IBC-2010 in 10 seconds

Briefing clients this week on the outcome of the 2010 IBC in Amsterdam.

Who's Hot: Panasonic, Netgem, Canon (not their DSLR's though -their new 105), Nautel, Autodesk, Vizrt, NHK's Super Hivision (although NHK has enormous difficulty explaining the context of what they are doing).

Biggest disappointment: Sony - why did they bother to come back to IBC? Lack-lustre stand and very traditional workflows.

Biggest Flop: 3D. Would you make a documentary in 3D or Super Hivision? The latter. There are incompatible glasses (3 types) and the demos are with the wrong material. 3D is just a nich subset of HD. Don't waste your money on a new TV.

What needs to change?: I really wonder about the future of the IBC conference. Who has time when the exhibition is so big? All the training /presentations now happen on the floor. The IBC Conference isn't accessible online unless you pay a ridiculous sum - so we will let that one pass. Its also very Anglophile and, whilst it attracts the technical operations people, it has consistently failed to attract creatives.

And for goodness sake stop handing out awards for EVERYTHING. It's devalued the whole point. IBC shouldn't be dishing out awards to anyone. That should be left to member organisations.