FIPP101: The Fundamentals of Media’s Future.

As we enter our 101st year, we’re bringing together the brightest minds in the media industry for a masterclass in what’s next – sharing insights, challenging assumptions, and building the partnerships that will define our future.

Programme is still in build mode, subject to changes.

Madrid. October 13-15. Be there.

Monday, October 12

Fiesta Nacional de España

Monday 12th October is a National Bank Holiday in Spain. The city will be busy with with celebrations and parades.

As such, there are no official FIPP Congress activities scheduled for this day. That said, we encourage you to come early and use this day to rest and explore the local area at your own pace before Congress kicks off!

 

Tuesday, October 13

Welcome to Madrid

If you’re already in Madrid, this is the day to settle in and let the city do its thing.

We’re offering two ways to spend the day, so take your pick!
Walking Tour & Museum Visit — A guided walk through Madrid’s historic centre, finishing with a visit to the Museo Nacional Thyssen-Bornemisza and its extraordinary collection of European art. Includes a guided tour, English-speaking guide and audio headset. (4 hours)

Aranjuez & Wine Tasting — Travel to the beautiful royal town of Aranjuez, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, for a guided visit of the Royal Palace and gardens. Continue to Casa del Valle Winery for a guided wine tasting in the countryside. Includes bus transfer, guided visits and English-speaking guide. (5 hours)

And what an evening it will be! We’ll bring the full Congress community together for the official Welcome Evening — at the Botanical Terrace, inside the Linares Palace. One of the most emblematic buildings in Madrid, the Terrace is a covered space surrounded by vegetation, full of natural light, elegant and a little unexpected — an oasis in the heart of the city, and the perfect place to meet your fellow delegates for the first time.

Tuesday 13 October. Clear your diary.

 

Wednesday, October 14 | Congress, Day One

FIPP STAGE

08:00 - 09:15

Networking and Meetings

09:15 - 09:20

Welcome & Housekeeping

Natasha Christie-Miller, Media Advisor, NED and Chair

09:20 - 09:40

FIPP & ARI Official Welcome

Andres Rodriguez, Founder and President, SPAINMEDIA and ARI, Spain

Alastair Lewis, Executive Director, FIPP: Consumer & Special Interest Media, WAN-IFRA

09:40 - 10:05

Building a Robust Media Ecosystem: Thriving Through Technological, Geopolitical, and Market Shocks

Christian van Thillo, Executive Chairman, DPG Media, Belgium

In conversation with Colin Morrison CBE, Founder-Publisher, Flashes & Flames, The Global Media Business Weekly, UK

10:05 - 10:30

Owning the Lane: Why Depth Beats Reach in Modern Media

Goli Sheikholeslami, CEO, POLITICO Media Group, USA

10:30 - 10:55

Launch of the 2026/7 Innovation in Specialist Media World Report

Juan Señor, President, INNOVATION Media Consulting, UK

10:55 - 11:15

Networking Coffee & Meetings

11:15 - 11:35

Deep Niches, Deep Pockets: Memberships, Events and Smart Acquisitions in Specialist Media

Andy Clurman, Executive Chairman, The Equine Network and Active Interest Media

11:35 - 11:55

Depth Wins: Subscription Sports Journalism at International Scale

Laura Williamson, Editor-in-Chief, The Athletic

11:55 - 12:00

Sponsor spotlight

Labrador

12:00 - 12:20

From the BBC to Specialist Media: The Next Evolution of the User Needs Model

Dmitry Shishkin, Independent Media Advisor and Board Member, WAN-Ifra, UK

12:20 - 12:40

Verticals Pay the Bills: Lessons from Spain's Biggest Sports and Business Media Brands

Laura Múgica Codina, Managing Director and Board Member, Unidad Editorial, Spain

Interviewed by Yolanda Ausín, General Manager, ARI, Spain

12:40 - 13:00

The Prosumer Play: Every Sports Story Is a Business Story

Adam White, Founder and CEO, Front Office Sports.

