Trends to Watch in 2026: Broadcast and Audio Visual Technology

Broadcast Trends to Watch in 2026

Broadcast teams lived through another year of consolidation, budget pressure, and format demands, while still moving deeper into IP and software defined infrastructure. Here is how that is translating into real planning decisions for 2026.

1) Cloud Native and IP Infrastructure Are Now General Adoption, Not Early Adoption

According to Steve, the big headline in 2025 was the shift in mindset. IP based, software defined broadcast infrastructure is no longer a science project.

Vendors have matured their IP and cloud native offerings, costs are stabilizing, and there are enough successful systems on air that engineering teams feel confident making the leap. The result: many stations are treating IP and ST 2110 as the default option for core upgrades, not an experiment.

What this means for 2026:

• Treat IP as the baseline whenever you are planning a significant core upgrade
• Expect more options for software defined routing, multiviewing, and replay
• Plan now for how these tools will be monitored, updated, and supported long term

2) Networking Skills Are the New Core Broadcast Competency

One of the biggest enablers of IP adoption has been a deliberate push to upskill broadcast engineers in networking.

Steve points out that it is usually easier to teach a broadcast engineer networking principles than to teach a pure network engineer how to design and troubleshoot live production. As more engineers become fluent in routing protocols, multicast, and timing, projects move faster and systems are more stable.

For 2026 planning:

• Budget for real, structured training on IP and networking for your existing engineering staff
• Involve your team early in design, commissioning, and troubleshooting so they learn on the actual system
• Treat “day two” operational knowledge of IP and PTP as a requirement, not a nice to have

3) Remote and Field Production Workflows Are Finally Less Fragile

On the field side, Steve sees a clear improvement in reliability and simplicity. The combination of 5G, bonded cellular, and more mature field encoders has reduced the amount of configuration and firefighting required on every live shot.

Vendors have improved transport reliability and simplified user interfaces, which means reporters and field crews are more likely to connect successfully on the first try. That translates directly into less stress in the control room and fewer aborted segments.

How to take advantage in 2026:

• Standardize on a simple, well documented field kit for your reporters
• Validate bonded cellular performance across your key markets before big events
• Make sure your IP core is ready to receive and route these growing numbers of feeds

4) IP Design Discipline Is Replacing “Plug It In and Hope”

The Arizona Public Media project Steve highlighted shows how broadcast system design is changing. The Key Code Media team engaged the customer early, vetted vendor options together, and brought the station into integration and commissioning.

Behind the scenes, that looks like:

• Detailed IP infrastructure definitions before gear arrives
• Well structured configuration tables for routing and timing
• Clear PTP and 2110 design decisions that are documented and repeatable

This discipline eliminates much of the guesswork from integration and shortens the time between power on and going to air.

In 2026, you should:

• Expect any serious integrator to show you IP and timing documentation during design, not after the fact
• Insist on a staging phase where failover, congestion, and maintenance scenarios are tested
• Involve operators and engineers early so they learn the system as it comes to life

5) When to Jump from SDI to IP: A Practical Rule Of Thumb

Many stations are eyeing 4K, HDR, or format changes and wondering whether this is the moment to go all in on IP. Steve suggests a simple guideline:

• If you are touching 20 to 30 percent or more of the facility, especially core routing or major format changes, it is time to take IP seriously
• If your existing SDI infrastructure already supports your planned formats for the next 5 to 10 years, and you are only upgrading a few cameras or a switcher, staying SDI can still make sense

The bigger the project, the harder it is to justify investing in high bandwidth SDI that stops at 4K, when a properly designed 2110 core can carry you much further.

6) Cloud Based Production Is Overhyped for Small Stations, but Microservices Are Coming

Full cloud based production, where much of the infrastructure lives in the public cloud, has strong appeal for very large broadcasters. For smaller operations, the economics and complexity are often less attractive.

However, the architectural ideas behind these systems are important. Microservices based production, Kubernetes, and workflows that can be reassembled on demand are coming to on premises and hybrid environments as well.

For the next year or two:

• Do not chase cloud production just because it is trendy, match it to your scale and budget
• Focus instead on gaining familiarity with microservices concepts and control layers that can move between on premises and cloud
• Watch for vendors that give you a clear on ramp rather than an all or nothing cloud jump

Post Production Trends to Watch in 2026

Post production had a year of contrasts. Traditional media and entertainment faced headwinds, while corporate and brand driven content accelerated. At the same time, cloud economics, AI, and new facility expectations kept shifting. Walter shared what he is seeing across real deployments.

1) Corporate Video Is Growing While Traditional M&E Stays Cautious

Many post houses and studios spent part of 2025 waiting to see if projects would come back. Some did, but not at the pace teams hoped for. At the same time, corporate and enterprise clients expanded their use of video dramatically, both for live and post.

