Friday, January 10 10:30 AM - 11:30 AM Session A: DH9: TV Networks and Interactivity - Evolving Content & Business Models TV networks have embraced interactivity for almost a decade, both with standalone Website content and synchronized, Enhanced TV content. Much has changed over that time, including technological barriers, assumptions about consumer preferences, business models, and the economic climate for interactive experimentation. What's working and what's not? What can the industry expect to see over the next 24 months? Is there a future for synchronized content, or is "interactive TV" destined to be only about VOD and SVOD? In this session we bring together top programming executives and creators who are dealing with what it means to leverage and extend their on-air television programming to the Internet or into the Interactive TV space. Martin Yudkovitz, President, NBC Digital Media and Executive Vice President, NBC Frederic Bien, Senior VP, New Media Technology, Turner Broadcasting Gary Arlen, President, Arlen Communications Anna Marie Piersimoni, Associate Director, New Media Ventures, American Film Institute Judith Pless, Senior Vice President, Business Development, Showtime Digital Media Group John Gilles, Director of Interactive Television, TechTV Todd Tarpley, Vice President, Interactive Media, Bravo Networks, Moderator Martin J. Yudkovitz has been President of NBC Digital Media since November of 1995. In July, 2000, he was also named an Executive Vice President of NBC. As an 18-year management veteran of the company, Mr. Yudkovitz has established a reputation for consistent innovation, strategic leadership and unprecedented growth for NBC. He has played a key role in almost all major NBC new business initiatives since the mid-1980’s, working in virtually every area of the company, including News, Sports and Entertainment, Cable and Broadcast, Domestic and International and Traditional and New Media. Among the highlights of his NBC career have been the following: • Mr. Yudkovitz was among the small, core Executive Group that developed the strategic plan for, and launched, CNBC Cable TV in 1989, NBC’s first entry into Cable TV. • Mr. Yudkovitz was the primary architect of the deals that created MSNBC Cable, NBC’s second Cable TV venture, and MSNBC.com, the world’s leading Internet News site, both launched in 1996. • Mr. Yudkovitz founded NBC Digital Media in 1995. As President of NBC Digital Media, he devised and implemented NBC’s New Media business plans and strategy, partnerships, investments and new businesses. These businesses included NBC’s joint venture with CNET to acquire and operate the Snap Internet portal service and the subsequent design, creation and supervision of NBCi, an independent, public company that quickly grew to become the 6th largest Internet service in the world, as well as the eventual re-acquisition of NBCi by NBC in 2001. • Mr. Yudkovitz created and supervised NBC’s extensive relationship with Microsoft, including the successful and profitable joint ventures of MSNBC.com, NBC.com, NBCSports.com and NBCOlympics.com, the merger of CNBC.com with MSN Money, a broad array of Internet Entertainment initiatives and several ground-breaking individual projects at the cutting edge of Digital TV. • Mr. Yudkovitz led the business side of NBC’s two largest television endeavors, the 1988 Seoul Olympics, NBC’s first Olympics telecast, and the 1992 Barcelona Olympics, NBC’s largest single event to date. He also won and Emmy Award for his work in creating a music album tied to an on-air Olympic music video series. • Mr. Yudkovitz serves on the Board of Directors of A&E/The History Channel, as well as several other corporate Boards. He also serves as a member of the Board of Trustees of Rutgers University, as well as the Boards of several other non-profit/charitable foundations. • Mr. Yudkovitz began his NBC career in January of 1984 when he became Sr. Council in the Law Department. Before NBC, Mr. Yudkovitz was an Associate in the New York law firm Kelley Drye and Warren. He received his BA from Rutgers University in 1976 and his JD from Columbia University School of Law in 1979. Todd Tarpley is Vice President, Interactive Media, for Bravo Networks. His primary responsibilities include strategic planning and management of consumer and affiliate websites, ITV, customer databases, and other interactive initiatives that enhance the company’s performance and efficiency. Prior to Bravo, Mr. Tarpley was Vice President, Interactive for A&E Television Networks, where he established the division and led the company’s initial forays into interactive content, ecommerce, and cross-platform ad sales. A&E’s ecommerce initiative was one of few to achieve profitability. From 1993 to 1995 he served on the core project team that developed and launched The History Channel, overseeing the network’s research and strategic planning efforts, contributing to the network’s start-up business plan, and implementing Nielsen service. As a media researcher at Yale University’s Family Television Research Center, Mr. Tarpley conducted primary research on the effects of media on the social and cognitive development of children. He contributed to a Congressional report on the need for a national Ready-to-Learn public television initiative. Mr. Tarpley previously served in the Programming department at Lifetime Television, and in production and post-production capacities for programs on ABC, NBC, and HBO. He began his career as an intern for "Late Night With David Letterman" on NBC. Mr. Tarpley has written chapters of two textbooks on the impact of media on children, The Faces of Televisual Media (in press) and Handbook of Children and Media (2001). He holds an MBA from Yale School of Management, an MA in History from the University of Iowa, and a BFA in Film from NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts. Anna Marie Piersimoni is Associate Director, New Media Ventures for the American Film Institute. Previously, as Director of Enhanced TV for the AFI, she developed the acclaimed AFI-Intel Enhanced TV Workshop, a unique hands-on R&D training environment for television professionals in the production of new convergent media. Over the past 10 years she has worked as a producer and