backrub, later renaming it Google
26
IBC at 50

Have a look at bluebell.tv
or contact your local agent.

Bluebell Opticom would like to
extend a sincere vote of thanks to all
Directors, Managers and Staff, past
and present, at IBC.

Throughout our twenty three years Within a few years it was
of business the IBC Exhibition has mainstream. With the support
been instrumental in the success of of the IBC organisation, we
Bluebell. It is one of the few shows were able to showcase our
from which tangible, attributable equipment to the wider world
results can be recognised. and so build something we are
all very proud of.
Congratulations on 50
Years Celebrations. Our first products were 270Mb/s
SDI Fibre Optic Interfaces, simple
I am not quite old enough to in today’s terms, but leading edge
remember the early IBC Exhibitions then. From small acorns…!
in London, but I do remember all We now have a vast array of
the shows in Brighton. interface products that cover
just about every format of signal
Technology has changed, times in the broadcast arena. From
have changed and a lot of the Multiplexed Multichannel Analogue
people have changed too, but IBC Audio, right up to 12G-SDI and
has always been able to adapt and beyond. We have a whole suite
cater for emerging technologies. of Camera Back and Robotic
Camera interfaces. We offer IP
When Bluebell started, fibre based product and 10G Ethernet
optics and its application to platforms for file based transport
broadcast was almost of academic too. It’s been a big, long journey.
interest. At our very first show the
memorable comment was “Oh,
that’s clever..!”.

Happy 50th Birthday IBC

Paul Felix McCann
Bluebell Opticom Ltd

Stand Number: 10.F24

The general feeling was that Montreux was a great place for a

“ ”conference, but a completely impractical place for an exhibition.
Bob van der Leeden “Not everyone was in agreement. David Wood’s memory is:
I was a member of the IBC management committee at the time,
“David MacGregor added: and, as I recall, I was one of the two committee members who
When Bob took over, he built up what is now the IBC exhibition voted against going annual.
committee. I got involved then, sorting out the details when the I could see that the broadcast equipment manufacturers had a clear
big decision had been made. interest in IBC going annual. The situation regarding the then alternate
The next significant change in IBC was the decision to become an annual year Montreux Television Symposium was impossible. The industry was
event. By little more than a gentlemen’s agreement, since 1968 IBC had growing, and had well surpassed the capacity of the Montreux exhibition
been staged in even numbered years, alternating with the International facilities.
Television Symposium in Montreux, in Switzerland. But my pre-occupation on that day was the IBC Conference, which
The Symposium was organised by the city of Montreux itself, which I saw as the jewel in the IBC crown. I really doubted that the very high
tied the event to the beautiful city by the lake. But as IBC found with standard of IBC papers could be maintained if the conference was held
Brighton, the expansion of the industry meant it needed a bigger home. every year instead of every two years. This was why I voted against going
annual: respect for the conference.
“Peter Owen, long-time Chairman of the IBC Council, said: Time has shown that I was very wrong. If you look at the conference
The general feeling was that Montreux was a great place for a today, you can see that such is the huge number of fine papers submitted,
conference, but a completely impractical place for an exhibition. the conference could easily be held every six months – maybe someday
The IABM, representing the manufacturers, was particularly vocal. it will be?
IBC recognised it had to service its exhibitors – we had to provide a
better experience. Under John Wilson’s leadership, IBC took the decisive step to move to
an annual event, the first odd-year event happening in 1995.

But there was one more major change which needed the Wilson
touch. He had found solutions to deliver the market presence which
the exhibitors needed, and to provide excellent, professional venues for
the growing conference programme. The final stage was to provide a
dedicated organisation to manage the event, to plan for its growth and
to ensure consistently high standards in everything IBC does.

By this time there were five trade and professional bodies which had
strong associations with IBC: the manufacturers’ group IABM, IEEE,
RTS, SCTE and SMPTE. A sixth body, IEE, had traditionally provided
the secretariat and organisational support. IEE is now IET, following its
merger with the IIE in 2006.

HD broadcasts start in the USA

Profile, the first practical video
server, is launched
1996 The HDCam digital video recording
1997Reflecting the move format is introduced
to widescreen
television, IBC IBC at 50
initiates the Nombre
d’Or Awards. Golden
Rembrandts are
presented to
programmes which
make good use of
the 16:9 aspect ratio

28

IBC HITS YEARS
GOLD!

