What to Expect After IBC 2025

When it comes to making projections, there are infallible ingredients that inevitably emerge in an event like IBC, a true “meeting of meetings,” a collision of elements that generate diverse combinations and unimaginable new compounds. Inevitably, universes collide, and new stars are born. That is the minimum we can expect from such a massive gathering that physically brings together minds focused on communication and its technologies.

The real energy of IBC comes from human interaction. A simple email exchange or an unplanned, extended conversation can quickly evolve into scheduled discussions that open the door to new business opportunities, partnerships, and the merging of distinct technologies or approaches. The importance of such a “happy hour” lies in the fact that decisions which might otherwise take years can be accelerated within days.

I call it a happy hour because, let’s be honest, those who work in radio never stop talking about radio, even after hours. While IBC goes far beyond radio and television, for those of us who live and breathe digital radio, attending is like working at Disney and then spending your vacation back at Disney. When you are passionate about what you do, work becomes play, even with the pressures, deadlines, stresses, and disappointments.

A convention like IBC is a true “luxury coffee break”: an opportunity to meet friends, exchange ideas, and spark big insights. Networking bubbles in every hall and booth. Sometimes a casual chat with a stranger reveals something that perfectly matches a project of your own. The main purpose of the convention is just that: to catalyze exchanges, accelerate alliances, and spark developments that would take years to mature elsewhere.

Even high-level leaders, who under normal circumstances would never devote time to digital radio, may be drawn in by the environment of the show. A communications minister, for example, could arrive with no agenda and, within hours, see demonstrations of HD Radio, DAB+, and DRM side by side in a dynamic, open context, far removed from a rushed, superficial protocol meeting. Only an event like IBC can show the true scale and relevance of the industry, while inspiring the vision that digital radio could transform the communications landscape of an entire country.

And it is worth noting: in 2025, the conversations go well beyond radio and television. The show is a stage for trends that will shape the next decade — artificial intelligence applied to media, energy sustainability, immersive experiences, connected cars, and hybrid distribution models. Yet within this broader scenario, radio finds renewed strength. What once seemed improbable, such as the union of DAB+ and DRM working side by side as complementary systems, with DAB+ serving dense urban centers and DRM covering vast territories with long-distance transmissions, now appears not only possible but strategic. This kind of synergy illustrates how IBC opens windows to collaborations that would rarely even be imagined in isolation.

Likewise, sharp-eyed entrepreneurs who combine passion with business sense can, in just a few days, find opportunities and contacts that no other window of the year could provide. IBC is, in essence, a giant kitchen, with countless pots simmering, where diverse ingredients constantly combine into new recipes — and the world of communications is served with fresh, innovative dishes.

Ah, how I regret not being at IBC 2025. I don’t even want to imagine how much content I could generate from there. Yet I am certain of one thing: IBC is not only a showcase of technology, but a true accelerator of the future, a space where radio and global communication find new ways to remain central in the 21st century.