Broadcasting Leaders Convene to Ponder the Future of the Industry

It is to no one's surprise that the broadcast industry is feeling the pinch from the Internet, mobile and other new channels of content distribution - especially since the Hollywood writer's strike that brought production to a grinding halt and made even more people aware of the importance of broadband as a new and emerging broadcast medium.

Don't be fooled by all that hype of a 'special' treat for viewers of commercial-free programming and news broadcasts. It simple means the ad folks couldn't sell spots because they are priced way too high, the prime audience demographics have shifted, or there is no clear way to measure who is watching what and when (if at all!).

At the end of this month, some leading television broadcasters and executives who are involved in one of the largest segments of television broadcasting - TV drama - will gather in Los Angeles to talk about new approaches to content creation, delivery and distribution as well as the impact and potential of cross-platform distribution channels like the Internet and mobile.

Drama Summit New Frontiers, New Partners, created and produced by MediaXchange Ltd., will take place from June 25 - 27 place at the elite London West Hollywood Hotel in Los Angeles. It is an intensive three-day event exploring options and opportunities in global TV drama and associated and evolving new media applications. Leading TV professionals will tackle the issues of storytelling and content creation, new financial models, multi-territory production, new audience demographics and cross platform distribution and marketing.

Sponsors of the conference include: NATPE, Fox Television Studios, CBS, Telefe Int'l, RDF/Pangea Management, Yankee Group, Avot Media, C21 Media, The Hollywood Reporter and others.

A key focus of the event will be a strategic look at how future audiences will best be
accessed and serviced in a multi-platform world, and what the impact will be on existing and evolving revenue channels.

The Drama Summit will also include a new media technology lunch and exhibition spotlighting some of the more innovative approaches to content creation and distribution. The exhibition will be hosted by John Jackson, vice president of Yankee Group's Enabling Technologies team, who will will introduce companies and organizations that have developed technologies and approaches have the potential to impact the future of broadcasting. These organizations include: the AFI Content Lab, presented by Suzanne Stefanac; Avot media, hosted by CEO DeWayne Nelon; and Sweden’s Interactive iEmmy Winner, Christopher Sandberg (thecompanyP).

Presentations will be followed up by a panel discussion, moderated by Yankee Group's Jackson, that will include all the representatives from exhibiting companies who will discuss the potential opportunities and impact of these new technologies on broadcasting's future. Audience members will also have the chance to ask question of this highly qualified cast of experts.

Sessions and Speakers include:

Keynote
- Emiliano Calemzuk, President, Fox TV Studios

Cross Platform Distribution
- Brian Seth Hurst, CEO, The Opportunity Management Company
- Philip Jay, Head of New Services, Future Media, BBC
- Christopher Sandberg, CEO, thecompanyP, Interactive iEmmy Winner 2008
- Christian Cussen, Director of Content and Marketing, MySpaceTV
- Jim Brooks, Cap Gemini/Vodaphone

Content Creation and Adaptation
- David Stapf, President, CBS Paramount Network Television
- James Duff, Creator/Showrunner, The Closer, TNT
- David Zucker, President TV, Scott Free Productions
- Emiliano Sarconna, SVP and Managing Editor, Fox Latin AmericaChannels
- Jeff Wachtel, ExVP Original Programming, USA Networks
- Chris Coelen, CEO, RDF USA/Pangea Management
- Alex Holmes, Executive Producer, House of Saddham, BBC/HBO

New Financial Models
- Peter Tortoricci, Global Executive, Group M Entertainment
- Sandra Stern, ExVP and COO, Lionsgate
- Rola Bauer, MD, Tandem Communications
- Daniel Hetzer, VP Programming & Co-Productions, FtvS
- Julie Meldal Johnson, Granada USA
- Sandra Stern, ExVP and COO, Lionsgate
- John Jackson, VP Enabling Technologies, Yankee Group

Production Advances
- Marc Lorber, SVP Production, Marvista Entertainment
- Gonzalo Cilley, Head of International, Telefe
- Diego Suarez, SVP Programming, FtvS
- Nathan Mayfield, CCO, Hoodlum Entertainment

Summit Round Up
- Rick Feldman, President, NATPE

Closing Keynote
- Lee Bartlett, COO, ITV Global Content

Registration for the event is now open. To find out more and reserve a spot at this unique and important event, please go to the Drama Summit Web site at:

http://www.mediaxchange.com/dramasummit/index.php

Taking Care of Mobile Business. Not!

While you might get the impression from the postings in this blog and elsewhere that mobile media is strictly reserved for consumers who have way too much time on their hands, there is a definite enterprise angle to the medium.

In fact, a number of companies in the U.S. are now using mobile video and graphics-rich messaging to channel information to customers and suppliers, and improve their customer-facing capabilities. Companies are also driving new revenue and expanding channels of opportunity through mobile media.

More on this in later postings, however. Today, I would like to present the findings of an interesting study commission by Visage Mobile that focuses on managing the increasing flood of mobile devices in the enterprise.

One major point revealed in the study, which involved some 600 mobile users: Although IT managers have spent the last decade working to get their technology infrastructure under control, many are stumped when it comes to managing employee mobile assets such as smart phones . In fact, IT departments are stretched thin to support these devices, and as a result may be holding off on buying decisions (our theory, anyway).

Most employees are uninformed and disengaged when it comes to monitoring and managing their corporate issued mobile devices, says the study, pointing out that more than 60% of the respondents in the survey report not having a formal policy for managing mobile devices.

Other key findings:

-- More than 60% of employees waited three weeks or longer to be issued
their mobile devices after being hired.

-- 80% of respondents are using their corporate issued mobile device for
personal use.
-- 8% of respondents have had a corporate-issued device with potentially
sensitive enterprise data either lost or stolen.

Add cellular wireless cards to the mix, as well as the looming presence of WiMAX and truly capable mobile broadband and you have a magilla that goes way beyond just IT into sales, human resources, finance and that guy on the loading dock who spends more time thinking about lunch than doing his job!

Want more info on the study? Visit Visage Mobile at http://www.visagemobile.com. Have your own thoughts on the problem? Drop me a line or comment and start a dialogue.