For 50 golden years, IBC has been part of our history.
In this special place, where technology is king, a
community of like-minded friends, old and new,
come together to further the industry.

IBC has helped us at MKM Marketing
Communications and our clients to engage
with the people that matter, year after
year. So thank you and here’s to the
next half a century!

John and his team proposed a structure in which all six bodies were John Wilson was Chair of the IBC Management Committee from 1991
partners in a new and independent IBC. The key to this is that the efforts to 1998, delivering the complete programme of change. He was then
required from the stakeholders were balanced by a share in the rewards. appointed to the unique role of President of IBC, but that certainly did
not mean an easy retirement: he remained a very visible presence year-
Many people were involved in these negotiations, but its success was round in the life of IBC, right up to his death in 2014, at the age of 81.
due in very large measure to John’s skills, contacts, and vision, not to
mention his seemingly indefatigable capacity for travel to talk to sponsors, He left an IBC run by an extremely professional staff based in its London
exhibitors and visitors. He made it work through his softly-spoken charm. offices, but retaining the essential DNA of being run by the industry, for the
industry. The board of the company is made up of representatives from
“David MacGregor said: the six professional and trade bodies; the exhibition and conference are
John Wilson was always the perfect gentleman who in his own guided by committees made up of people who are actively involved in
quiet way worked extremely hard for the benefit of IBC and the the media business; and there is an IBC Council which provides global
broadcast industry in general. His chairmanship transformed IBC strategic advice and direction.
into the well-drilled organisation it is today.
IBC now routinely overflows the space available, calling for some
“Professor David Crawford added: inventive solutions from the IBC team. It works in close collaboration with
John was never too busy to give his time to show an interest, the RAI organisation to ensure that there is room for every exhibitor and
and help someone feel good about their individual contribution every visitor is made to feel welcome.
to IBC. A gentleman leader with a gift to motivate.
To put that in context, in 1967 IBC had 30 exhibitors and about 550
delegates. In 2016 there were almost 56,000 visitors from over 170
countries, with more than 1,700 exhibitors in 15 halls.

Saehan Information Systems launches a
personal audio player using MPEG-1 audio

coding level 3, better known as MP3. It
predates the iPod by three years

The awards presentation becomes the
Sunday Spectacular, a lavish variety

show. The first Sunday Spectacular
features tenor Russell
Watson and pop singer
Louise
1998 Toy Story 2
1999 becomes the first
major movie to be
released in digital
as well as film
formats

30 IBC at 50

Bookings: +44 (0) 20 8166 5629

IBC Council

IBC was founded by members “David Wood introduces the thinking behind the IBC Council:
of the industry, and it has always One day in 1986 I had a telephone call from John Tucker who,
endeavoured to be run by the industry among his other IBC tasks, was then responsible for managing
for the industry. One important part of a group of IBC international fans and notables called the “IBC
this structure is the IBC Council. corresponding members”.
John wanted to create an IBC group more meaningful and useful. He
We searched the world knew that I was a member of the EBU, WBU, MPEG, ITU – and more
too numerous to mention – so he asked if we could work together on it.
“for the top people, and I think The idea was to invite the most senior and influential managers from
”largely we found them. companies critical for broadcasting to form a sort of IBC club. There
would be rotation, and members might stay for about three years.
They would all gain from the networking, but at the same time they
would carry the IBC message to their companies and all their staff while
in positions of authority, encouraging them to come to IBC, take stands
and submit contributions. We searched the world for the top people, and
I think largely we found them.
We brought together members of this new IBC Council for meetings
outside and well before IBC itself. We talked through key topics for the
conference, and shared knowledge and ideas. For example, at a meeting
we held in Monaco, the idea for a European Digital Cinema Forum was
formed, which is still active today and closely involved in IBC.

The IBC Council is also very much still active today, and it remains one
of the most important ways that the event stays close to the industry it

“serves. Naomi Climer took over as Chair of the IBC Council in 2016:
The membership of the council covers traditional broadcasters and
equipment suppliers as well as newer entrants into the industry.
They are working at very senior levels, significantly influencing the
quality of IBC’s vision and direction.
At our full meetings, the agenda includes a discussion to gather the
vision of these senior players. This discussion is used to support the
strategic direction of IBC, and to gain feedback on IBC plans presented.

