Wednesday, January 4 9:00 AM - 10:15 AM Track I - GP1: Broadband Games Expand – From the Casual to the Networked PC Universe Casual games are now big business. With all the major players from AOL, Yahoo and Microsoft right in the middle of the action, this sector is the hottest new player in the games field. With the expansion of the games industry reaching into all demographic sectors, from kids to hard core gamers and now with women, seniors and teens being drawn further into games, whether through the expansion of PC and broadband, portable players and mobile devices, through interactive TV or simply through the greatness of the new consoles, the casual gaming experience, facilitated by the downloading opportunity on all platforms is driving a formidable marketplace. What will this market look like in the future? How will the games played evolve? What will the growth from simple to sophisticated game and game player look like? We are just at the start of a new phenomenon. Ralph Rivera, VP & GM, AOL Games, America Online, Inc. Chris Early, Studio Manager, Microsoft Casual Games Wade Tinney, partner & founder, Large Animal Games Romain Nouzareth, President & CEO, BOONTY Inc. Mike Cassidy, CEO, Xfire Dave Williams, CMO and GM Chief Marketing Officer, General Manager, AtomShockwave Daniel Hart, VP, Online Games Strategy and Operations, MTV Networks Digital Media Scott Cohen, President, Game Trust, Inc., Moderator Chris Early, Studio Manager, Microsoft’s Casual Games Group: Chris Early is studio manager for Microsoft’s Casual Games Group. A gaming industry veteran, Chris leads Microsoft’s Casual Games Group in expanding Microsoft’s casual gaming audience and game experiences across multiple platforms. Microsoft’s approach to casual gaming reaches beyond the traditional online segment, tapping into diverse markets that span MSN Games, MSN Messenger, Mobile and Xbox LIVE Arcade. Prior to joining Microsoft, Chris served as chief operating officer of GameSpy and executive vice president and general manager of Mplayer. Chris holds a BA in Economics and International Management from Claremont Men’s College. Ralph Rivera, VP & GM, AOL Games, America Online, Inc.: As Vice President and General Manager of AOL Games, Ralph Rivera is responsible for all programming and business strategy for AOL Games, which provides content, services, and marketing for Web, PC, and console games for AOL members and game fans on the Web. Under Mr. Rivera’s direction, AOL Games continues to offer new initiatives that bring AOL members exclusive content and maximize their overall gaming experience while delivering valuable promotional and marketing benefits to game industry partners. Throughout his career, Mr. Rivera has focused on the intersection of technology and media. Prior to his position at AOL Games, he held executive and staff positions at America Online’s Moviefone, Pearson, Simon & Schuster, Deloitte & Touche, and IBM. He earned his undergraduate degree from Columbia College and an M.B.A. degree from New York University. Consistently ranked among the leading online gaming sites, AOL Games offers online games, exclusive demos of the hottest video games, comprehensive video games information including cheats, tips and reviews, and exclusive original streaming video programming. According to comScore Media Metrix, nearly 9 million game fans visit AOL Games and spend an average of 267 minutes per visitor each month, making games the second most popular activity on AOL behind email/instant messaging based on time spent per account. Romain NOUZARETH, Founder Boonty S.A. - CEO Boonty Inc.: Romain founded Web Concept with his brother in 1995. As Managing Director of Web Concept, later of IconMedialab, he developed and enlarged the agency until April 2001. The business model was innovative: to unite as the core business under a single corporate structure the multiple disciplines of technology, management consulting, marketing and communications. Romain was also a member Jury at the Cannes Lion Festival in 2000, as a speaker in various events. Romain earned a law degree from the University of Paris II Assas, and is an investor in several start-ups as well as an active member of many non-profit associations. Romain is based in New York and is the CEO of Boonty Inc. Wade Tinney, partner & founder, Large Animal Games: Wade has been designing and developing games since 1996. He has a BA in Spanish literature from the University of Delaware and an MFA in Design and Technology from Parsons School of Design. Wade was a contributing editor of the IGDA’s 2004 Web and Downloadable Games Whitepaper and is the founder and editor of the IGDA Online Games Newsletter. Wade has also taught undergraduate and graduate courses in game design at Parsons School of Design and New York University and is a frequent speaker and presenter at industry events. Wade founded Large Animal Games with partner Josh Welber in January of 2001. Since then, Large Animal has developed