By Tessa Potter

President, Western Association of Broadcast Engineers

WABE 2025: Calgary, Alberta | September 29–October 1

Learn more and register at wabe.ca

“Just come” is quickly becoming one of the mottos I use most often when talking about this year’s WABE Media & Entertainment Technology Conference. As we approach our 75th anniversary event in Calgary, Alberta, just under 35 days away, there’s a sense of momentum, reflection, and welcome in the air.

We’re ready to greet old friends and new at the Calgary TELUS Convention Centre this fall from September 29 to October 1. As I took my first real holiday in seven years, driving from Winnipeg to Thunder Bay, down to Duluth and back through International Falls, I found myself thinking about technology, the history of our industry, and where I sit in it. Where are my skills most useful? Where is all this going? And how did we get here?

On that long drive, you can still spot some of the old towers from the Trans Canada Microwave System, now reused for modern tech. It’s a striking visual of our history. On July 1, 1958, that network introduced the country to the possibility of live network television and direct long-distance phone services to Canadians coast to coast. With 139 towers spanning over 6,275 kms, it was the longest network in the world at the time. The impact on Canadian broadcasting was enormous. CBC, using this infrastructure, could now transmit television programming nationally. From my understanding, this was a defining moment when national broadcasting truly began to take hold in Canada.

Fast forward to today, me in the car, trying to read LinkedIn posts debating the relevance of FM radio, all while having no cell signal on the way to Thunder Bay and regretting not downloading more of my Tidal playlist. My husband and I couldn’t agree on a podcast, so we turned to local radio, got a sniff of something different on SiriusXM, or I read poetry aloud from a library book I brought along.

Yes, we streamed a movie in our Airbnb on a Roku TV. But I still wish I had brought a paper map. Google Maps doesn’t always work when your cell signal drops to SOS. It reminded me that 25% of Canadians still live in areas where constant 5G coverage isn’t available. And when Starlink went down recently, I remembered that even the “perfect” systems have limits. The promise of simple plug-and-play satellite internet is compelling, but no technology is without friction.

Even with my background, I can program video routers, newsroom systems, and navigate and learn new systems easily, but on my trip I couldn’t stop my phone’s microphone from cutting out our music every time I tried to search in Google while it was plugged in. It was one of many tech arguments on our trip. Eventually, we just went analogue, possibly because I’m getting old, but more likely because I didn’t want to be frustrated on holiday.

Travelling through small towns and finding hidden gems reminded me how this hand held cell phone can solve problems, create opportunities, and connect us, but it can also be a pain in the ass. More features don’t always mean less work. 

More than anything, it reminded me that people still need breaks. With all the downsizing, small teams, and single-person roles we see now, when someone goes on vacation, the whole project can pause for two weeks.I really appreciate that I work on teams even at WABE where someone can pickup the work and continue the forward motion while you take a break to sample life beyond work with people you love.

And just like that, September is coming. Everyone will come back. The emails will start. Projects need to be finished. New ones need to be started. Promises from spring come due. It’s full force, and it takes a strong team, skilled people, and determination for successful results.

Being a WABE friend, volunteer, or community member is all about this wider industry team. I’m reminded of this every time someone reaches out: “Do you know someone who can fill this job?” or “Do you have advice for a career move?” or “Can you introduce me to someone who can help?” So many of the technical wizards I’ve worked with over the years aren’t on LinkedIn. They don’t post often. They’re modest and busy and effective. But they’re looking, for the right fit, the right work, the right place to be valued.

At WABE, we’ve been working for years to expand beyond broadcast. Our mission has always been to connect the people who work with the tech that creates and distributes content. We know Canada is big and spread out, but the intersection of AV, film, live events, broadcast, and content delivery is where new ideas are born.

Our full program is now live at wabe.ca. You’ll find a little bit of everything: broadcast, audio, video, film tech, AV, and more. Our exhibit hall will feature sales professionals, manufacturers, tech experts, and innovators. It’s the largest gathering in Canada for this type of cross-sector exchange. And we’ve kept the cost low to attend:

• Free to attend the Exhibit Hall
• $175 for a full conference pass
• $15 for our Media Mixer Reunion & 75th Birthday Party on Monday
• Day passes are available for programming sessions

We are only able to do this because of the generous support of our sponsors—companies who understand our mission and have helped volunteers keep WABE going for 75 years.