For 2026, that means:

• More multi site, multi department workflows in non traditional “media” companies
• Greater focus on marketing, product, and training content that behaves like a full media pipeline
• A need for tools that are friendly to both creative teams and business stakeholders who live in different systems

If you serve both M&E and corporate clients, your workflows and billing models may need to flex accordingly.

2) The Hidden Costs of Cloud Are Still Catching Teams Off Guard

The “cloud is cheaper” assumption continues to cause problems. Walter notes that many teams still discover new multipliers and unexpected fees when they examine storage tiers, egress, and compute.

A better approach is to plan around the lifecycle of each asset:

• Decide up front whether you expect to reuse or reversion the content later
• Map where each phase of the asset’s life will live: on premises, nearline, deep archive, or cloud
• Design your pipelines so metadata travels with the asset, instead of stranding key information in a single system

Cloud can be powerful and cost effective when you align it with actual usage patterns instead of treating it as an endless drive.

3) Metadata And Orchestration Are Becoming As Important As Classic MAM

In some cases, Walter is now telling clients they do not need a traditional MAM at all. That is a notable shift.

Why? Because AI assisted tools and smarter orchestration layers can:

• Scan your media volumes and make content searchable without forcing everything into one monolithic database
• Automate handoffs between creative tools, review and approval, and distribution
• Let users “talk to” their content instead of hunting through rigid folders

For some teams, a lighter orchestration layer plus AI driven search is a better fit than a heavy, single pane of glass MAM. For others, a full MAM is still the right foundation. The key trend is that you now have more options.

4) Facility Design Is Shifting to Multi Use Rooms and Higher Performance Expectations

Codec choices and performance targets are central to any 2026 upgrade. New cameras bring higher resolutions and data rates with every generation, which strains storage and networking.

At the same time, facilities are being asked to do more in the same rooms:

• Editorial, mix, grading, and even theatrical playback in flexible spaces
• Support for advanced audio formats such as Dolby Atmos alongside stereo and 5.1
• In house versus outsource decisions for grading and finishing that impact infrastructure design

When you plan upgrades:

• Start with codecs, frame rates, and deliverable expectations for the next 5 to 7 years
• Size storage, networking, and workstations for concurrent read and write performance, not just peak playback
• Decide which premium capabilities you will support in house and which will remain external

5) AI Will Help Creatives, Not Replace Them

There is no shortage of hype around AI, but Walter is clear that it will not “do everything” for creative teams. Not in 2026, and likely not beyond.

Instead, AI is becoming:

• A co pilot for editorial tasks such as rough assemblies, dialogue search, and versioning
• A marketing and analytics tool that helps predict how assets might perform in the real world
• A metadata generator that enriches your library and makes future reuse easier

This is powerful, but it still depends on human taste, storytelling, and review. Plan AI into your workflows as an accelerator, not a substitute for your creative team.

6) Tape Is Not Dead, LTO Is Evolving, and Data Placement Matters More Than Ever

Cloud storage is not always cheaper, especially for long term archive. Tape remains the cost champion for deep storage, and LTO continues to evolve, with higher capacities arriving without changing the core platform.

The tradeoff is obvious:

• Tape is inexpensive and reliable for assets you do not need to touch often
• It is not suitable for live editing or frequent random access

The real mistake Walter sees is not choosing one technology over another, but placing data in the wrong tier for how it will actually be used. In 2026, make sure your archive, nearline, and online tiers match your creative and monetization strategies, not just the cheapest headline price.

AV Trends to Watch in 2026

AV had a wild year. Hybrid spaces became the default assumption, tariffs created budget turbulence, and AV over IP moved squarely into the mainstream. Mike shared how these pressures are shaping real projects in education, government, and corporate environments.

1) Tariffs And Supply Chain Volatility Are Forcing Smarter Planning

The first nine months of 2025 were defined by tariff uncertainty and shifting price models. At one point, there was a serious concern that tariffs on certain AV products from China could double, which led to extreme measures like chartered flights to bring LED walls in before potential changes.

Even though some of those increases did not materialize, the impact was clear:

• Budgets were difficult to pin down
• Clients had to make faster decisions or risk being caught on the wrong side of price changes
• Integrators needed contingency plans for product substitutions

As you plan 2026, use that experience to build in flexibility, alternate designs, and clear communication with vendors so financial surprises do not derail projects.

2) Hybrid Is the Default, and Inclusivity Drives Room Design

Hybrid is no longer a special case. Most new conference rooms, classrooms, and council chambers assume a mix of in room and remote participants from day one.

That has pushed organizations to rethink:

• Deep integration between UC platforms such as Microsoft Teams and Zoom and the in room systems
• Smart cameras with auto framing, speaker tracking, and integration with ceiling microphones
• Real time transcription and translation to support global collaboration

Instead of one static camera and a room full of tiny faces, modern spaces now center on inclusive framing where remote participants feel like they are at the table.

