MIPCOM looked to the future.

Pervading this year's MIPCOM was a concern less for the present than for what lay just around the corner. Thoughts of the future loomed as large as a giant inflated promotional doll. For one thing, the word "digital" was on every lip. MIPCOM '98, held from October 5 to October 9, firmly established the reality of digital television. Plans for new digital channel launches, and the content hunger of existing hordes of digital channels, flavored the market. In his Canada Day speech, "The Knowledge-based Society: A Perspective on the Road Ahead," Telesystem Chairman and CEO Charles Sirois pointed out that the proliferation of hundreds of new channels will place companies that provide content in a crucial role.

MIPCOM was also looking forward on a local level. Visitors to PolyGram's tent on the roof of the Palais des Festivals got an excellent view of the construction that will vastly expand the Palais in time for next year's MIPCOM. The looming cranes were a happy foreshadowing of huge, NATPE-like booths to come... and hopefully of fewer treks through the drizzle to tent after tent.

Will more space mean more attendees? Not necessarily. Attendance at MIPCOM, which has shot up dramatically since the market's institution 14 years ago, seems to have hit a plateau. MIPCOM '98 drew 10,430 participants, a three percent increase over 1997's 10,145 participants and a seven percent increase over 1996's 9,776 participants. This represents a leveling off from the early years of the market, when MIPCOM often gained some 1,000 participants a year. The number of participating companies also seems to be stabilizing, going from 2,105 in 1995 to 2,389 in both 1996 and 1997 to 2,530 this year. Ninety-one countries were represented at MIPCOM this year, the same number as in 1995; in both 1996 and 1997, 92 countries were represented. At MIPCOM '98, the U.S. topped the charts with 414 participating companies, while France clocked in with 403 and the U.K brought in 391.

While it may nor have been the most represented in terms of numbers, Canada had a strong presence on the conference program. On Canada Day, October 6, sessions and a luncheon fostered a feeling of community among the maple-leaf crowd. In his speech, Telesystem's Sirois offered small Canadian companies tips on how to compete in an industry filled with massive players. At the panel "Canada: A Partner of International Caliber," representatives of Atlantis Releasing, Cinar and Telefilm Canada discussed the flourishing field of Canadian co-productions. Another area of Canadian strength, children's television, was the subject of the afternoon panel, "Children's Television: An Important Niche Market," which featured executives from Nelvana, YTV Canada and The Coscient Group. And, in a sly tribute to its country of origin, Alliance Atlantis passed out bottles of maple syrup at a cocktail party that evening.