We rely on vendor support, sponsorship, and exhibit booth bookings to help cover the cost of renting the venue and producing the event. We’ve always done our best to keep prices affordable. But if you or your company don’t have the bandwidth or budget to contribute financially, we still just want you to come. Meet the community & be a part of it.

If you’ve seen the photo of WABE’s founding members, you might not see yourself reflected in that group, and I get it. I don’t either. But when I look at it, I see people who did similar work. They were learners. They believed in the power of gathering and learning from each other to push an industry forward.

Sure, the Trans Canada Microwave System is gone. Maybe FM radio isn’t flashy to the kids. Maybe cinema cameras with reels or POTS telephone systems feel like relics. But this foundation built a Canadian identity and some really amazing technology right here at home. Today’s tech,5G, IP, software, streaming, immersive audio, hybrid workflows, it all stands on that past. And we need a new generation of leaders who understand how this fits together. This is why we picked our theme: Bridging the Past and Building the Future.

There’s no perfect system, only systems in development and aging ones still in use. That’s why gathering in Calgary this fall matters. We care about keeping this space and making room for a community in Canada for tech conversations across sectors.

So just come.

Come to connect. Come to learn. Come to share what you know.

Explore the full conference program

Register now

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If you’re a friend of WABE, share our socials. Forward this article. Invite your coworkers. Help us spread the word.

This is the final year of my presidency—and what a way to go out. Our 75th is not just a milestone, it’s a launchpad. We’re looking for new volunteers who understand our vision and mission and want to carry it forward:

• Help with the website
• Connect with next year’s speakers
• Plan the conference
• Offer marketing expertise
• Research new sectors and vendors
• Support the next wave of WABE friends
  

This is what 75 years of building a media technology community in Canada looks like: people connecting with people about tech!

And the invitation still stands:

Just come.

The post Just Come: A Reflection on 75 Years of WABE and the Future of Media & Entertainment Technology appeared first on Broadcast Dialogue.

The fact that there are still creators wanting to create, and students graduating who want to support them from programs across this country, means our industry is still happening, thriving, and growing. Even if it doesn’t look the same as it did 20 years ago, it’s still here.

It is also the season of holiday coverage. Who can be left alone to support stations, offices and AV departments while the main or experienced technical staff member heads off to the cabin or takes a family vacation camping? Will that cell phone ring during the next storm? Will they get the rolling eyes of their partner when they answer a call from work during their holiday time?

One thing I know about summer in Canada: everyone I call from the AV and technical industry is busy. They’re planning for a rollout they probably wish started in January, but someone just pulled the trigger, issued the PO, and now hopes it can be completed before year-end.

If you’re part of one of these summer projects, where you won’t see a holiday but maybe the occasional weekend off, you are understood by so many of us.

This is also the time of year when contracts and RFPs are being sent out and signed, with hopes that next year is a fruitful one. Whether it’s for a project, an install, or gathering a crew for the World Cup, the Olympics, or the next hockey season, nothing in production happens overnight. It takes months of planning, ordering, integrating, drawing specs, following up, receiving, testing, and then finally turning things on. Only after all that can the magic happen, handing it over to the operators and content creators, who can start to tell stories with the tools that were quietly built for them.

If you’ve got a project this year in Canada and have the ability to travel to Calgary, all of the most important people who can help you execute that project will be at our conference this fall. If you want to get into the Canadian market, if you have a product that needs to be in front of the people buying, integrating, and looking for solutions, our 75th conference at the Calgary Telus Convention Centre, from Sept. 29 to Oct. 1, is where the nation gathers.

If your role has changed, a layoff has come your way, or you’re looking for an opportunity, it’s a great place to meet a few people and find out where your next role might be. 

There’s a lot on the horizon. Our programming this year, which we’ll announce shortly, is going to inspire you and offer great ideas. We hope you learn something, make a connection, or discover a person or idea that changes everything.

We are also looking for award nominations. If there’s a technical team who’s completed a project in this country that you think deserves recognition, this is a great opportunity to highlight people who are often unrecognized for their hard work.

