RX France Shuts MIP London, Launches MIP Talks at Book Fair

**RX France Ends MIP London After Two Years, Launches New MIP Talks Conference at the London Book Fair**

After just two editions, the MIP London market will not return for a third edition in 2027. RX France has announced a new two‑day event, MIP Talks, set to run alongside the London Book Fair in March. The conference will focus on intellectual property, fandom, and emerging global business opportunities.

MIP London debuted in 2025 following the 2024 demise of MIPTV, the long‑standing spring market for international television in Cannes. It operated concurrently with the London TV Screenings at the Savoy Hotel and a nearby venue.

Although it attracted high‑profile speakers such as David Beckham and Netflix content chief Bela Bajaria, attendance dipped to about 2,000 this year, down from 2025, amid stiff competition from distributor‑run events and packed buyer schedules.

The short life of MIP London reflects broader shifts in the media landscape. RX’s Entertainment Division Director Lucy Smith has been reshaping MIPCOM—Europe’s largest television market—into an IP‑centric gathering for creators, brands, platforms, buyers, and sellers.

This re‑engineering signals a pivot toward more flexible and interdisciplinary industry events.

## Background & Context

MIPTV’s 2024 closure left a void for springtime television networking in Cannes. In response, RX France launched MIP London the following year, staging it at the Savoy Hotel and a neighboring venue during the London TV Screenings.

The event aimed to bring international TV professionals together in the UK, but it struggled to distinguish itself amid other London‑based showcases and a crowded buyer calendar.

Attendance figures illustrate this challenge. While MIP London drew a notable lineup of speakers, the number of attendees fell to roughly 2,000 earlier this year, a decline from its inaugural year. Competing distributors continued to host parallel events, and television buyers’ agendas remained heavily booked with established markets.

Lucy Smith’s strategy for MIPCOM involves positioning the event around intellectual property and the intersection of creators, brands, platforms, and market participants. Interviews with Smith highlight her intent to create a space where new IP can be evaluated and commercialized across traditional boundaries.

## What People Are Saying

Lucy Smith emphasized that “MIP has always been about understanding where the entertainment business is going next.” She added that MIP Talks at the London Book Fair will deepen this curiosity, “bringing together the people shaping what breaks through, how fandom is built and where new global businesses are emerging.” Smith also noted, “The boundaries of entertainment have all but disappeared…

IP can come from anywhere, audiences don’t think in sectors and an idea can travel further and faster than ever before.”

Emma Lowe, Director of the London Book Fair, welcomed the partnership: “The London Book Fair is delighted to be working in partnership with the brilliant team at MIP Talks to meld together our fantastic worlds where stories are created, curated and sent out to find ever more fans, more audiences and more homes.”

The shift also coincides with the Children’s Media Conference’s move from Sheffield to the London Book Fair, underscoring a broader trend of media events converging within the book fair’s ecosystem.

## What Happens Next

MIP Talks will run for two days in March, centered on the theme “From IP to Fandom – and Fandom to Global Business.” The conference will align with the London Book Fair at the ExCel venue, which attracts an estimated 30,000 visitors annually.

By merging television and literary communities, RX hopes to spark new collaborations across entertainment, media, and culture.

The launch of MIP Talks marks a strategic realignment for RX France. While MIP London concludes after two years, the company continues to evolve MIPCOM into an IP‑driven marketplace. No further editions of MIP London are scheduled for 2027 or beyond.

The industry will watch closely to see whether MIP Talks can fill the niche left by its predecessor and how the fusion of TV and book fair audiences reshapes future content‑distribution conversations.