11:00 AM - 12:30 PM
Session A:
Technology Infrastructure for the Delivery of Broadband Entertainment
The physical convergence of entertainment in the home requires a new technological infrastructure that is now evolving and being put in place as we move from narrowband to broadband delivery. For a TV broadcaster to become an Internet broadcaster, an entirely new technological framework must be devised. Creating the new "Digital Hollywood" will not be possible without the framework to support the structure itself. The products and services that will redefine technology will require an infrastructure capable of supporting bandwidth intensive applications. In this session we will explore the capabilities of the systems in place today, understand what kind of content we can deliver and what alternatives the production community has in reaching its marketplace.
Mads Lillelund, Director, Global Marketing, Lucent Technologies
Adam Cohen, Vice President Streaming Services, Digital Island
Alan Yates, Director, TV Platform Marketing, Microsoft Corporation
Graeme Weston, Managing Director Entertainment Division, The Fantastic Corporation
Lawrence R. Kaplan, President and CEO, Omneon Video Network
Michael G. Demko, Senior Director Engineering, PanAmSat Corporation
David Crenshaw, Assistant Vice President, Eastern Region, iBEAM Broadcasting
Michael Bloom, President, Communications Ventures, Moderator
Graeme Weston, Managing Director Entertainment Division, The Fantastic Corporation, USA: Graeme Weston brings nearly two decades of experience in the entertainment and interactive technologies marketplace to The Fantastic Corporation. He is currently serving as the Managing Director of Fantastic’s entertainment division. Most recently, Mr. Weston held the position of Chief Operating Officer at Los Angeles, CA’s Paramount Pictures Classics, the specialty releasing arm of Paramount Pictures. Here, Weston worked to develop business plans and long term strategy to produce/acquire and distribute a slate of eight to ten films per year as well as initiating plans to develop strategic partnerships with distributors in Canada and key European territories. Prior to Paramount Pictures, Mr. Weston served as Vice President of Business Development for Music Television Europe (MTV Europe). To his credit, Mr. Weston Spearheaded MTV’s Europe’s distribution outside limited cable markets focusing on cable, terrestrial and direct-to-home retransmission and broadcast. During his tenure as MTV’s Director of Network Development for both the Northern and Southern European regions, Mr. Weston was recognized for successfully negotiating MTV’s acquisition and lease of TV stations throughout Italy; coordinating MTV launches on cable networks throughout Scandinavia and Finland and negotiating with Greek government officials for 24 hour carriage of MTV on a nationwide terrestrial frequency. In 1990, Mr. Weston co-founded a British company to research and license interactive technologies. He secured a European franchise of Virtual World Centres, now majority owned by Roy Disney’s Shamrock holdings and launched the business in Europe. Mr. Weston has consulted for major media groups around the world including the News Corporation, Phillips and Viacom. While living in Los Angeles, he has been involved in various aspects of the television and film industries working with individual filmmakers and major production companies. Weston holds degrees The University of Pennsylvania, college of Arts and Sciences and the Wharton School or business.
Michael Demko, Director of PanAmSat's Systems Engineering department, Michael Demko manages a team of engineers responsible for providing technical support services to the company's Business Development and Operations departments. The Systems Engineering department also establishes company-wide engineering standards, procedures and tools. Prior to assuming his present position, Mr. Demko served PanAmSat as a market support engineer, lending his technical expertise to the development of customer video and data distribution networks. In this capacity, he was responsible for integrating PanAmSat's South African customer requirements for current and future PanAmSat satellites covering the Indian Ocean Region. Additionally, Mr. Demko held various engineering and management positions over a seven-year period for the U.S. Army and private aerospace corporations. Mr. Demko holds both a Bachelors and Masters in Aerospace Engineering from Princeton University.
Alan Yates, Director of Marketing, TV Platform Marketing, Microsoft: Alan has been with the Microsoft Corporation for the last 9 years, and now works out of the Microsoft TV Platform product division as one of the key leaders behind Microsoft’s business to provide software for the worldwide television marketplace. In the last several years Alan was one of the founders of the Windows CE operating system project, which led to becoming Director of Digital Television Strategy. Alan has been involved as a marketing leader for Microsoft’s television and game platform software efforts, spanning back to 1994. Prior to that, Alan architected and launched the Solution Provider program, which enables thousands of third parties around the world to build businesses around Microsoft products. Alan holds a B.A. from Harvard University, and both M.A. and MBA degrees from Stanford University.
David Crenshaw, Assistant Vice President, Eastern Region, iBEAM Broadcasting: David has worked in the satellite and telecommunications industry for over 20 years. Previously at Seachange International as Vice President of Sales he implemented the industry's first cable/hotel interactive video-on-demand network for Time Warner Cable in New York. At CLI (Compression Labs Inc.), as Director of Sales for Broadcast Products, he was involved in introducing and selling breakthrough technology in the world's first broadcast quality video compression system and later contributed to the adoption of the MPEG2 standard. David has worked in various TV production, broadcast television & satellite services operations. David holds a BA from the University of Louisville and an MS in Telecommunications from Syracuse University. He is a founding member of the Society of Satellite Professionals International.