games for clients such as LEGO, MTV, the New York Philharmonic, Discovery Channel, and Mattel. Their original titles, such as AlphaQUEUE, Unipong, TeamUp, and the forthcoming RocketBowl, are distributed through leading casual game portals such as Yahoo Games, Shockwave.com, and RealArcade. AlphaQUEUE was a finalist in the 2004 Independent Games Festival. Mike Cassidy, CEO, co-founder, Xfire: Mike Cassidy has been the Co-Founder and CEO of three start-ups, Xfire, Direct Hit, and Stylus Innovation. Xfire (www.xfire.com) helps gamers play with their friends much more easily. Xfire is also an IM designed just for gamers and has reached over 2.5 million gamers in over 100 countries. Direct Hit was a revolutionary Internet search engine whose customers included MSN, Lycos, AOL, and dozens of others. Ask Jeeves acquired Direct Hit for $500 million. Stylus Innovation’s flagship product was the award winning computer telephony software Visual Voice. Mike studied jazz piano at the Berklee College of Music. Mike has a BS (‘85) and MS (‘86) in Aerospace Engineering from MIT and graduated from Harvard Business School in 1991. Dave Williams, Chief Marketing Officer AtomShockwave: Dave Williams, a former RealNetworks General Manager, is tapped to guide the company's overall corporate marketing strategy and to grow and enhance the games business. Dave's previous online entertainment experience included leading the design and development of Listen.com's Rhapsody music service, prior to its sale to RealNetworks in 2003. Following the acquisition, Dave became General Manager of Real's music products, including Rhapsody, Real's online radio service and Rollingstone.com. Under his leadership, music subscriptions for RealNetworks grew over 300% and Rhapsody became the leading digital music subscription service. Prior to Listen.com and Real, Dave was the Director of Marketing at both DoubleClick and CitySearch. After beginning his career at DDB Needham in New York, Dave spent several years as a product manager at Cadbury Schweppes. Scott Cohen, President, Game Trust Inc.: Scott Cohen is President of Game Trust, a leading developer and provider of Internet gaming software, technology, and online computer games. Game Trust has developed infrastructure for online and wireless casual games incorporating a community and commerce platform with over 35 game titles, supporting tournaments, subscriptions and virtual merchandise sales. The Game Trust platform reaches 50 million players each month, and is licensed by leading Internet portals and game developers worldwide. Major clients include Shockwave, MoneyGaming.com, MiniClip, Boomtown, and MTV games, among others, who rely on Game Trust to improve game play and increase revenues. Cohen joined Game Trust in April of 2004, bringing with him over 25 years of expertise in strategic development and deal-making, having been an integral part of the success of several Internet companies. For these enterprises, Cohen built sales and client service organizations to support accelerated growth and market dominance. His career exhibits leadership in business in the United States and Europe, and performance in both corporate and entrepreneurial environments. As a co-founder and senior level executive, Cohen was critical to the success of two IPO's over the past seven years: LivePerson (LPSN on NASDAQ) and 24/7 Media (TFSM on NASDAQ). Daniel Hart, Vice President, Online Games Strategy and Operations, MTV Networks Digital Music and Media: Dan Hart is a 10 year veteran of the interactive media and online games industry with experience as an operational leader, market strategist, and deal maker. In his current role Dan is responsible for driving the strategic direction of online games and building games products and businesses for MTV Networks Digital Music and Media including online sites for MTV, MTV2, MTVU, Comedy Central, Spike TV, VH1, and CMT. Dan joined MTV Networks in 2004 after spending several years at Yahoo! as the General Manager of Yahoo! Games. At Yahoo! Games, Dan was responsible for all aspects of the property and oversaw the introduction of several premium service products, its successful entrance into digital distribution, and its rapid growth to the #1 ranked online games site during his tenure. Hart joined Yahoo! in 2001 to oversee Yahoo!’s Games business as well as contribute his expertise to the development of the company’s entertainment properties at large. Prior to Yahoo!, Dan Hart was the vice president of planning and development for new media at Viacom where he worked with the company’s senior executives to define and implement Internet strategy for Viacom its divisions. In addition, he worked on strategic planning and business development with Viacom’s online groups at MTV Networks, Blockbuster, Paramount, Showtime and Simon and Schuster. Hart holds a BA and an MBA from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor and a Masters in Education from Columbia University.