Click on the Video Below and Sample a Session from a previous Digital Hollywood event. For Additional Video Sessions, Click Here Building Blocks 2008 Thursday, August 7th 9:30 AM – 10:45 AM Track I: Technology Redefining the Future The Virtual World and Multiplayer Gaming Experience – Entertainment, Lifestyle and Commerce While virtual worlds and the massively multiplayer game are not technically the same thing, their similarities are striking and in this session we will take a look at a broadband and mobile universe that is growing into a full-fledged digital society of friends and distant strangers who are creating, living, game-playing and otherwise immersing themselves in alternate human or non-human environment. In today’s advanced graphical broadband and mobile world, it is easier to understand how daily life in an all-digital environment – be it entertainment, work, adventure, travel or alternate lifestyle could become as real and accepted as real life. In this session, we will open a discussion of what our 2nd lives are all about. Craig Sherman, CEO, Gaia Online Andrew Schneider, co-founder and President, Live Gamer Cary Rosenzweig, President & CEO, IMVU Michael Wilson, CEO, Makena (There.com) Dr. Lars Buttler, founder and the CEO, Trion World Network, Inc. Karl Mehta, co-founder & CEO, Playspan, Inc. David Traub, VP Business Development, DigitalSportsMedia, Moderator Craig Sherman, Chief Executive Officer, Gaia Online: During business hours, Craig Sherman lives in <http://gaiaonline.com>gaiaonline.com, the leading teen hangout on the web.  Craig leads the company’s strategic planning, management, and technology development. Prior to joining Gaia Online, Craig served as Entrepreneur in Residence at Benchmark Capital. Craig was also COO of MyFamily.com, where he helped grow the company from $23 million to $150 million in sales and transform it from an advertising-based site to a highly profitable consumer subscription business. Before this, Craig held senior positions at American International Group, where he ran all marketing and internet sites for AIG in Japan and Korea. Previous to AIG, Craig was CEO of Cendant Japan, a joint venture founded by Cendant and Mitsubishi Corporation. Craig currently holds director or advisor positions on the boards of Homestead, Myheritage<http://myheritage.com/>, Netquote and Singlefeed. Previously, Craig also held board positions with Photobucket, prior to its sale to the Fox network, and Logoworks, prior to its sale to Hewlett Packard. Craig has a BA from Princeton University. Andrew Schneider, co-founder and President, Live Gamer: Former Senior Vice President & General Manager of Sony Pictures Digital –a founding member of the pre-eminent studio leader in digital media and broadband entertainment, Andrew developed and launched award-winning interactive marketing campaigns, consumer broadband content services and user generated media applications during his 8 years at the company. Prior, in 1994, he inaugurated NBC’s interactive marketing practice with the network’s first online presence. After Sony, he served as EVP Marketing at the leading independent record label in the world focusing digital innovation. Andrew brings deep digital entertainment operating experience to Live Gamer. Dr. Lars Buttler is a Founder and the CEO of Trion World Network, Inc. (Trion), the publisher and developer of connected games and entertainment. Dr. Buttler helms strategy and business direction for Trion as the company sets out to define the future of entertainment. Under his leadership, Trion is poised to emerge as a premium publisher and developer of innovative server-based games, created by top global talent. Prior to founding Trion, Dr. Buttler was the Vice President for Global Online at Electronic Arts, the world’s largest independent developer and publisher of interactive entertainment software. Dr. Buttler led EA’s strategy for online games and services and ran EA’s Online Studio, home to the pioneering Ultima Online MMOG franchise. Before EA, Dr. Buttler served as Vice President for Leveraged Buyouts at the Carlyle Group, the premier global private equity firm, focusing on large-scale investments in entertainment, media, and telecommunications. Prior to Carlyle, Dr. Buttler served as President of Wingcast Europe, a joint venture of QUALCOMM & Ford Motor Co., and a leading wireless in-vehicle media platform & interactive service network. He holds a Ph.D. in Engineering from Dortmund University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), and earned an M.B.A from Harvard Business School. Cary Rosenzweig President and Chief Executive Officer, IMVU: Cary (avatar "CaryJay") began serving as the President and CEO of IMVU in November 2007. Previously, he served as either CEO or Chief Marketing Officer at four other technology startups, including mySimon.com (acquired by CNET) and Autoweb.com (acquired by Autobytel). Cary was VP and General Manager at Intuit, responsible for QuickBooks Payroll, which he grew from $100 million to $200 million over a three-year period (2003-2006). Cary began his career in marketing and brand management at Procter & Gamble, where he was Tide Brand Manager. He then went to Clorox, where he rose up the marketing ranks before becoming General Manager of the Clorox Pet Products Company. Cary earned an A.B. in International Relations from Stanford University and an M.B.A. from the Stanford Graduate School of Business. Michael Wilson, CEO, Makena (There.com): Working in the fields of Online Community and eCommerce for over 30 years, Michael Wilson has long been bringing exciting new technologies to consumers. In 2001, Wilson came out of “retirement” to join There.com as an investor, and currently serves as CEO with the goal of making There the premiere 3D Virtual World for consumers.  