2000 The John Tucker Award
2001 becomes the IBC
IBC reflects the importance of digital International Honour for
out-of-home entertainment with the IBC Big Excellence. First recipient is
Screen: screenings and presentations in a Roderick Snell
state of the art digital cinema, alongside a
dedicated day in the conference IBC at 50

32

2345

1

As well as sharing their vision and thought leadership, they are a

useful source of connections and influence to potential speakers for the

conference, and a valuable source of ad hoc advice to all those working

on IBC. This is a prestigious and unique network of key players from the 6 7 8

broadcast, media and entertainment industries – it is a privilege for IBC

to have access to this loyal and engaged group.

While the Council meets formally twice a year (at NAB as well as at 9 10 11
IBC) its membership is in constant communication, sharing ideas and
providing opinions. There are 15 to 20 members of the Council, serving
up to three years. One third of members will be new each year, allowing
IBC to identify important new areas in the world of electronic media and
bring in different specialists whenever needed.

Currently, the members of the IBC Council are: 12 13 14
1. Naomi Climer 15 16
2. Gavin Mann, Accenture
3. Mohamed Abuagla, Al Jazeera
4. Franz Kraus, Arri
5. Leah Holding, Babcock International
6. Matthew Postgate, BBC
7. Michelle Munson, Co-founder, Aspera
8. Ingrid Silver, Dentons
9. John Honeycutt, Discovery Communications
10. Pat Griffis, Dolby
11. Simon Fell, EBU
12. Richard Friedel, Fox Networks
13. Shane Peros, Google
14. Chris Fetner, Netflix
15. Akihiko Chigono, NHK
16. Neil Maycock, SAM
17. Liliana Nakonechnyj, SET
18. Elaine Bucknor, Sky.

In addition, the IBC CEO, IBC Board Members and Committee Chairs are 17 18
permanent affiliated members of the IBC Council.

2004 Employees at PayPal develop a video
2005 sharing website called YouTube
HD broadcasts start in Europe

IBC at 50 33

34 (Clockwise from top) NASA presented a keynote session in 2016; The IBC
Leaders’ Summit, with guest host Andrew Neil; a session at the first IBC
Conference; musician and technology advocate will.i.am gave a keynote at
IBC2012; Professor Brian Cox talks to Ray Snoddy

IBC at 50

Conference

From the very beginning, IBC The Chairman’s Award is now known as the Best Conference Paper
incorporated a conference which was Award, and it is still presented each year, as part of the glamorous Awards
tightly integrated into the event. It Ceremony on Sunday night, to the most informative and most clearly
rapidly developed a reputation for being presented paper in the technical conference.
the place where the latest technology
was unveiled. Today the conference is much more broadly based, with a rich, multi-
threaded programme designed to appeal to commercial and creative
“Norman Green nominates his highlight: people as well as engineers. Alongside researchers developing ground-
Probably the most significant IBC in its 50 year history was in breaking technologies, like the paper Norman Green remembered, there
Brighton in 1990. It was here that lBA engineers Arthur Mason, are presentations from speakers as diverse as Carlos Frontera, Nasa’s
Gordon Drury and Nick Lodge presented a paper on “Digital Head of imaging; the academic and broadcaster Professor Brian Cox;
Television to the Home – When Will it Come?” The paper spelt out the and, in a memorable 2016 session, Director Ang Lee.
way to get additional channels into the UHF bands using advanced
compression and COFDM. The project had the acronym SPECTRE: Alongside the main conference programme there are other, specialised
Special Purpose Extra Channels for Terrestrial Radio-Communications programmes.
Enhancements.
The IBC Leaders’ Summit is a “behind closed doors” event for media
This was clearly a highly technical paper, and at first that was the sole company CEOs, where they can discuss freely the key issues affecting
focus of the conference. But, as one-time conference chair Chris Dalton the industry. At the other end of the career path, IBC Rising Stars brings
says, the programme was expanded to engage a broader range of the newest members of the industry into the IBC community, appealing
to students and those just entering into employment and giving them
“opinion-formers: guidance on their personal development as well as the latest technical
I took over as conference chairman from Ray Hills after the 1997 and creative trends.
conference, with the idea of making the conference more friendly
and casual, and to try to remove some of the “senior engineer/ IBC also adds value to the attendance of all visitors through free
executive” emphasis. I wanted to encourage the bright young things to conference sessions and presentations on the show floor, in dedicated
give papers and take part in discussions. I also introduced the Chairman’s theatres linked to current hot topics in the industry.
Award for the best paper in an attempt to encourage contributions.
Linked to the conference is the IBC Future Zone. Originally conceived
as a way of presenting the reality of some of the ideas being discussed as
new research in the conference, the IBC Future Zone invites researchers
– particularly from academia – to bring their work in progress.