We are also looking for volunteers to help lead, support, and build WABE’s future. If you’re interested, we’d love to have you as part of our community, helping shape the future of our event and organization.

The post WABE calls for award nominations ahead of fall conference appeared first on Broadcast Dialogue.

From a Winnipeg vantage point, I can tell you that our arena has been full, not only with Winnipeg Jets games moving into the second round, but with American broadcasters like TNT and ESPN alternating their presence in the city, covering our hockey games while True North Sports & Entertainment hosted watch parties and street parties. The playoffs allowed me to see some of the new technology the NHL was using, including Cosm’s setup for shared reality event viewing. For me, all this hockey is now intertwined with the kickoff of a new basketball season for the Seabears, owned by David Asper and run by the Canadian Elite Basketball League (CEBL).

After an exciting Game 7 on Sunday (with double overtime), we hosted a Monday media meet-up the next day for WABE. While the nice weather and the late-night game the night before dwindled our numbers, we still had a group of 25 show up to take in a presentation from MSP Corp. about IT security. I learned from Tyson Choptain that IT security is not just for the IT department to worry about it should now be part of a business plan because it is the President of a company who is going to have to do the interview or answer for a breach or incident. If it’s major enough that it impacts organizations that attract media attention, no one comes looking for the IT team; they ask to speak to the CEO.

We saw some new faces. I was happy to meet the IT team from APTN, and we saw some retirees and old friends like former WABE President Len Virog and our good friend Pat O’Connor, who I haven’t seen in awhile since their retirement. Thanks to the Golden West Broadcasting team of Alex Loewen, Corney Unger, and Tom Wiebe, for helping connect us with MSP Corp. The event was made possible because WABE friends like Eric Poppleton from ERP Engineering and Wojciech Kobylinski from D.E.M Allen & Associates sponsored and believe in the community that has been there for their entire careers.

The part I enjoy most, and the part I’ll miss most about being president of WABE, is the connecting and the conversations the organization has allowed me to have. It gives me purpose to reach out, something I don’t intend to stop doing after my term, now that it’s a habit.

In talking with Peter Bernatsky from PBS Integration, who also attended our meet-up this past month, he told me about the project they just finished in Steinbach, MB at the South East Event Centre. When I see a project like his in Manitoba’s third largest city that supports the surrounding region come to fruition, I’m reminded of the spark that’s still alive in this industry and the desire of organizations and communities who are building or renovating to have new technology apart of these facilities to leverage those capabilities to showcase their own content or be able to offer that tech to renters, tenants or community partners using the space.

Across the U.S., there are stories of sporting events now having the kind of presence usually only reserved for broadcast: a national diving meet, a regional high school playoff game, a college sport that might not have had coverage at all 10 years ago. It’s in the air, and the wind is pushing it north. With each facility that does an upgrade, someone comes to visit, and it plants ideas and possibilities for other facilities to follow. There is also a big undercurrent of soccer in Canada growing, and while it is not getting the broadcast coverage on major networks in Canada, the lead up to World Cup in North America in 2026 from a fan perspective, is felt even at my house. The Valour Football Club announced their season games on the same flyer of the Winnipeg Blue Bombers this year. To me, this shows the aggressive marketing being done by OneSoccer to get in front of Canadians. Maybe we will start to see this reflected on the airwaves next fall, because fans want it at my house. 

For those who haven’t yet dabbled in this world of content creation and distribution in their own facilities, who haven’t yet seen the opportunity for regional and local advertising at their facilities, or simply for people to enjoy watching their child or grandchild participate in a regional final of the sport they excel at, this ripple is starting to come to Canada.

Of course, nothing here is ever at the scale of the U.S. marketplace. But, I see it in Protocol Sports partnerships, in leagues that didn’t exist five years ago that now have streaming shows that sometimes attract up to 10,000 viewers. What regional news departments wouldn’t kill for 10,000 viewers these days on their linear feeds?

I’m hoping, technically, that news finds a way in this country to get back on my phone and on my screen in a very present way. I can’t tell if it will be a new app, a new regulation, or an over-the-air broadcast technology that’s new. I know I’m still listening to radio in the car, because I’m happy someone’s curating something for me. And it’s easy—a single button push. No update required. No subscription. I will take free right now.