Interviewed by Colin Morrison, Founder-Publisher, Flashes & Flames, The Global Media Weekly, UK

13:00 - 14:00

Networking lunch

14:00 - 14:20

Getting Paid in the Age of Answer Engines: A People Inc.’s AI Model

Jonathan Roberts, Chief Innovation Officer, People Inc., USA

14:20 - 14:40

Advertising in the Age of Everything

Veebha Mehta, Chief Operating Officer, Crain Communications, USA

14:40 - 15:00

The Enduring Effectiveness of Premium Print Advertising: What the Data Shows

UPM

Speaker interviewed by Amanda Wigginton, Strategy and Insight Consultant, Amanda Wigginton Consulting Limited, UK

15:00 - 15:05

Partner spotlight

Bridged Media

 

 

15:05 - 15:25

Sponsor spotlight

Woodwing

15:25 - 15:45

The Art and Science of the Idea: TED's Formula for Storytelling to Global Communities

Cyndi Stivers, Director of Curation, TED Conferences

15:45 - 16:20

Networking coffee

16:20 - 16:40

Solo Founder, No Limits: How MANERA Took Spanish Design Global

Enric Pastor, Founder and Editor, MANERA Ediciones, Spain

16:40 - 17:00

Rebuilding the Operating Model Behind Inc. and Fast Company

Anne Marie O’Keefe, COO, Mansueto Ventures, USA

17:00 - 17:05

Pause

17:05 - 17:25

The Magnificent Turnaround of DIE ZEIT

Dr Rainer Esser, CEO, DIE ZEIT, Germany

17:25 - 17:45

From One Show To Around The World: What It Takes to Build a Global Media Brand at Speed

Georgie Holt, Co-founder and CEO, FlightStory, UK

17:45 -

Wrap of Day 1

18:00 -

Taste of Madrid

A choice of ways to experience the city after hours. Food, culture or football – pick what suits you. Full details coming soon.

Wednesday, October 14 | Congress, Day One

FIPP101

10:55 - 11:15

Networking coffee

11:15 - 11:35

Global Content Licensing: Your Blueprint for Incremental Revenue

Michelle Myers, Chief Revenue Officer, Wright’s Media, USA

11:35 - 11:55

Premium Print Reinvention and Revenue Diversification: The Newsweek Journey

Kylie McCoy, Vice President of Strategic Marketing, Newsweek, USA

Roy Lee, Chief Of Staff, Newsweek, USA

11:55 - 12:00

Pause

12:00 - 12:40

Community as the Business Model

Jean-Paul Reparon, Managing Director, AgriMedia, The Netherlands

Nina Wagner, Group VP Publishing and Operations, Alive Media, Canada

Stefanie Maier, Director of Loyalty and Events, Süddeutsche Zeitung, Germany

14:40 - 13:00

Sponsor spotlight

Pressreader

13:00 - 14:00

Networking Lunch

14:00 - 14:20

Continuous Innovation: Reimagining content for the mobile-first generation

Joe Pickover, Head of Video Services, PA Media

Andrew Bailey, Global Content and Editorial Leader, Samsung News, UK

14:20 - 14:40

Session details coming soon

Alex Poderoso, Digital Director, RBA Revistas, Spain

14:40 - 15:00

Sponsor spotlight

Darwin

15:00 - 15:05

Pause

15:05 - 15:25

Sponsor spotlight

Atlas

15:25 - 15:45

Pivot to Premium: Taking Subscriptions Upmarket

Daisy Donald, Propositions Lead – Economist Pro, The Economist Group, UK

15:45 - 16:20

Networking coffee

16:20 - 16:40

From Content to Companion: How Media Brands Can Build Deeper Relationships in the AI Era

Irene Smit, Creative Director, Flow Magazine, and Editor-in-Chief, Psychologie Magazine, Roularta Media Nederland, The Netherlands

16:40 - 17:00

Sponsor spotlight

Goalhanger

17:00 - 17:05

Pause

17:05 - 17:25

Sponsor spotlight

MonetizationOS

17:25 - 17:45

The Rise of AI Licensing Markplaces

Speaker details coming soon

Interviewed by Kevin Anderson, Director, Digital Revenue, WAN-Ifra

17:45 -

Wrap of Day 1

18:15 -

Taste of Madrid

A choice of ways to experience the city after hours. Food, culture or football – pick what suits you. Full details coming soon.