Often the demonstrations are crude, but the fascination lies in being
able to talk to the people who are doing original research and are proud
of how far they have got. The IBC Future Zone takes a prominent place on
the show floor, inviting visitors to spot which will be the hot new products
in IBC two, five or more years hence.

2007 The iPhone is In a world first, IBC is linked over
2008launched, at first a live, high definition, stereoscopic
only on one
network in the USA 3D link to Hollywood to interview
Jeffrey Katzenberg as part
IBC at 50 of the Awards Ceremony

The NHK Super Hi-Vision 8k system
is demonstrated at IBC, including a

live link over fibre from a camera
opposite the Tower of London

35

“ ”Every lecture or event is an important moment for the speaker
While the conference committee works tirelessly to maintain the The very nature of IBC is that we are in the business of showing the very

integrity and the quality of its comprehensive programme, behind the latest in display technology, so the conference facilities have to keep up

scenes a technical team has had to support an ever-increasing set of with the cutting edge. Phil White is now in charge of provisioning systems

technical requirements. which would serve a typical broadcast station, with multiple channels

Brian Scott, who took responsibility for technical facilities in the early of EVS servers hosting the content to be displayed in each room, and

“years, outlined the challenge. sophisticated projection for both video and slides available to speakers.
The task in the lecture rooms was very simple: lecturers must The jewel in the crown of the facilities is the transformation of the
be heard clearly by the audience and the visual aids must be of
the best possible quality. In the early years speakers were using Auditorium, RAI’s 1,700 seat theatre, into the IBC Big Screen, featuring
mainly slides plus, occasionally, an overhead projector and rarely a 16mm the absolute latest in projection and sound systems. This is Phil’s summary
or 35mm projector.
“of the 2016 installation:
In those days, the quality issues revolved around speakers bringing a box For the first time, the Auditorium featured a pair of Dolby Vision
of slides in from the damp outdoor atmosphere of Brighton and loading high dynamic range 6P laser-illuminated 4K projectors, with an
unrivalled projected contrast range of 1,000,000:1 and the ability
them into a Kodak Carousel. The warmth of the lecture theatre caused to support all of today’s DCI frame rates.
We also used a pair of Christie Mirage high frame rate 6P laser projectors,

condensation to rapidly settle on the slides, which eventually would “pop” which were fitted with nine modules each to give us the remarkably high

from the heat of the lamp, leaving the operator struggling with out of focus brightness of 28 foot Lamberts in Dolby 3D – approximately five times

slides and steam rising from the projector. brighter than a standard cinema set-up.

Brian Scott recalled another specific issue, from the year that IBC was To complete the picture-perfect image, Harkness Screens made for us

“at the Wembley Conference Centre: the 17 metre x 6.69 metre Matt Plus screen, designed to minimise moiré
The conference room was banana shaped, and it was not possible fringing and to allow excellent transmission from the speakers on stage.
to have the projector and screen where all the audience had a
clear view. It was a conference centre definitely not designed for Our audio set-up includes Dolby Atmos immersive audio. With the
IBC! We decided to use an electronic slide scanner and telecine, with 128 channel Cadac audio mixer, and 46 surround speakers as well as
massive line arrays behind the screen, it took six engineers six days to
rig, using more than a kilometre in speaker cabling alone.

viewing on a number of monitors placed so that all the audience had a All of that was stretched to the limit as – another first – we used the

good view. This was the best we could do, but it was certainly not ideal. 7th Sense Delta media server to play the 120 frames a second 4k 3D

IBC moved to Amsterdam at about the time that video projection demanded by Mr Ang Lee to preview clips from his latest work, Billy

developed to give the brightness and quality that was acceptable in the Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk.

conference rooms. High definition television meant we had to find ways

to project it, and ensure that the stereo or, in some cases, quadraphonic IBC takes pride in being able to showcase the latest developments in the

sound systems were provided. “conference without compromise. As Brian Scott put it,
In the lecture rooms the computer took over, and in a few years the use We have always been blessed by superb operational staff, who
always seem to be able to calm the speaker and sort out all their
of slides disappeared to be replaced by PowerPoint presentations. These problems. Every lecture or event is an important moment for the
were easier to deal with and became universally the speakers’ choice. speaker, and the IBC staff who deal with them are always patient and

first class at their job.

