Wednesday, March 31 11:05 AM - 12:20 PM Session A: Interactive TV/DTV Middleware Enabling Solutions: from Interactive Guides to Interfaces As consumer offerings via the set-top, from broadband, interactive TV and DTV emerge, the choices in "middleware," that solutions that make the content useful and dynamic for the TV viewer become more vital. Whether it is called DTV, ETV, TVs with Interactive Programming, on-demand TV viewing, or customized or Personalized TV, there are a group of companies who have set the stage for this next TV generation, and we are pleased to have them represented at this session Gunjan Bhow, Director of Platform Product Strategy, Microsoft TV Group, Microsoft Corporation David McElhatten, Creative Director, Vidiom Systems Corporation Bow Rodgers, CEO, MyDTV Dalen Harrison, President, CEO and Director, Ensequence Scott Newnam, CEO, Goldpocket Bill Niemeyer, Chief of Analysis and Research, The DiMA Group, LLC, Moderator David McElhatten, Creative Director, Vidiom Systems Corporation: David McElhatten is currently serving as Creative Director for Vidiom Systems Corporation, an engineering and production services firm focusing on interactive television. McElhatten has an extensive background in new media product development user interface design and interactive production having been involved with over 150 products that have been delivered or deployed into the marketplace. In this capacity he has worked for a diverse set of clientele including Time Warner Cable, Marvel Entertainment and Playboy Enterprises. In addition, McElhatten serves on the board of Exient, Ltd, a UK game development studio. Previous to these activities, McElhatten was the President of Philips Media Games, an international software publishing division of the electronics giant, Royal Philips of the Netherlands. Based in London and Los Angeles, Philips Media Games was responsible for the development and publishing of computer and video game software across a variety of hardware platforms including PC’s, game consoles and other consumer set top boxes. Prior to his role as head of an international publishing label, McElhatten was Senior Vice President of Production at Philips Interactive Media, where he was in charge of all production and engineering in company owned and operated studios located in Los Angeles, and Washington, D.C. Bow Rodgers, Chief Executive Officer, MyDTV: Bow Rodgers serves as MyDTV's chief executive officer and is responsible for managing general expansion efforts and developing operator alliances for the company. Rodgers was formerly COO at Big Band Networks and prior to that was COO and General Manager at Power TV, a Scientific Atlanta subsidiary (SFA). Rodgers helped build PowerTV from 12 employees to 150 and launched PowerTV’s Operating System software deployments into millions of Cable TV households. Rodgers has also held executive positions with Apple Computer, Interactive Network and Sprint Telecommunications; where he was a Group President managing operations in the western United States with over 1000 employees and $350 million in annual revenues. Bow Rodgers is a recognized expert in the cable industry and a frequently sought commentator on industry issues. He has spoken at a wide variety of industry conferences and trade shows including NCTA, the Consumer Electronic Show, Japanese National Cable Show and numerous Kagan conferences on topic such as "The role of Middleware in delivering Interactive Applications," "The next wave of Interactivity - Interactive Networks," and "The Future of Interactivity in Cable." Dalen Harrison, President, CEO and Director, Ensequence: Over the past two years as President and CEO of Ensequence, Dalen Harrison has been responsible for the development of the world's first truly cross-platform, interactive television development environment known as on-Q Studio. The on-Q Solution Suite, of which on-Q Studio is key component, allows content production teams to author enhanced television applications with unprecedented efficiency and distribute them to any digital television platform. Prior to Ensequence, Mr. Harrison completed a 10-year tenure at Intel Corporation where he held a variety of key positions. While Director of Worldwide Market Development for Intel's Home Products Group, Mr. Harrison oversaw Intel's digital television marketing strategy and sales teams. In 1995, as a Director of Business Development, Mr. Harrison started a series of content deals that served as the impetus behind the formation of Intel's Content Group. During this time, Mr. Harrison completed over 50 content and technology deals in support of Intel's Broadcast Products Group. These efforts were key in launching Intel's Intercast® Technology which was the industry's first broadly available interactive television product for the PC supported by 12 national cable and broadcast networks including NBC, CNN, MTV, and QVC. In 1998, Dalen oversaw the formation of the Advanced Television Enhancement Forum (ATVEF), which brought together 12 key industry players including Microsoft, DIRECTV, The Walt Disney Co, Warner Bros., CNN Interactive, Tribune, and others. Today the ATVEF industry group has over 100 member companies and is a major force in setting specifications for interactive television. While at Intel, Dalen was also a financial controller, engineering manager, product manger, for a variety of Intel products. Mr. Harrison has a master's degree in international management and finance, a BA in math/economics, and a BS in computer science. Scott Newnam, President and CEO, GoldPocket: As President and CEO of GoldPocket Interactive, Scott Newnam drives the company’s strategy and overall vision. He is a recognized expert in building efficient and strategic organizations and the economics and development of nascent industries, specifically iTV. Newnam has a proven track record of identifying and implementing technology trends in emerging industries. Under his direction, GoldPocket has attained 75% market share and produced more than 6,000 hours of iTV programming for shows including CSI, Friends, Greed, and Survivor. Before founding GoldPocket, Newnam was Treasurer at IAC, a billion-dollar, publicly traded company based in Southern California. Prior to serving as Treasurer, he ran the company’s Corporate Finance and Strategic Planning group and was responsible for design and implementation of its information technology strategy. Newnam has also founded and managed a private hedge fund that consistently outperformed the market. Before that he worked in the Corporate Finance Group at Merrill Lynch in New York, covering private equity and technology companies. Newnam is the Chairman of the Board of GoldPocket Interactive and has been on the board of several privately held companies. He has been featured in the Wall Street Journal and has appeared on Good Morning America, CNN, CNNfn, MSNBC, and other technology news programs. He regularly speaks at major media and technology events and conferences. Newnam has an MBA from Harvard Business School and a BA in Economics from Davidson College. Bill Niemeyer, Chief of Analysis and Research, The DiMA Group, LLC: Bill provides DiMA Group clients with information and insights to assist them in making strategic business decisions regarding DVRs, VOD and other advanced TV services. He also writes the widely read Niemeyer Review email newsletter. The DiMA Group assists companies in taking advantage of opportunities in digital media through its consulting and industry initiative facilitation. Among its efforts, The DiMA Group facilitates The IDiA Project, a pan-industry initiative to promote dialogue and development in the emerging world of on-demand television advertising. Members include representatives from Procter and Gamble, Master Foods, Kraft, ABC/ESPN, Discovery, Scripps, Turner Networks, Time Warner Cable, Comcast, Scientific-Atlanta and SeaChange. Bill has been in the interactive media industry since 1991. Previous to joining The DiMA Group, Bill was the founder of Centrimedia, a consultancy focused on DVR, VOD and Interactive TV. Prior to founding Centrimedia, Bill was a member of the executive team at Spiderdance, a provider of infrastructure and technology to television networks for creating and operating interactive TV programming. Venture-funded Spiderdance developed and deployed six groundbreaking and award-winning ITV enabled series including "Weakest Link" for NBC and "webRIOT" for MTV. Bill has also been a member of the team at venture-funded firms in PC/platform gaming and 3D virtual community technologies. Bill is a member of the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences and is a regular panel moderator and speaker at TV industry conferences.