writer in broadcast on-air promotions for network, cable, local television and public television entities including ABC Entertainment, KCET Los Angeles, and E! Entertainment Television. Previously, she worked in the cable industry as a manager of local programming and affiliate marketing, and as an executive administrator for several arts, film and video organizations. She has lectured extensively at industry conferences and seminars, including NATPE, NAB, PROMAX/BDA, USC Annenberg Center for Communication, the Producer’s Guild of America, the Seattle Art Museum, Milia and the Danish Film Institute in Copenhagen. She is a member of the Interactive Television Peer Group of the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences(ATAS) and the Interactive TV Advisory Board of the National Association of Television Program Executives (NATPE). She has served on the jury, steering committee and as co-chair for the Bandies (Broadband) Awards. The Digital Coast Reporter chose her as one of the Top 100 Internet Executives of Southern California for 2000. Ms.Piersimoni holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from The Hartford Art School, University of Hartford and has taught Video Art History and Criticism at Atlanta College of Art and Cal State, LA. Judith Pless is Senior Vice President, Business Development for the Showtime Digital Media Group. Pless is responsible for new domestic businesses and new channel launches, SVOD, new technology initiatives, interactive television and strategic investments. Most recently, she served as Vice President, Business Development where she was responsible for international joint ventures and domestic business opportunities. She joined the company in 1995. Pless joined Showtime Networks from Viacom World Wide, where she worked in the international arena as Vice President, Marketing and New Media Development. Prior to Viacom World Wide, Pless was Vice President, Marketing for ACTV, Inc., and before that, she served as Vice President, Marketing for Malarkey-Taylor Associates. Previously, Pless served as Director, Programming and Marketing for the National Cable Television Association and as National Accounts Manager for Home Box Office. Pless attended American University’s M.B.A. Program and received a B.A. in Communications from Lehman College. She works out of the company's New York headquarters. Frederic V. Bien, Senior Vice President New Media Technology, Turner Broadcasting, Time-Warner: Frederic Bien oversees new media technology for the entertainment division of Turner: TBS, TNT, TCM, Cartoon Network, sports team, Nascar.com. In 1999-2000, Bien was Vice President Communities and Marketing Technology, then CTO of BigStar Entertainment http://www.BigStar.com. Bien is the CEO and founder of Belamo Corp., that produces and markets http://FLIRT.com, the Online Romance Channel, a commercial web site about romance and relationships. FLIRT.com was accessed by over 2 million people in 1999, mostly women. Partnerships with Elle and RoadRunner. In the first half of 1999, Bien was VP Business Development for Playboy.com and managed Playboy Online' Los Angeles office, helping the company in integration of new content partnerships. From 1993 to 1997, Bien founded and was CEO of Bien Logic Inc. an Internet software company that signed and fulfilled multimedia software contracts with Paramount Publishing, Franklin Electronic Publishers, and Apple Computer. Bien Logic developed and marketed web traffic analysis software: SurfReport and ProxyReport. Major customers included Netscape, Oracle, WalMart, ANS, Xerox, Hewlett-Packard, Smithsonian Institute. Bien Logic was sold to Netrics, Inc. in October 1997. Bien Logic was also the largest web design agency in San Diego and Orange County with over 30 major accounts. This agency division was sold to SiteLab International, LLC, in July 1997. Bien received a Ph.D. in Mathematics from MIT in 1986, was Assistant Professor at Princeton University, 1986-92 and was a tenured Associate Professor of Mathematics at University of California San Diego, 1992-96. Bien recorded rock albums in Belgium in 1979-81, as a drummer, composer and band manager. Bien's jazz fusion band, Spring, was the feature of an Amnesty International Concert in Europe in 1981. Bien toured in New England, Québec Canada and New York (Blue Note) in 1983-88. John Gilles, Director of Interactive Television, TechTV: John Gilles is the director of interactive television at TechTV, where he manages interactive television product development. Previously, Gilles was the director of strategic development, as well as senior broadband producer and supervising Web producer. Prior to joining TechTV, Gilles was an online producer for The Site, a television show on MSNBC. Gilles also was a technology columnist and news reporter for Gannett Newspapers. He has published articles in Wired News, Web Review, Whole Earth Review, and many other magazines, websites and newspapers. He is the former managing editor of Technology Access Report, and has been quoted as a broadband and convergence expert in many trade and consumer publications, including The Wall Street Journal and the San Francisco Chronicle. Gary Arlen is President of Arlen Communications. Inc., a Bethesda, Maryland, research and consulting firm known for its insights into the converging and sometimes conflicting worlds of media, telecommunications and interactive program content. For nearly 20 years, Gary has accurately analyzed the emergence of new media, forecasting the evolution of customer-controlled video and data services. Gary has published future-looking periodicals and consults for clients seeking strategic and business guidance to enter these new His clients include media, financial, entertainment, telecommunications and marketing firms - plus several interesting technology start-ups. In particular, Gary is known for his insights into the development of applications, especially interactive content for Internet, two-way TV and other emerging systems. Among his specialties is what he calls "inter-species" breeding to integrate different types of services on new hybrid platforms. Gary's outlooks are published in industry journals, and his commentary is widely sought in the business and consumer press.