I’m thankful to Broadcast Dialogue these past years for allowing me a voice—to stretch a bit of writing muscle and reach out to the membership. Hopefully, I’ve grabbed the attention of a few people who may remember WABE but haven’t been in awhile, to tell them how we’re transforming and trying to make space in Canada for people working in this industry.

Not just for attendees and buyers, but also for businesses to be seen, to be known, and to interact with each other. It’s just as important to have this show for our vendors and manufacturers as it is for our attendees to know what technology is coming.

There’s a tendency in difficult economic times and uncertainty to hold onto doom and gloom. I mean, we’re trying to attract film vendors at a time when someone south of the border is talking about tariffs on film productions that have been so successful here. So many people have invested—governments, creatives—in Alberta, BC, Saskatchewan, and Manitoba. And it hurts a bit to hear that we’re not “good enough,” that our products aren’t worthy, that we’re not a big enough market, that we don’t hold influence.

But guess what? If working for the Jets has taught me anything, it’s that everyone loves an underdog story. Everyone secretly roots for the little guy. And everyone knows that if the small fry wins—we all win. It means things are possible.

That possibility still exists in our industry in Canada. The tech is affordable. It’s out there. The right people in place can make something look really great. And there are still storytellers out there. Of course, you’ve got to get those three magic pieces together—tech, people, and story—which isn’t always easy. Especially because you also need some funding: an executive producer, a bank account, a government grant, a millionaire, a billionaire—somebody to believe in what you’re doing.

I’m just Tessa Potter from Winnipeg, a technician on the ground floor, working to support my family. So, I only have so much bandwidth. But in my small way, I do what I can.

I reached out to Tim Truax from the YYC Podcast Summit this past month. This is the second year they’re doing a summit in Calgary, the week before WABE’s Media & Entertainment Technology Convention. Their vision resonated with me because it is similar: connect, explore, talk about things regionally in hopes that it spurs new collaborations, ideas, and events. Were we also personally connected was talking about the love of technical people running into content people. We’re hoping this year to test these ideas by getting a few more attendees from different areas to come, talk, see us, and tell us what they think and I am hopeful new bridges between the community will be built.

We need to have a place to gather, connect, and learn for the future. Bridging the past—what we’ve learned, the history, the knowledge—and building the future is a kind of ideal dream. But there are smart people out there, just outside the periphery of the big players, fighting every day for their business, trying to make a new connection, sussing out where the next opportunity might be.  

At the same time, there’s never been a moment where being open to opportunity, connection, and conversation is more important. Just because someone hasn’t bought something from you this week and you’re discouraged, doesn’t mean you should stop finding clients and talking to them. Just because a tariff has been announced, doesn’t mean there aren’t possibilities. Just because your business is cutting back, laying off, or being bought and sold, doesn’t mean your path ends here.

Reach out. Ask questions. This is an industry of collaboration, collective thought, and community.

If any of what I said resonates, sign up, share, and please pass on the message of what we’re trying to do up here in Canada, in Calgary this fall. If you work for a broadcast manufacturer anywhere in Canada, we should be on your radar. Even if you can’t sponsor or buy a booth, just come and connect. You’re part of our community and our industry.

To all those sales professionals, I appreciate you more than ever. The pounding the pavement, the reaching out, the connecting, the getting told “no,” the calling back again to remind people you exist. Trying to gain contacts and decision-makers in this marketplace while everyone is squeezing tight to their pocketbook—know that I see you, and I understand you. You play a hugely valuable role in our industry. Keep going. We need you.

To all the underdogs out there trying to make a go in this industry—keep going. If the tipping point happens for one of us, it’s a win for us all. We look forward to celebrating alongside of you.

For every Bell Media radio technician who was on our mailing list, but has now transitioned their email to Vista, for every person from a company that’s been bought or sold, or whose email has changed, you probably aren’t getting our messages. We want to tell you about the programming we’re planning for this fall so you can decide to come to Calgary, Sept. 29 to Oct. 1, at the Calgary Telus Convention Centre.

Please reach out and get back on our list. We don’t want to lose the connection. We look forward to bridging the past and building the future with you at our 75th Anniversary.

The post ‘Everyone loves an underdog story’ appeared first on Broadcast Dialogue.