Tuesday, January 8 3:00 PM - 4:00 PM Session B - DH8: Is There a Winner in the Digital Revolution? An Entertainment and Technology Industry Roundtable With the consolidation in the entertainment content space, the failure of many companies and the downsizing of others, we look to experts in the field to help us understand what is actually going on. Is anybody a winner here? The marriage between the entertainment and technology industries has never been a complete success. One side has always been skeptical of the other. The technology industry loves to exist for its own sake and the entertainment industry is ultimately a bottom line industry. Only a computer geek could love his first 128K machine. And from the minute he went to work in the field, it has been a self-sustaining success, building platforms, experimenting and expanding applications. The entertainment industry on the other hand, requires stable platforms and massive markets to monetize its content. And that’s the rub. Entertainment and technology industries are uneasy partners and it is worth discussing. Martin Yudkovitz, President, NBC Digital Media and Executive Vice President, NBC M3 Sweatt, Director, Business Development, North America, Microsoft TV Group Ralph Biesemeyer, Manager, Solutions Marketing Group, Digital Media and Entertainment, Intel Corporation Shawn Gold, co-President & Chief Strategic Officer, eUniverse Chris Schairbaum, Worldwide Marketing Manager, Internet Audio, Texas Instruments Pete Fasciano, Corporate Fellow, Advance Development, Avid Technology Carin Dessauer, George Washington University Shapiro Fellow, Moderator Shawn Gold, Co-President and Chief Strategic Officer, eUniverse: As Co-President and Chief Strategic Officer for eUniverse, Shawn is responsible for overseeing and driving the network’s business strategy, expanding customer acquisition and retention, developing strategic business partnerships, and implementing effective advertising campaigns and affiliate relationships. Regarded as a pioneer in the industry, Shawn joined eUniverse with an 8-year background in interactive marketing and business strategy. Prior to eUniverse, Shawn served as vice president of marketing and communications for ecommerce company WHN. There he built company owned WhatsHotNow.com to more than 1 million visitors a month, while providing ecommerce service to some of the worlds biggest entertainment brands, including The 2002 Olympics, ABC, NBC, Comedy Central, MTV, and Fox. Additionally, he developed partnerships with Yahoo!, Warner Lambert, Pizza Hut, Sony, Columbia/TriStar Lycos, and Maxim. Prior to WhatsHotNow.com, Shawn spent two years at Rare Medium where he served as head of strategic planning. He was responsible for opening the 1st satellite office in Los Angeles as well as creating the inaugural interactive strategies for clients such as Betty Crocker, Pampers, Hot Wheels, Butterfinger and Cheerios. In 1995, Shawn joined Icon New Media, where he served as GM and Founder of the company's advertising/sponsorship division. There he established markets for Word.com and charged.com via sponsorships and content syndication, and built ome of the first Internet sites for cross-promotional tie-ins. Shawn and his group were know for creating the first interstitial ads on the web and for creating an industry-leading, advertising integration system based on time rotation and contextual integration. Shawn started developing interactive content in 1992 as a partner with TouchTunes Interactive, a telecommunications music marketing service in the USA, Japan and New Zealand. There he created and implemented tie-ins between telecommunications carriers, record labels, music retailers, and consumer package goods companies like Keebler, Chevy Camaro, and Gatorade. Shawn attributes his success to "a fascination with understanding how people consume and communicate with interactive media." He took notice of the interactive world during Time Warner’s interactive TV tests in Orlando, FL in the early 90's and he knew it was inevitable. Shawn received a Bachelor of Science degree in Finance and Statistics from Syracuse University. He lives in Southern California with his wife. Carin Dessauer, Shapiro Fellow, George Washington University School of Media and Public Affairs, and Principal, MC2--Multi-Media, Creative Concepts: Dessauer has been a pioneer and visionary in Internet journalism and integration. As an Executive at CNN, in-charge of the Washington Bureau and the record-setting political/election coverage for CNN.com, Dessauer initiated, secured and produced the first ever online news interview to date with a sitting President, President Bill Clinton, and the first and only online/on-air interview with President George W. Bush, then the Republican Presidential nominee. Reporting directly to the President of CNN Interactive, Dessauer had strategic business and budget oversight. Presently, in her fellowship, just held by esteemed journalist Helen Thomas, Dessauer is teaching a course on "Internet News." Clients of her media and strategic business consulting company include the Markle Foundation. Dessauer moved into the interactive arena when, as CNN Deputy Political Director, she was asked in 1996 to be on the original four-person CNN/Time AllPolitics.com board. As a member of the first CNN dedicated political team, Dessauer was instrumental in establishing CNN as a political coverage leader. Dessauer has 16 years as a multi-media (print, television and online) journalist and executive including work at ABC News and as a reporter for The Rothenberg Political Report. Earlier this year, her accomplishments were profiled by Working Woman magazine. Dessauer graduated Phi Beta Kappa from Bucknell University with a BA in Economics and Indepartmental in Communications. Pete Fasciano, Corporate Fellow, Advance Development, Avid Technology: Pete Fasciano is a corporate fellow, advance development for Avid Technology, Inc., the worldwide leader in digital nonlinear editing, effects and audio solutions. Fasciano is currently engaged in long-term advance product development at Avid and can speak to the full line of Avid products. Pete worked with Avid founder Bill Warner to launch Avid in 1987-88 and developed the now familiar nonlinear editing interface for Avid's first product, the Media Composer. Prior to joining Avid, Pete was Founder/CEO of Vizwiz, a film/video production and editing facility in Boston, and later CEO of Imagenda, an advertising media design firm Ralph Biesemeyer, Manager, Solutions Marketing Group, Digital Media and Entertainment, Intel Corporation: Ralph Biesemeyer runs Intel's worldwide solutions marketing to the Digital Media and Entertainment industries, developing Intel based systems for digital production, media management and digital distribution. Previously at NBC Network, he was Director of Production Systems Planning & Engineering. Ralph has managed digital video products for Tektronix, Grass Valley Group, and Panasonic Broadcast USA. He is a member of the Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers, and has spoken at numerous industry conferences. M3 Sweatt is director, business development, North America, for the Microsoft TV Group at Microsoft Corporation. He is responsible for developing and strengthening the platform group’s relationships with leading network operators in the United States and Canada. Sweatt joined Microsoft in February 2001, bringing more than 10 years' experience working for companies specializing in cutting-edge entertainment and TV technologies. Most recently, Sweatt led the business development team at ReplayTV, where he was responsible for worldwide alliances and partnerships. Before joining ReplayTV in 2000, Sweatt held a number of high-profile positions at media and TV technology companies, including Pinnacle Systems Inc., where he was director of the desktop products group. Before that, Sweatt held senior management positions at AutoDesk Inc., The 3DO Co. and Digidesign, a division of Avid Technology Inc. Chris Schairbaum, New Business Development Manager Internet Audio, Texas Instruments: Chris is the New Business Development Manager for the Internet Audio (IA) business at Texas Instruments. In the five years he has been with the company, Chris has managed strategic marketing initiatives for several of TI's custom and mass-market focused product lines. Chris, a music enthusiast, is ideally suited for TI's Internet Audio Division, where he currently oversees customer relations, marketing initiatives and business development for the US and Europe. Chris graduated from the University of Dayton with a degree in electrical engineering.