Thursday, October 15 | Congress, Day Two

FIPP STAGE

08:45 - 09:45

Networking & Meetings

09:45 - 09:50

Welcome back

09:50 - 10:10

The Big Picture: Organisational Design and Culture for the AI era

Reeva Misra, Founder and CEO, Walking on Earth, UK

10:10 - 10:30

Organisational Design in Practice: Lessons for Media from NYT, Bayer, and Palantir

Selma Stern, Independent Advisor, Germany

10:30 - 10:35

Pause

10:35 - 10:55

The Trust Economy

Linda Thomas Brooks, Media Consultant and Board Advisor USA

10:55 - 11:20

Making the Rules Stick: Aligning Publishers, Platforms and Politics

Paul Fletcher, Former Minister for Communications, Urban Infrastructure, Cities & the Arts, former MP

Ricky Sutton, Publisher, Future Media, Author and Thought Leader, Australia

11:20 - 11:45

Networking coffee

11:45 - 12:05

Owning the Next Generation: Building a Media Business on Community, Not Platforms

Stephanie Kaplan-Lewis, Co-founder and CEO, Her Campus Media, USA

12:05 - 12:25

Super-Serving the C-Suite: How HBR Is Turning Audience Focus into Growth

Erika Heilman, Group Publisher and Senior Vice President , Harvard Business Review, USA

12:25 - 12:45

Systems Thinking in the Newsroom: The Guardian's Approach to Technology

Pooja Bagga, Group Chief Information Officer, The Guardian, UK

12:45 - 13:45

Networking lunch & meetings

13:45 - 14:25

The Next Billion Readers: Media Growth and Reinvention in the Global South

Panel

Ha Mi Tran, Publisher, Marie Claire, and Founder and CEO, Style Republik, Vietnam

Minette Ferreira, CEO: Media, Media24, South Africa

Mariam M Mathew, CEO, Manorama Online, India

Interviewed by Suprio Thukarta, Independent Media Advisor of former Chief Strategy Officer, The Economist, India

14:25 - 14:45

Trusted Brands in Contested Markets: The Return of Quality

Session details TBC

14:45 - 15:05

Stop Selling Magazines, Start Building Audiences: Kids Trusted Media Initiative

Yulia Boyle, Founder and Principal, YPB Media, USA 

Lulu Skantze, Publisher, Storytime, The Netherlands

15:05 - 15:45

Follow the Money: Where Does Media Value Go Next?

Panel

Details coming soon

15:45 -

Where to next?

Close of FIPP Congress 2026

Thursday, October 15 | Congress, Day Two

FIPP101

08:45 - 09:45

Networking & meetings

09:45 - 09:50

Welcome to Day two

09:50 - 10:10

The Creator Economy as a Revenue Opportunity for Publishers: How Collaboration with Creators can Grow Audiences and Unlock New Advertising Revenue

Christian Toksvig, Co-founder and CEO, Cocoa Media, Denmark

10:10 - 10:30

Session details TBC

10:30 - 10:35

Pause

10:35 - 10:55

Global Change: How Marie Claire Navigates Luxury’s New Realities

Nicia Rodwell, International Brand Director, Marie Claire International, France

10:55 - 11:20

From Barista to Media Founder: Building An Aussie Success Story Now Cracking the UK

Nick Shelton, Founder and CEO, Broadsheet, Australia and the UK

Interviewed by Colin Morrison CBE, Founder-Publisher, Flashes & Flames: The Media Business Weekly, UK

11:20 - 11:45

Networking Coffee & Meetings

11:45 - 12:05

The Differentiation Economy: Winning on Trust, Taste and Editorial Authority

Charlotte Cijffers, Chief Digital Officer, ITP Media Group, UAE

12:05 - 12:25

Lessons from Africa: When the Paywall Runs o

Gary Rathbone, Founder, Sportscape Media, South Africa

12:25 - 12:45

How Sifted Built a Thriving EU-wide B2B Vertical

Florencia Schiavon, CEO, Sifted, UK

12:45 - 13:45

Networking Lunch

Friday, October 16

El Escorial!

A short journey from Madrid, the Royal Monastery of San Lorenzo de El Escorial is one of Spain’s most extraordinary sites — a vast complex encompassing a basilica, monastery, school, library and royal gardens, all set against dramatic mountain scenery. What a way to end this week!