LOS ANGELES (December 7, 2009) – The Entertainment Technology Center @ USC announced today the panel topics and panelists for the Entertainment Technology @ CES event, which will take place on January 7, 2010 at the 2010 International CES in Las Vegas. ETC@USC, along with the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA), will host Entertainment Technology @ CES, a full day of panel discussions with senior executives from the entertainment and Consumer Electronics industries. The sessions are designed to provide entertainment technology professionals with a new and unique forum to address the issues and opportunities facing these converging industries, and intended to kick off the first day of CES with exploration of the most important entertainment technology trends: 3D in the Home, Over-the-top Content (over the Internet to consumer devices), and Mobile Entertainment.
The Entertainment Technology @ CES event will begin with the presentation of 3D consumer trend research lead by David Wertheimer, CEO and executive director of ETC@USC and Shawn DuBravac, chief economist for CEA. This research is a follow up to the groundbreaking 3DTV: Where we are and Where are Consumers? study and whitepaper presented by Wertheimer and DuBravac in early 2009. “For the first time in its hundred plus years of history, 3-D is shaping up to become a home entertainment technology,” said DuBravac. “2010 represents a crucial ETC@USC Announces Panel Topics at the Entertainment Technology @ CES as 3-D takes steps into the living room. Our initial research shows consumers are interested and impressed. The steps needed to create the long term viability of these offerings will become clearer at the 2010 International CES.”
Other panel topics include “3D Creatives Panel: Learning on the Frontlines,” “3D Distribution: Delivering 3D in the Home and Beyond,” “Emerging 3D Devices: Avoiding the Format War,” “Over-the-Top Services – The Changing Face of Digital Delivery” and “Trends in Mobile Entertainment.” “ETC@USC is playing play a pivotal role in discussing the issues that are facing the entertainment technology industries,” said Wertheimer. “The International CES is viewed as pivotally important for both the entertainment and technology worlds, and I am pleased that we will be able to provide the industry with a neutral forum in which substantive discussions about these extremely important issues can take place.”
ETC’s panel discussions include a wide variety of senior executives that are the most influential in shaping the key trends in entertainment technology. People such as:
- JB Perrette, president of digital distribution, NBC Universal
- Edgar Tu, president of television engineering of America, Sony Electronics
- Glenn Lurie, president of emerging devices and resale, AT&T
- Steve Schklair, CEO, 3ality
- Thomas Gewecke, president of digital distribution, Warner Brothers
- Phil (Captain 3D) McNally, stereographer, Dreamworks
- Chuck Pagano, chief technical officer, ESPN
- Eisuke Tsuyuzaki, chief technology officer, Panasonic
- Benn Carr, vice president of new technology, Walt Disney Company
- Kevin Hell, CEO, DIVX
- Josh Greer, president, RealD
- Wendy Aylsworth, senior vice president of technology, Warner Brothers
- Buzz Hayes, senior producer for Sony Imageworks
The panels will also feature a “who’s who” of contributors and influencers to the hottest trends in entertainment technology, including: Habib Zargarpour, senior art director at Electronic Arts; David Broberg, vice president, consumer video technology Cablelabs; Walt Husak of Dolby Laboratories; Brian Lenz, director of product development of Sky Broadcasting Ltd.; Richard Doherty, research director of The Envisioneering Group; David Naranjo, director of product development, Mitsubishi Electric; Russ Schafer, senior director of product marketing for Yahoo! Connected TV and Desktop; Steve West, emerging technology and media at Alcatel Lucent.
Entertainment Technology @ CES will be held in North Hall room 260 (N260) on January 7, 2010 from 10:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Those interested in learning more about the program that ETC@USC is developing at CES 2010 should visit the center’s website at www.etcenter.org/ces2010.
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About the Entertainment Technology Center @ USC
The Entertainment Technology Center @ USC, founded in 1993 with the help of George Lucas, is a non-profit organization within USC’s School of Cinematic Arts. The ETC brings together the top entertainment, technology and consumer electronic companies to evaluate what consumers really want, which is then translated to the companies that make technology products. The ETC strives to show how technology impacts the next generation consumer, which will improve the consumer experience and will uncover new revenue streams for entertainment-related products. Along with USC’s School of Cinematic Arts, current ETC sponsors include: The Walt Disney Company, Sony Pictures Entertainment, Fox, Paramount Pictures, Warner Bros. Entertainment, Alcatel-Lucent, Cisco, Deluxe Entertainment Services Group, Inc., Lucasfilm Ltd, TATA Consultancy Services, and Thomson, also LG Electronics, Dolby, Singapore IDA, Volkswagen of America and Thales. www.etcenter.org.
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