IAB Shifts NewFronts Calendar, Adds Creator Upfront

The NewFronts are ditching the old playbook.

Today, the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) announced that it would move its annual NewFronts events to March. The events previously took place around the end of April and the first week of May. The ad industry’s annual upfront week events also take place in May.

The IAB noted in a statement that the change allows it to “better align with annual planning and investment cycles.” Next year’s IAB NewFronts will take place from March 23-26, 2026, with the IAB Main Stage taking place on March 25.

“The decision to move IAB NewFronts earlier is a direct response to market feedback and evolution,” said David Cohen, CEO, IAB, in a statement. “The combination of upfronts operating on both a broadcast and calendar cycle, coupled with the always-on nature of digital investments, meant that we needed to develop marketplaces in both the spring and the fall. IAB NewFronts moving to March gives buyers a first-mover advantage in accessing premium inventory across streaming and digital platforms.”

The IAB has been considering changes to the NewFronts calendar for years.

In 2024, Cohen told ADWEEK, “In a world where we’re always-on, 24/7, always optimizing, the question I think we have to ask: Is this the best that we can do? Or do we need to kind of change the timing and change the format?”

In addition to the NewFronts change, the IAB is adding a creator upfront called CreatorFronts. The fall schedule now includes the CreatorFronts on Sept. 15, the Podcast Upfront on Sept. 16, and the PlayFronts for gaming on Sept. 17.