In 1997, Wilson was one of eBay’s first employees, where he was responsible for building the organization and technology for the world's largest and most successful eCommerce site. The architecture, processes and organizations he established during eBay's startup days in 1997 carried eBay through its IPO and beyond. Wilson began his career at Macy's California, where he developed point of sale and electronic credit card authorization systems, later becoming the youngest senior executive in the company's history. He later joined Chevron, providing management and software support for Chevron's 10,000+ member online user community. After Chevron, Wilson was an early employee and key developer of the Mainframe and Macintosh product at Oracle Corporation. After several years, he moved on to Neuron Data, where he worked on bringing artificial intelligence together with modern relational and object-oriented database technology. Excited by the emergence of portable computing, he later worked for eShop (acquired by Microsoft in 1996), as the Chief Architect and Project Manager and helped create the world's first online shopping platform.. Wilson has also held key positions at daVinci Time and Space, developing ITV-based community, and at The Well, leading the development of its web-based community product, Well Engaged. Jon Van Caneghem, Computer Gaming Hall of Fame member, Trion World Network: Jon Van Caneghem is a Founder and the President/Chief Creative Officer of Trion World Network, Inc., the publisher and developer of original entertainment and games for the broadband era. Van Caneghem's focus is guiding the development of the company's technology platform as well as providing vision and leadership for Trion's internal game development teams. Van Caneghem has built a revered reputation as an exceptional game developer who consistently introduced successful new IP to the market. In 2004 Van Caneghem was inducted into the Computer Gaming World Hall of Fame, and is currently honored in two different categories, Strategy and Role-Playing. Van Caneghem began his career in 1983 as the Founder, President, and CEO of New World Computing, a publisher and developer of computer and console games. In his twenty years at New World Computing, he oversaw the publishing of more than 250 titles worldwide, representing $1 billion in retail sales, and created the best-selling Might and Magic and Heroes franchises. Van Caneghem successfully sold New World Computing to leading developer and publisher 3DO in 1996. He remained with 3DO as President and Lead Visionary through 2003. Karl Mehta, Co-Founder & CEO, PLAYSPAN INC.: Karl Mehta brings over 16 years of experience to PlaySpan in founding and building high-tech businesses in the US and international markets. Prior to co-founding PlaySpan Inc., Karl was part of the founding team at MobileAria Inc. (acquired by Wireless Matrix) and co-founder/ CEO of OmniLabs Inc.. Prior to that, he held executive positions at Hughes leading new business and technology development. Karl is Charter member of TiE-Silicon Valley and board member of Ecosystem Ventures. David Traub, VP Business Development, DigitalSportsMedia: David earned a Masters in Education in 1990 from Harvard University, while conducting simultaneous class-work in interactive cinema and AI-based narrative at the MIT Media Lab. In 1984 he earned his undergraduate degrees in rhetoric and film with honors from the University of California at Berkeley, concluding with an honor thesis focusing on the use of film and television in education. His primary focus: the aggregation and delivery of "social and emotional" and other learning-centric applications/content via mobile phones, thin clients/PCs, TVs and videogames. He is currently writing the book: "17 Questions to Why You Are Here" as an introduction to his proprietary "mythological evaluation tool" that will be an example of such "augmentative" interfaces. In the real world, David has 20-years of experience as a digital media-oriented business development executive, investor, venture catalyst, and/or board member to over 35 startups/private equity companies. He has co-raised and deployed nearly $30 million dollars in support of these ventures. David has created digital media as an co-founder executive and/or executive producer of digital products across a wide variety of clients such as EMI North America, MCA Records, Philips/Polydor, Microsoft/ MSN, Apple Computer and many others. He is also an author of nearly 50 articles and reports on the evolution of the digital domain for trade publications, professional books and institutional clients; and a speaker who has given nearly 50 forward-looking keynote and other speeches throughout the world for clients such as the EU, the Swedish and Canadian Governments, TV Globo (Brazil), the National Institute of Film in Denmark, Viacom, US West, Mercedes/Siebold, The Broadband Content Development Forum and numerous other economic development agencies and universities.