Bitfocus wins IBC2026 Best of Show Award for latest Buttons enhancements
Published on September 21, 2026
Press ReleaseTrade Showsv1.8AwardsButtons
Version 1.8 recognised for new workflow tools, boosted control panel flexibility and ease of integration into IP networks
Bitfocus has won a Future’s Best of Show Award at IBC2026, presented by AV Technology, for version 1.8 of Buttons, its workflow design, control and monitoring platform for rich media implementations.
Future’s Best of Show Awards are selected by a panel of engineers and industry experts who evaluate new products and solutions at IBC, based on innovation, functionality, feature set, value and the potential to address the evolving needs of the broadcast and professional AV industries. Buttons v1.8 was developed around many of those same priorities, with expanded functionality and ease of use shaped directly by feedback from its growing user base.
The heritage of Buttons means it is able to control and monitor virtually any combination of equipment from any vendor: there are close to 900 APIs and interfaces already in the library, with the total continuing to grow as the industry expands. Buttons provides first a simple and intuitive means of building complex equipment platforms into logical connectivity and workflows, then completely focused control surfaces for show time, using equipment setups like the Elgato Stream Deck range
Version 1.8 of Buttons, which made its debut at IBC2026, is designed to make the creation and execution of rich architectures and workflows even faster and simpler. Smarter routing tools, with automatic path-finding, mean users need do no more than drag source and destination together, without needing to understand the underlying hardware of routers, converters and tie-lines. In IP networks Buttons now incorporates its own NMOS registry server for transparent discovery and interoperability.
The release incorporates other key functionality requested by real-world users, including multiple timers and countdown clocks to trigger timed and conditional events; HTTP query and request nodes to allow automation from remote systems; interoperability with TSL tally management; and heightened security with LDAP/Active Directory and OIDC single sign-on and smart role syncing.
“We are excited and honoured to receive this award,” said Ole-Andreas Løvland, Bitfocus CEO. “But, as exciting as a trophy is, the real reward comes from meeting and exceeding our users’ expectations. We continue to drive forward the functionality in response to suggestions from our users – broadcast production companies, sports federations, major AV contractors and more.
“They make these suggestions because they are already relying on Buttons for mission-critical control every day, and are constantly finding new ways to make their operations simpler, more creative and more reliable,” Løvland said. “While we are celebrating our new award, we are back to the hard work of delivering systems to users around the world, and continuing our rolling development programme to make Buttons even greater.”
About Bitfocus
Bitfocus (bitfocus.io) is the Norwegian powerhouse redefining how the world controls and monitors complex AV and broadcast environments. Founded by pioneers in real-world production, the team specialises in building intuitive, high-performance and practical tools designed to solve the industry’s most demanding workflow challenges.
Bitfocus first revolutionised the market with Companion, the industry-standard software that brought professional control to a global community. Today the company leads the way with Buttons, an enterprise-read platform engineered for mission-critical reliability. By combining secure access, dynamic routing and SNMP monitoring with its signature user-centric design, Bitfocus delivers the scalable, flexible solutions trusted by the world’s most elite broadcast and live event teams.
