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Watch: Hickory Global Partners Announces Strategic Alliance with SmartSource

Hickory Global Partners announced a strategic alliance with SmartSource Computer & Audio Visual Rentals this week. SmartSource is one of the nation’s leaders in AV technology solutions for businesses. Hickory creates global partnerships between travel managers and suppliers. The agreement makes SmartSource Hickory’s preferred partner for various technology rentals and leading-edge technologies. Hickory’s members will…

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Watch: Hickory Global Partners Announces Strategic Alliance with SmartSource

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Hickory Global Partners announced a strategic alliance with SmartSource Computer & Audio Visual Rentals this week. SmartSource is one of the nation’s leaders in AV technology solutions for businesses. Hickory creates global partnerships between travel managers and suppliers.

The agreement makes SmartSource Hickory’s preferred partner for various technology rentals and leading-edge technologies. Hickory’s members will now have access to a suite of computers, A/V tools, projectors, interactive displays, and other technological advances.

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IBC2026 Previews Show Vendors Pitching Orchestration Platforms

IBC2026 Previews Show Vendors Pitching Orchestration Platforms

Pre-show coverage of IBC2026, held September 11-14 in Amsterdam, shows several vendors including Telestream, PlayBox Neo and Zixi framing announcements around workflow orchestration and hybrid transport reliability rather than single products. Separately, NewscastStudio reported EverPass expanded its Netflix-linked deal to distribute the full NFL slate to bars and restaurants.

  • 01Telestream, PlayBox Neo, and Zixi are leading with orchestration and resilience messaging ahead of IBC2026 in Amsterdam, September 11-14.
  • 02Verify orchestration and resilience claims through vendor documentation, reference calls, and hands-on evaluation before committing to platforms.
  • 03Request documented API boundaries, interoperability testing evidence, and failure detection demonstrations rather than relying on marketing descriptions.

Sep 10, 2026

Software updates are now a buying event at IBC2026

Software updates are now a buying event at IBC2026

At IBC2026 in Amsterdam, Clear-Com and TSL are sending a similar operational message from different angles: the next hard problems are control, monitoring, and safe change in IP workflows. Clear-Com’s Eclipse HX EHX v15 adds ARC (Access Resource Configuration), which the company says enables access to intercom ports and resources without adding hardware, and expands capacity and resource management, according to Sports Video Group. AVNation reports TSL is emphasizing “reduced complexity” for control and monitoring across IP workflows. For ops leaders, the takeaway is to treat qualification, rollback planning, change windows, and licensing and support terms as first-class spec items.

  • 01Clear-Com is attaching new intercom access and resource controls to Eclipse HX via EHX v15 and ARC, so refresh planning shifts from “replace frames” to qualify releases, plan rollbacks and schedule change windows, according to Sports Video Group.
  • 02For distributed productions, FreeSpeak Cell leans on LTE and 5G rather than venue cabling, shifting runbooks toward coverage assumptions, service management and fallbacks when cellular performance drops, according to Sports Video Group.
  • 03AVNation reports TSL is pushing “reduced complexity” for control and monitoring across IP workflows, a sign that configuration, visibility and alarm routing are becoming day-to-day requirements, not optional add-ons.

Sep 8, 2026

AV integrators are buying scale because meeting rooms now run like software

AV integrators are buying scale because meeting rooms now run like software

Forté’s acquisition of Vega Global, adding more than 750 employees across 17 APAC countries, is a prominent 2026 sign of consolidation in enterprise AV, according to AV Magazine. At InfoComm 2026, Cisco, Crestron and HP showed room platforms centered on ongoing management, with Cisco and NVIDIA introducing RoomOS 26 AI agents that run on in-room hardware and HP tying Poly Lens to its Workforce Experience Platform, as reported by AVIXA and HP. Separately, Cisco’s Webex AI roadmap adds “agentic” automation and governance that reaches beyond room systems into the contact center and workforce management, according to No Jitter. As a result, standards, telemetry, security and service-level performance are taking a larger role in how contracts are evaluated, influencing both vendor choice and integrator consolidation.

  • 01When services are 38% of channel revenue and hardware is 36%, the integrator RFP stops being about the bill of materials and starts being about uptime, monitoring and lifecycle outcomes, per AV Magazine citing AVIXA channel research.
  • 02“Edge AI in the room” shifts how outages and performance issues play out: RoomOS 26 adds on-device agents and features such as Audio Zones that can lessen reliance on cloud connectivity, but it also increases requirements for endpoint compute, device governance and disciplined update processes, according to AVIXA and rAVe [PUBS].
  • 03Consolidation is becoming a procurement feature: Forté’s move from a federation model to owned operations signals multinationals want one throat to choke for standards, security and service outcomes across regions, per AV Magazine.

Sep 1, 2026

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