2010 The IBC Leaders’ Summit is
2011 added to the programme: a
Toy Story 3 is the first movie to be released behind closed doors meeting
with Dolby Surround 7.1 sound for C-level industry executives

36 IBC at 50

Complexity? It’s simple

´´CONGRATULATIONS ON YOUR
50TH ANNIVERSARY,´´

The Bridge Technologies Team, Stand 1.F68

Bridge Technologies creates advanced solutions for protecting service quality in the digital media and telecommunications
industries. The company’s award-winning monitoring/analysis systems, intelligent switchers and virtual environments help
deliver over 20,000 channels to more than 900 million subscribers in 94 countries. From head-end satellite ingress to
micro-analytics in the home network, Bridge Technologies o ers patented innovation and true end-to-end transparency.

www.bridgetech.tv

38 IBC at 50

Awards

On the occasion of the 10th IBC, in “Writing in 1984 to launch the first IBC Award, John Tucker wrote:
1984, the organisers felt that the time The management committee recommended that “some special
was right to acknowledge special and award should be considered”. This was readily accepted, and
unique services to broadcasting with an awards panel was set up under the chairmanship of Dr Boris
an award. Since then the programme Townsend to consider the subject.
has developed into the most respected Although IBC budgets for a break-even situation, we have over the
awards in the electronic media industry. years made modest surpluses (being prudent engineers), so we were able
to arrange for a cash sum of £2,500 (about £7300 today). The awards
(Clockwise from top) The IBC Awards Ceremony uses all the facilities committee then proposed that there should be something in addition
of the IBC Big Screen in the RAI Auditorium; John Tribe’s original to the cash: a trophy that should “be worked in glass and express the
IBC Award; Ang Lee on receiving the IBC International Honour for marriage between electronics and art”.
Excellence; Dr Takashi Fujio, known by many as “the father of HDTV”,
receiving the IBC Award in 1990; Sir David Attenborough with his IBC The original trophy was designed by John Tribe, a graphics designer at
International Honour for Excellence trophy LWT, then one of the broadcast franchise holders in the ITV network in
the UK. He used the golden section to symbolise the marriage between
technology and artistic creation.

“The terms of reference for that first award were
To recognise a significant contribution over any period of time, by
a person, or group of persons, to broadcasting research, design,
development, manufacture, operational practice or management,
without restriction as to nationality or country or residence, for outstanding
work which has not already been recognised by the presentation of
other awards.

The winner in 1984, recipient of the very first IBC Award, was Dr Geoffrey
Phillips, Head of the radio frequency group at BBC Research. He was
recognised for “his internationally acclaimed work over 30 years in
fostering the efficient use of the radio spectrum”.

In 1992 the IBC Award was renamed The John Tucker Award, in
honour of one of the event’s founders. At the same time, exhibition design
awards were added and named for John Etheridge. As we have seen,
Chris Dalton also added a prize for the best conference paper.

2012
2013
will.i.am – creative YouTube reports that 100 hours
innovation director for of content is added to its site
Intel as well as singer every minute. Today it is more
with Black Eyed Peas – than 300 hours every minute
gives a keynote address
to the IBC Conference 39