For 2026 builds:

• Standardize on a primary UC platform but design for flexibility across multiple services
• Use microphone and camera ecosystems that can talk to each other for true speaker tracking
• Plan for accessibility and multilingual features from the start

3) AV Over IP Is Now the Default Fabric for Serious Systems

From Key Code Media’s perspective, AV over IP is no longer a bleeding edge choice. It is the natural evolution for organizations that want flexible routing, expandability, and serviceability.

Compared to legacy point to point or SDI based designs, AV over IP allows you to:

• Route any signal to any destination across a standards based switch fabric
• Reduce cabling complexity while expanding the number of possible paths
• Maintain and grow systems using widely understood networking practices

Projects like Santa Monica College’s early NVX deployment demonstrated the benefits years ago. Now, similar architectures are common across campuses, city governments, and enterprises.

When designing or refreshing systems in 2026:

• Lead with IP for new builds and major renovations
• Retain SDI and baseband only where legacy gear or specific requirements demand it
• Make sure your networking and security teams are involved early so the AV fabric plays well with the broader IT environment

4) Room Standardization And User Experience Are Top Priority

Across campuses and office portfolios, the real challenge is not installing technology. It is making sure people can actually use it.

Mike points to a strong focus on:

• Standardized user interfaces that feel as simple as a tablet or smartphone
• Investing in in house or partner programming talent for Crestron, Extron, Q-SYS, and related platforms
• Automation that handles routine tasks behind the scenes so presenters can focus on content, not control panels

In 2026, successful AV programs will:

• Define a small set of room templates and repeat them wherever possible
• Give faculty, staff, and executives a familiar experience in every space
• Treat interface design as part of the overall user experience, not an afterthought

5) LED, Better Audio, And AI Are Leveling Up Expectations

LED walls have become far more cost effective, which is pushing many organizations to upgrade visual experiences in lecture halls, council chambers, and corporate spaces.

At the same time, audio expectations have risen. High schools and colleges are buying professional loudspeaker systems to create memorable game day and event experiences, where synchronized, impactful audio is part of recruiting and community engagement.

Layer AI on top of that and the bar gets even higher:

• Intelligent cameras and audio processing that can support both live events and broadcast grade content
• Automated mixing and switching that can turn a council meeting or class into a polished video asset with minimal extra labor
• Latency and synchronization design so that LED, speakers, and cameras all feel natural in the same space

These experiences used to be reserved for major venues. In 2026, they will be expected in mid sized institutions as well.

6) Full IP Thinking Is Reshaping Integration And Support

Key Code Media’s AV practice has shifted heavily toward full IP thinking: fiber first, standards compliant switching, and systems that act as a single, flexible platform rather than isolated islands.

That has real benefits:

• Easier expansion, since new spaces become new endpoints on an existing fabric
• Centralized monitoring and management that support managed services and proactive support
• More consistent experiences across geographies and building types

If you are planning a multi campus or multi building strategy in 2026, design the AV network the way you would a core IT service, not a collection of standalone projects.

Turning These Trends Into a 2026 Roadmap

Across broadcast, post, and AV, a few themes show up again and again: IP as the new normal, cloud and AI as powerful but nuanced tools, and user experience as the real success metric.

If you are staring at a stack of RFPs and vendor roadmaps, use this checklist to start shaping your 2026 plan.

2026 Planning Checklist

1. Clarify Your Upgrade Triggers
   • Are you moving to 4K or HDR, or touching more than 20 to 30 percent of your facility
   • If yes, put IP and software defined infrastructure on the table now
2. Invest in People, Not Just Platforms
   • Budget for networking and IP training for broadcast and AV engineers
   • Bring your operators into staging, commissioning, and troubleshooting phases
3. Design Workflows Around Asset Lifecycle
   • Map where each stage of your media’s life should live: on premises, nearline, archive, or cloud
   • Align cloud use with actual needs rather than assuming it is always cheaper
4. Right Size Your Management Layer
   • Decide when you truly need a full MAM, and when orchestration plus AI search will be enough
   • Make sure metadata remains accessible across systems and over time
5. Standardize Rooms And Experiences
   • Define templates for broadcast control rooms, edit bays, classrooms, and conference spaces
   • Keep user interfaces consistent and simple, with automation handling the complexity
6. Pilot AI Where It Has Clear Payoff
   • Start with search, transcription, versioning, and analytics, not “AI for everything”
   • Measure time savings and creative impact before expanding deployments
7. Choose Partners Who Stay Past Day One
   • Look for integrators who help with design, training, and support after installation
   • Expect guidance on IP, cloud, and AI that is grounded in real world projects, not slide decks

At Key Code Media, our teams live at the intersection of broadcast, AV, and post production. We see which technologies survive real world stress tests, which workflows keep people productive, and which investments stay relevant as the industry shifts to IP, cloud, and AI.

If you are planning your 2026 roadmap and want help turning these trends into a concrete, integrated plan, this episode and this blog are a strong place to start.