The SCTE and IBC, 2003

IBC2003, 11 - 16 September (Exhibits 12 - 16 September) RAI, Amsterdam, The Netherlands

Harmonic's Busy Stand Motorola's Stand	IBC2003 - Optimism Rules OK! Graeme Young, CTE deputy editor, summarises this year's convention. This year's IBC in Amsterdam was undoubtedly endowed with greater optimism than previous occasions had since the New York WTC disaster. Attendances were up by 6% and about 1000 exhibition stands were there, even on the first day visitors poured into the halls of the RAI Centre. On the first day of the conference programme, Thursday Sept 11th, there were packed venues for the nine presentations, and this enthusiasm remained for the remaining five days of the conference programme. Though there were few innovations, and these were to be seen in the New Technology Campus, improvements and enhancements to existing digital technology were everywhere. Analogue was definitely a thing of the past, nowhere was the word to be found. Amongst the CATV equipment suppliers and operators, Motorola fielded a large stand with a broad range of products and services aimed at furthering the convergence of Telecommunications, Internet and Video Entertainment. Scientific Atlanta also displayed a considerable diversity of products for Cable, Satellite and Terrestrial broadcasting, and their ROSA Network management System. Also headlining their digital network management system NMX was Harmonic Inc. with a daily series of teach-ins on the stand. In addition this busy stand displayed MPEG-2 encoders and gateways for broadcast networks and narrowcast services. Tandberg Television showed a comprehensive range of products for CATV, XDSL, and over-the-air delivery systems, VoD and Interactive TV. Interactivity was a word used often amongst the eleven halls of the IBC and it is seen as having a strong commercial future by most of the participants in the event. The theme was repeated in the conference sessions and could spell the end of "TV as we know it".

Delivery Day The convention featured a number of themed conference sessions including one full day on the subject of "Delivery" which was organised by SCTE vice-president, Chris Swires. The conference was scheduled to allow plenty of time for delegates to visit the exhibition. The success of the conference streams seems to suggest that people are determined to stay up to date with technical developments and ensure they can take advantage of opportunities as they arise. If you want the full story on the show visit the website http://www.ibc.org.

	The SCTE and IBC. The SCTE is one of the partners in IBC and is closely involved in the management of the show. This means we will continue to see the convention offer more and more of interest to SCTE members. Use the menu on the left or click here for the latest news on IBC 2004.


© Society of Cable Telecommunication Engineers.