NAB Show 2019 report: Post-show demographics & trends
This short NAB Show 2019 report provides an overview of the key demographics and details the latest trends. If you’re thinking of exhibiting in 2020 contact us to see how we can help you make the show more profitable!
What is the NAB Show?
NAB show is the world’s largest annual show for media, entertainment and technology companies. This event is the North American version of IBC (International Broadcasting Convention) and is noteworthy because it covers: broadcast TV, radio, production, post-production, news gathering, streaming, cable TV, satellite TV, film restoration, data storage, data management, connected media and much more.
What are the key demographics of the NAB Show?
At the time of writing, the official figures for 2019 were not released, but we know that in 2018, NAB Show had:
- 92,912 registrants was given by the event organisers as the official figure. We know that not all people who register attend because registration is free. In practice probably around 30% less, so due to this, our estimate for this figure is approximately 60,000 attendees.
- Of the registrants, we know that 1/3 were exhibitors (27,261 exhibitors representing 1717 companies) and 2/3 were visitors.
- There were 25,251 international attendees (or 27% of the total number of registrants) from 160 countries.
- Finally, the breakdown of the international participants (exhibitors and visitors):
- 28% from Asia
- 25% from Europe
- 25% from Canada and Mexico
- 15% from South America
- 4% from Africa
- 3% from Australia
What were the main topics and news discussed at the NAB Show 2019?
Briefly, our top 4 take-aways from NAB 2019 were:
- OTT/streaming
- ATSC 3.0
- eSports
- future technologies which have started to become a reality, such as 5G, Artificial Intelligence and Virtual Reality
OTT & Streaming Video
Recurring themes of OTT & streaming video with direct-to-consumer launches from Disney, NBCUniversal and WarnerMedia were hot topics at NAB 2019. The way in which people consume content has shifted dramatically over the last few years & both streamers & traditional content providers are looking for new ways to monetise content online. Consumers are increasingly bombarded with choice and providers must ensure their business models are sustainable.
ATSC 3.0
ATSC 3.0 (Next-Gen TV standards) redefines how television signals are broadcast and interpreted. As a result, it is a major overhaul for antenna-based TV broadcasting. Since ATSC 3.0 was deployed in South Korea in preparation for the 2018 Winter Olympics, the US has started to prepare for the new standards & allow voluntary trials. Much speculation surrounds the role of ATSC 3.0 & how it can fit into the 5G ecosystem.
eSports
eSports is a fast-growing industry, with global revenues estimated to top $1 billion by the end of 2019. Producers are therefore looking for ways to innovate and find cost effective ways to monitise eSports and live gaming to tap into this relatively new money stream.
Future Technologies
Future technological advances within the scope of 5G (of course!), AI and VR were discussed. The technological advances rolled out over the last year are interesting to see.
We noticed the industries of broadcasting and telecommunications are increasingly overlapping. Indeed, different innovative technologies now collide around discussions of 5G. There was a number of dedicated 5G sessions, panels and keynote speeches, with suggested use case ranging from 5G home broadband bundling, 5G for video contribution and backhaul where fibre/satellite links aren’t possible or cost-prohibitive, and VR services with 5G providing the necessary bandwidth.
AI and its possible uses will continue to be a hot topic for years to come as broadcasters start to utilise the new technology in everyday use (for example Sky News deployed an AI solution to identify guests at Prince Harry & Meghan Markle’s wedding last year).
After NAB Show 2019: what next?
In conclusion, looking forward to 2020, DEVEO will again be sharing our knowledge and expertise with our clients, setting appointments with qualified leads and attending NAB 2020 to keep our knowledge of the show current. NAB 2020 will be held at the Las Vegas Convention Center, with exhibits open from 19 – 22 April 2020.
