12 Three Consecutive TV Trade Shows Hit the Miami Heat Last year, VideoAge Daily published a piece headlined “Two Markets Hit the Finishing Line,” which told the tale of a pair of TV-related business events held in Miami around the same time. This year, the story should be amended to: “Two Markets Back at the Starting Line,” since both events returned in full force. And to make the original headline even more incorrect, one more market has been added to this year’s calendar. Let’s recap the situation: NATPE’s last Miami show as a non-profit association was held in 2019. In 2022, the Miami event was organized by C21 under the banner of Content Americas. In 2023, after buying the NATPE brand, Brunico restarted the NATPE show — first in Budapest, and in 2024 in Miami. While in Budapest, Brunico benefitted from the NATPE brand. In Miami, meanwhile, C21’s head start benefitted Content Americas. For 2025, Brunico has added Realscreen Summit, one of its other TV trade shows, to NATPE Global in the hope of bringing the market back to its former glory. The months of January and February are now getting very busy for the international entertainment industry, with the CES’s consumer show ending in Las Vegas on the 10th, and Content Americas starting on the 20th. January 23 is the start day for both the CCTA (Caribbean Telecommunications Association) convention in Miami, as well as the Sundance Film Festival in Utah. February will also be busy, with NATPE Global/Realscreen Summit (February 3-7), Berlin’s European Film Market (February 15-19), London Screenings (February 24-28), and MIP London (February 24-27). Not having a lot of first-hand reports, and not being able to depend on the foresight of the potential participants at either or both Miami events (who are as anxious as us here at VideoAge), we had to rely on the events’ organizers to get a preview of the markets. Content Americas will open its doors to its third annual event at the Hilton Miami Downtown, scheduled for January 19-23, 2025, with the market portion starting on Tuesday, January 21. David Jenkinson, founder of C21, the London-based publishing group that organizes various Content events, including Content Americas, explained that last year’s elevator problem will be resolved since “many companies have moved down onto the market floor, so this should not be a problem this year. We expect elevator traffic to be 25 percent less.” Jenkinson also announced that he expects 20 or so first-time exhibitors and that “all the major companies are confirmed.” Plus, he envisions 750-plus buyers, “with around 1,750 delegates in total.” In terms of recreational activities, “the big ticket is the Rose d’Or Latinos on Tuesday evening, ” he said. Other related events include a Welcome Party on January 20, TV Azteca cocktails on January 22, and a Closing Party on January 23. NATPE Global/Realscreen Summit will open its doors to participants at the InterContinental Miami. The events are scheduled for February 3-7, 2025. The Summit is an addition to NATPE Global, which will be holding its second annual event. The last Summit, which is described as an unscripted and nonfiction conference, was held in New Orleans, January 28-February 1, 2024. The next Summit is scheduled for February 3-5, 2025, and NATPE for February 5-7, 2025, but some participants are planning to treat it as one five-day market stretching from February 3 to February 7. Claire Macdonald, NATPE Global’s executive director — from the Toronto, Canadabased Brunico publishing group that organizes various international TV conventions, including NATPE Budapest — assured that this year the exhibitors’ list will be released well in advance (so that buyers can schedule their meetings in a convenient way). “We shared the first floorplan and exhibitor list by December 20th. Buyers [were also] able to connect with exhibitors and other attendees via our custom platform, natpeXchange. They [were] also able to book meetings in our buyer’s lounge,” a physical space where one can book a table online. Macdonald also explained: “The decision to move the event to February was based on a number of factors, including requests from both exhibitors and buyers to nudge a bit away from the start of the year and extended holidays. This has been well received by both exhibitors and buyers who are appreciative of the time to prep and schedule meetings with a little less stress.” She added that “as of December 4, we can confirm 10 exhibitors who were not with us last year,” and that “we’re expecting somewhere in the order of 450-550 buyers from all over the world.” In terms of recreational activities, Macdonald said, “We’ll have a huge cocktail party on Wednesday night straddling Realscreen Summit and NATPE. That same evening features NATPE Honors, our new recognition program designed to celebrate the visionary leaders in the industry who are raising the bar and changing the status quo. This is a VIP by-invitation event. The WAWA Woman of the Year Awards presentation and networking cocktail take place on Thursday. We’re also hosting our Streaming+ breakfast, which was a highlight last year, as well as ‘Lunch with a Decisionmaker,’ an incredible networking opportunity.” Mary Maddever, NATPE executive content director and EVP of Realscreen, added, “A lot of the agenda is designed to appeal to both buyers and distributors. The Wednesday line-up is a great example of that, kicking off with ‘The Future of Media’ session. Everyone is impacted by the investment shifts that underpin the industry, so sessions like ‘Welcome to 2030,’ with speakers like Group M CEO Sharb Farjami sharing his insights on how advertisers’ spending strategies will impact the mediascape, will affect us all. Ditto for the keynotes from Roku’s David Eilenberg and YouTube’s Fede Goldenberg. From how Roku is working differently with new collaborators like brands and sports leagues, to how YouTube continues to evolve how content is consumed and created, the focus is on enabling a deeper understanding of the strategies, data, and tech that are fueling change, and how your business priorities also need to change.” David Jenkinson of Content Americas Claire Macdonald of NATPE Global Mary Maddever of Realscreen VIDEOAGE January 2025 The Miami Markets
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