IBC at 50

More recently, IBC has developed a programme which encourages the (Left) Astronaut Kate Rubins, in the International Space Station,
practical application of the latest technology. The IBC Innovation Awards thanks IBC for the award to NASA; (above) Actor Amitabh Bachchan
are unique in not giving the prize to the manufacturer for producing a accepted an IBC Special Award to mark 100 years of Indian cinema
new device, but to the end user – the broadcaster or media company
– which brings together technology partners to create a neat solution The competition attracted some major talent. Some in the film world
to a real issue. hated the idea of HD but others were all in favour. One of the delights
was working with the great cinematographer Vittorio Storaro, famous
The John Tucker Award was IBC’s top prize. David Wood explains for many great films including those of Bernardo Bertolucci (he rang me
once asking if I would direct Tosca live from three locations in Rome – in
“that it was in the gift of the IBC Council: two days’ time!).
The other main job for the Council was to decide who should win
the IBC John Tucker award. Its purpose was to acknowledge Another time I got a phone call from a nice man who asked modestly
individuals who had really changed the broadcast industry by if I could tell him a bit about HD. Initially I didn’t get his name, but spent
technology. Because of my background, I thought this meant those who a pleasant hour on the phone before discovering that he was Freddie
were most responsible for the key technical standards for things like digital Young, cinematographer on “Lawrence of Arabia”.
television, satellite broadcasting, and MPEG compression.
John agreed. These were the kinds of people on the honour roll then. By the turn of the century widescreen content was universal, and the
We actively sought them out, looked at their records, and asked the Nombre d’Or Awards were allowed to reach the end of their natural
Council to vote on them. lives. Instead, what had been the IBC Award and the John Tucker Award
became the IBC International Honour for Excellence.
The electronic media world was changing, and as ever IBC was abreast
of it. In 1996 a new set of awards was added to the programme, aimed It remains the highest recognition that IBC bestows, but its scope has
not at technologists but at the creative world. Paul Kafno was closely widened to recognise any person or body which has made a real and
lasting impact on our industry, as the list of recipients shows:
“involved in the project:
Major change was in the air with widescreen and digital coming 2001 – Roderick Snell 2010 – Manolo Romero
on stream, and a major challenge for IBC was to engage with 2002 – Om Khushu 2011 – Sir David Attenborough
content producers. John Wilson knew that it was important to 2003 – James Cameron 2012 – The Science and
get TV creators enthusiastic about new ways of working. 2004 – Ted Turner
I joined the committee and we dreamed up the idea of a production 2005 – Sam Chisholm Technology Research
competition and invented the Nombre d’Or Awards. At that time there 2006 – Aardman Animation Laboratories of NHK
was a standards war, with the European 1250 line system face-to-face 2007 – Steve Wozniak 2013 – Sir Peter Jackson
against the Japanese 1125. We needed everyone to be on the same 2008 – Jeffrey Katzenberg 2014 – FIFA TV
side and solicited programmes from all over the world to show the best 2009 – T he Metropolitan Opera 2015 – ARM Holdings
use of widescreen and HD. 2016 – Ang Lee
House of New York

2016 The IBC Big Screen is pushed to the
limit for director Ang Lee to show
excerpts from his new movie Billy

Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk: 120 fps
high framerate stereoscopic 3D,

using high brightness, high
dynamic range laser projection

and Dolby Atmos sound

The IBC Awards Ceremony includes a message from
space: astronaut Kate Rubins, aboard the International
Space Station, thanks IBC for the Judges’ Prize to NASA

40 IBC at 50

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42 IBC at 50

Todaytoamndorrow

50 years on, IBC remains the best Through the IBC365 initiative, the debate continues, online,
place to share knowledge and throughout the year. IBC365 is a free online community which
experiences in the field of electronic shares unique insights on the latest trends, offers executive
media. More than 55,000 people meet interviews from industry leaders, and allows users to explore
up each September. in-depth technical papers. It takes the qualities that make IBC a must-
attend event and continues them year-round, online.

Reflecting on the 50th anniversary, David MacGregor, veteran of

“every single IBC, summed up its appeal:
In other industries, exhibitions work very well for a few years, then
collapse. That IBC has continued for 50 years says a lot about
the event and about the industry it supports.
It is the best organised exhibition. It may not be the biggest, but it is
certainly the best. And the industry is very much involved, which is why
it is such a success.

Thanks to its “by the industry for the industry” approach, it seems
reasonable to predict that IBC will continue to maintain its pre-eminence
into the future. Technology correspondent Andy Marken considers what

“we might be talking about at IBCs yet to come.
One of the best predictors of the future has been sci-fi movies.
And there’s never been one with more staying power than “Star
Trek”, with movies and TV shows that have spanned 50 years.
Some things like warp drive and transporters are still works in progress.
However, we do have communicators in everyone’s hands, that handle
tricorder duties, phasers currently limited to stun, detection/protection
shields, 3D food printers, Uhura’s earbuds and voice-controlled intelligent
systems.

