NAB Show: Be there for broadcasting at 100

LAS VEGAS — It’s the NAB Show’s 100th birthday, so join the organization in Las Vegas for the big party. That’s the obvious theme for the 2023 NAB Show, April 15–19. It all started back in Chicago during the Roaring 20s when representatives from 16 radio stations in the United States got together to discuss mutual interests. One hundred years later, things have changed a lot.

While the show is dominated by the United States TV broadcast industry, it’s an international event. Attendees from more than 140 countries were present in the 2022 show. Non-U.S. participants made up a quarter of those in attendance with a strong European contingent hailing from the United Kingdom, Germany, France, Spain and others. Of course Japan, Korea, Australia and China were well represented as well along with North American neighbors Canada and Mexico.

Chris Brown, NAB’s executive vice president and managing director, Global Connections and Events, told RedTech: “At a time when content can travel the world in an instant, it’s more important than ever to be connected to a global community focused on entertaining, informing, educating and enlightening audiences, no matter what language they speak. The NAB Show is the place for media and entertainment professionals to engage in that global community as the premier destination to find the latest innovations, technologies and ideas that elevate content to the next level.”

He added, “There is no replicating the opportunities and inspirations that come from face-to-face interactions at the NAB Show and we look forward to our friends from around the world joining us in Las Vegas in April.”

Show veterans know that info is scant at RedTech’s press time, but you can count on some 1,000 companies being on the show floor or in the vicinity. Dozens upon dozens of technical sessions will provide engineers and technically oriented personnel with top-of-the-field information and the latest in cutting edge communications technology. Sales and management pros have their own events. As the show gets closer, checking the NAB Show website regularly will make planning your Vegas trip much easier. Trust me, I’ve been going for decades — you can’t just show up and expect to see it all.

There is no replicating the opportunities and inspirations that come from face-to-face interactions.

Chris Brown, NAB

One of the big draws for the NAB Show is the “Broadcast Engineering and IT Conference.” This four-day, April 15–18, technology marathon is “designed for broadcast engineers and technicians, media technology managers, contract engineers, broadcast equipment manufacturers, distributors, engineering consultants and R&D engineers.”

The BEIT is a wide-ranging collection of lectures running from traditional technology and equipment standards and practices in radio or TV technology to the latest on those. Plus, in the last decade information technology and now IP have become backbone technologies as well and they receive plenty of attention too.

The BEIT is produced in partnership with the Society of Broadcast Engineers, North American Broadcasters Association and the cable technology group SCTE.

Extending the learning mission, the NAB Show features a number of hands-on workshops and training sessions. In addition, there are some prep courses and exams for pro level education and certification with professional organizations.

The NAB takes advantage of the massive Las Vegas Convention Center by placing themed pavilions and performance/demonstration venues throughout. On the schedule is the ATSC 3.0 Pavilion — no better place on the planet to learn about digital TV in the U.S and several other countries. And if you really want to get ahead of the digital TV curve, along with other on-the-and over-the-horizon communications technologies, the Futures Park is a must visit.

In addition, the latest in streaming technology and practices will be available at The Streaming Experience. Numerous Experiential Zone points of demonstration can be expected as well.

If you are unsure of what to see — it is a very large and intimidating event, especially for those there for the first time — the NAB has created three theme concentrated floor tours. “Data, Data, Data” is all about seeing the latest in IT, data management, digital production equipment and technology. Organizers say the magic word: AI. “New Production Modalities” will be a roundup of the latest in relevant cutting edge Web3 creation and operation for the broadcaster. “The Evolution of Video” takes a look at all the cool video stuff you shouldn’t miss at the show. All tours take place each day.

There are also a number of awards presentations including those focused on the radio industry, TV industry, along with technology and engineering awards.

The author has been to the NAB Show more than 20 times and is a former writer/editor with Radio World.