MIPCOM CANNES · 2026

Agoris analysis · updated September 2026

Key takeaways

• MIPCOM CANNES is the international market for audiovisual and entertainment content: four days of rights negotiation, co-production, financing and distribution, bringing together studios, broadcasters, streaming platforms, distributors, digital creators and brands.
• Organiser: RX France, which also runs the children's spin-off MIPJUNIOR, the London market MIP London and MIP Cancún.
• Next edition: the 42nd MIPCOM CANNES, from Monday 12 to Thursday 15 October 2026, at the Palais des Festivals et des Congrès, 1 boulevard de la Croisette, Cannes. MIPJUNIOR is held as a pre-market on 10 and 11 October 2026, at the same venue.
• Results of the last edition (2025, 41st): more than 10,600 delegates from 107 countries, 3,340 buyers and 350 exhibiting companies, 88 of which were exhibiting for the first time.
• Two new features launched for 2026: the "MIP AI Entertainment Forum" and "MIP BrandWorks", joined by a "Microdrama & Vertical Content" programme announced in July 2026.
• A 100% professional, English-speaking event: access is via a paid badge, with an early bird rate shown from 1,550 € excl. VAT on the official website.

Who exhibits

Typical profile

MIPCOM CANNES is not an equipment trade show or a public-facing event: it is a rights market. The stands are occupied by international programme distributors, production studios, broadcast channels and groups, streaming platforms, format companies, international sales agencies, and national pavilions grouping together companies from the same country. Over recent editions, this historic base has broadened to include digital creators, creator economy platforms and advertisers producing their own content.

On the visitor side, the audience is made up of programme buyers, commissioning editors, heads of acquisitions, producers, investors and brand executives. In 2025, the organiser recorded 3,340 buyers, mainly from the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany, France and Spain, out of a total of 107 countries represented across the market.

Notable exhibitors

The list of confirmed exhibiting and buying companies is published and updated by the organiser on the participants page of the official website, which also offers downloadable lists. For the 2026 edition, YouTube announced an expanded presence, with a programme of keynotes and workshops devoted to distribution, monetisation and digital growth, led by Pedro Pina, Vice President YouTube EMEA, and Justin Connolly, Vice President, Global Head of Media & Sports. UTOPAI STUDIOS is the title partner of the inaugural MIP AI Entertainment Forum.

Quality of the audience

The market operates on a very tight seller/buyer ratio: around a third of delegates are identified buyers. This is the main characteristic of MIPCOM compared with high-volume trade shows: total attendance has stayed stable at around 10,500 to 10,600 delegates since 2024, but almost all participants are in a decision-making or recommending position on rights purchases. At the time of writing, the organiser was showing more than 220 exhibitor stands and more than 500 buying companies already confirmed for 2026, sales-in-progress figures that are not comparable to the results of a past edition.

Events & community

Conference programme

The conference programme is a pillar of the event, on a par with the market itself. It is organised around several established formats: the "C-Suite Conversations" presented in partnership with Variety, the "MIP Innovation Lab", the "MIP Creative Hub", the "Fresh TV by The Wit" screening sessions and the "BrandStorytelling Summit".

For 2026, RX France launched three new elements: the "MIP AI Entertainment Forum", devoted to artificial intelligence applied to content production and distribution, "MIP BrandWorks", dedicated to brand-produced content, and a "Microdrama & Vertical Content" programme focused on short vertical formats.

Awards and accolades

The "Variety Vanguard Award", presented jointly by Variety and MIPCOM CANNES, recognises an individual for their contribution to the global entertainment industry. Bela Bajaria, Chief Content Officer of Netflix, is the 2026 recipient, with the presentation scheduled for opening day.

The "MIP SDG Award", created in 2020, rewards television players who advance the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals through their content, campaigns or corporate practices.

Community & networks

MIPCOM CANNES is part of an annual line-up operated by RX France: MIPJUNIOR as a pre-market in Cannes on 10 and 11 October 2026, MIP London in February and MIP Cancún in November. This line-up was reshaped in 2025: MIPTV, Cannes' historic spring gathering, held its 61st and final edition that year and was replaced by MIP London, whose second edition was held from 22 to 24 February 2026.

The market's editorial direction is overseen by Lucy Smith, director of RX France's Entertainment division and director of MIPCOM CANNES and MIP London.

The Palais des Festivals also hosts other international markets operated by the same group, notably MIPIM for real estate in spring and ILTM Cannes for luxury travel in late November/early December.

On site: what you need to know

For access, parking and accommodation, see the venue page: Palais des Festivals et des Congrès (1 boulevard de la Croisette, 06400 Cannes).