2017 Amsterdam’s North-South metro
2018 line opens, linking IBC’s home at
the RAI with central Amsterdam in
under 10 minutes

IBC celebrates its 50th anniversary. In a
charity football match, the industry takes
on Lucky Ajax, a team of former stars

IBC at 50 43

As IBC enters its second 50 years, there are trends taking place, and Storytellers will be using very low-cost 16K VR cameras to create
products and technologies still in the early stages, that will reshape the immersive stories that people can simply sit and enjoy or take control of
content and entertainment industry for everyone. the storyline and flow, bringing in and dispensing with real or animated
characters. Tomorrow's visual entertainment will be a true collaboration.
By 2066 the global population will be about 10.5 billion people. As
many as 50 million or more will have migrated to Mars, thanks to private On the upside for professional filmmakers, AI-based solutions running
and public colonisation efforts. on the IBM Watson platform will be closely tied to content metadata
throughout the production process. Piracy will be something your
5G networking will be standard everywhere, enhanced to Terahertz grandparents were concerned about because content will be tied back
performance. Everything will be connected. Personal data will still be to the specific storyteller. As a result, we will be able to compensate
personal, but it will be widely shared and used by content providers to individual creators and modifiers electronically and automatically for their
deliver the information and content you want, where you want it, when efforts.
you want it.
In fact, in 2066, there will be over 10 billion channels – one for every
General purpose, personalised artificial intelligence data analysis specific person on the planet. And thanks to AI-based solutions and big
systems will be in widespread use, to help individuals do what they do data analytics, you will have access to any content anywhere. Channels
in their professional and personal lives. will be built around the things people do, where they go, their likes and
dislikes, moods, relationships, interests and more – a rich, rewarding
As Jean-Luc Picard said, channel of one.

“‘things are only impossible until Want some content for a few minutes or an hour? Just say the word
”they’re not’ and the content system will deliver your channel instantly. The difference
will be that the AI-based solution will deliver precisely the content you
Facebook Live, YouTube, SnapChat and a wide range of online want to consume, consider and enjoy.
services, combined with 8K camera-connected devices, will give
everyone a platform to express themselves and share their content with If you’re happy and want to celebrate you’ll get really cool, fun type
others. Those who have grown up in an ultra-visual world will be uploading stuff. If you’re a little down, the solution will give you uplifting, morale
as much as 1,000 hours of content every second, typically three to 15 building, confidence-enabling material.
minutes in length, that will be viewed by billions every day over what is
today called social media. If you’re aggressive and want to crush or destroy something, you
will receive conflict, war, adventure or zombie challenges. And if you’re
While some view each new generation’s preference for rapid-fire, short nostalgic, you’ll receive content from 2016 or 2041 and wonder how the
attention span viewing as a dim forecast for the future of large or small old folks tolerated their world back then.
budget filmmakers, I don’t see this happening. Since the beginning of
recorded time, visual storytellers and creatives have found a ready and As Jean-Luc Picard said, “things are only impossible until they're not”.
eager audience in the vast population.
How accurate are Andy’s forecasts? Only time will tell. But they all depend
This won’t change with the flow of online streaming tit-bits. In fact, on a clear understanding between creative artists, the technicians who
it will heighten the demand for better quality and a broader range of support them, and the businessmen who ensure there are revenues to
content. What will be different is where – and even more so than today,
how – it is viewed. “pay for it all. IBC is the place they meet. Paul Kafno sums it up:
When I joined the BBC as a young trainee there was a major divide
between producers and engineers. Programme makers were not
allowed to touch cameras or editing equipment. Today the world
has moved on with a new generation of creators who often shoot and
edit as well. The digital revolution has transformed acquisition, turning
post production into an art and embracing games technology.
Creators need to know about technology. And IBC continues to do a
great job in providing the opportunities.

2020
2021
According to forecasts by Cisco, 82% of all internet
traffic will be video, there will be more machines

communicating over the internet than people, and
total traffic will reach three zettabytes – that’s
3,000,000,000,000,000,000,000 bytes

Japanese broadcaster NHK IBC at 50
plans public broadcasts of its 8K
Super Hi-Vision format in time for
the Tokyo Olympic Games

44

YEARS OF
EXCELLENCE

CELEBRATING
IBC WITH

It’s a great pleasure
and privilege
to welcome IBC
each year to
RAI Amsterdam.
Looking forward to a
bright future together!