Specific to the market: the organiser runs a free shuttle from hotels located outside Cannes, and points to the TER ZOU rail connections for neighbouring towns. From Nice Côte d'Azur airport, bus line 81 is shown from 19.50 €, and a taxi transfer at 88 € for 1 to 4 passengers (night rate applicable between 7pm and 7am). The P01 car park, beneath the Palais, has accessible spaces. Accommodation runs through the official partner bnetwork, which negotiates preferential rates and specific booking terms: this is a point to handle well in advance, as Cannes' hotel capacity is saturated during market week. The organiser's helpdesk can be reached on (+33) 1 47 56 51 00, Monday to Friday from 9am to 6pm.

How much it costs to exhibit

Preparing your visit

For the exhibitor

• Decide early between the three exhibition formats: turnkey without decoration, turnkey with decoration, or bare space entrusted to your own stand contractor. This choice determines the production schedule.
• Check the registration quota included in the booked surface area: additional badges are charged at the participant rate, which rises the further you book from the early bird deadline.
• Book accommodation as soon as reservations open via the official partner bnetwork: market week saturates Cannes' hotel supply.
• Populate your profile in the participants directory and the online screening library in advance: this is buyers' point of entry before they arrive.
• For children's catalogues, look at MIPJUNIOR as a pre-market (10-11 October 2026) and the MIPJUNIOR Pitch, for which the entry deadline was set at 20 August 2026.

For the decision-making visitor

• Block out the whole week: four days of market, preceded by two days of MIPJUNIOR for children's buyers. The pace is one of back-to-back meetings, not a stroll between stands.
• Prepare your agenda using the lists of confirmed exhibitors and buyers published by the organiser, and the participants directory, before arriving in Cannes.
• Identify the useful conferences in advance: the programme serves as both a barometer of the market and an opportunity for meetings. The 2026 additions on AI, brand content and vertical formats target distinct needs.
• Plan ahead for access from Nice airport and for parking: the Croisette is difficult to navigate by car during the market.

Policy & CSR initiatives

RX France publishes an "Our commitments" page specific to MIPCOM CANNES, which ties the event to the group's targets: halving greenhouse gas emissions by 2030 and reaching carbon neutrality by 2040, with RX and its parent company RELX being signatories of the Net Zero Carbon Events Pledge and the Climate Pledge.

At the level of the event itself, the stated commitments are operational and measurable: a target of reducing waste by 10% at each edition compared with the previous one, increasing recycling and recovery by 5% per edition, progressively reducing carpet use and systematically recycling offcuts, eliminating single-use plastic items (bags, disposable tableware and cutlery, bottles, promotional gifts), using reusable and recyclable materials such as cardboard and coated canvas, vegetarian options at catering points, and applying UNIMEV's energy sobriety plan for professional events.

On the social side, the organiser states guaranteed access for people with disabilities across all stands, a code of conduct binding on participants, a guide to inclusive events published by RX, and a commitment to diversity and representativeness in the composition of conference speaker panels. The MIP SDG Award extends this approach on the editorial front, recognising content and practices aligned with the UN Sustainable Development Goals.

The venue adds a further layer of verifiable guarantees. The Palais des Festivals et des Congrès, operated by SEMEC, is certified ISO 20121 (responsible management of event activity) since 2022, ISO 9001 since 2009 and ISO 18788 since 2019, labelled Tourisme & Handicap since 2012 and Destination Innovante Durable since 2023. It also became, in December 2022, the first congress centre to adopt "société à mission" (mission-led company) status.

How the trade show has evolved

Trajectory analysis

In terms of volume, MIPCOM is a mature, stable market: around 10,500 delegates in 2024, a little over 10,600 in 2025, with buyer numbers edging up (3,240 then 3,340). The event is no longer chasing attendance growth, but reshaping its participant mix.

That is where the real movement lies. The group's calendar was overhauled in 2025 with the discontinuation of MIPTV after 61 editions and its replacement by MIP London in February, which concentrates the autumn gathering on Cannes and makes MIPCOM the sole Cannes highlight of the content market. At the same time, the opening up to digital creators and brands, reflected in YouTube's strong presence and the 2026 launches (MIP AI Entertainment Forum, MIP BrandWorks, microdrama and vertical content programme), is shifting the centre of gravity from a television rights market towards a broader content market. For an exhibitor, this means a buyer audience less exclusively made up of traditional broadcasters, and competition for attention that extends beyond the programme catalogue.

The geographic anchor, meanwhile, is not changing: the Palais des Festivals remains the sole venue, and the 2027 dates had not yet been announced at the time of writing.

Unless otherwise stated, all factual data in this listing comes from the organiser's official website (mipcom.com).