NAB 2000

Las Vegas

A digest of technical sessions, through Jim Wheeler’s fingers (sorry ‘bout the typos)

Note: this document is posted at www.wheeleraudio.com/nab2000.htm

See also www.wheeleraudio.com/nab2001.htm

and www.wheeleraudio.com/nab1999.htm

This is a free service of Wheeler Audio Associates, Inc.
Stop by our website www.wheeleraudio.com or eMail me wheels@wheeleraudio.com

All-Industry Opening Ceremony

Monday, Apr 10 2000

9:00AM - 10:30AM

State of the Industry

Edward Fritts, Office of the President Washington, DC

There used to be a fear that Radio would kill newspapers, then TV would kill Radio, and now, people frequently say, "Broadcasting will be taken over by the Internet." Never mind the fact that people say that about every industry and the internet – it’s just not going to happen to broadcasting. Change, however, does happen. Microsoft was just surpassed by Cisco last week as worlds largest company. A software company was displaced by a networking company.

"Sometimes we stare so long at the door that is closing,

that we don’t see the door that is opening." Alexander Graham Bell

Government has failed in its responsibility to regulate the transition from analog to digital. It was said recently that "In seven years the internet will be so technologically advanced, that bandwidth for broadcasters will becom meaningless." It was said that the computer would eliminate the typewriter, but typing (printer) paper sales is now way up. The ‘dot coms’ are said to be replacing broadcasting. But they don’t know how to handle an audience. Broadcasters do. Broadcasters have local community interests at heart, dot coms do not. The dot coms want what broadcasters provide. As broadcasting makes the transition to the new, NAB is pledged to protect our interest. Throughout history, the optimists have proven to be the realists. Broadcasting will continue to grow and prosper, and be a player.

Frank A. Bennack, Jr., The Hearst Corporation, President and CEO

Recipient of NAB 2000 distinguished service award.

"If you want to see farther, stand on the shoulders of a giant." Dan Rather

"If 90% of life is showing up (according to Woody Allen), then I guess the other 10% is sticking around"

"What we do is serve our communities." All news is local. The Boston Globe’s headline for the sinking of the Titanic read: "Boston men lost in shipwreck" No doubt the internet will change things as much as the Industrial Revolution. But the commitment and reach of local TV will not be displaced by newer media. TV didn’t make newspapers go away.

Changed – yes. Displaced – never.

Keynote Speaker

Sumner Redstone, Viacom

Viacom Chairman and CEO Sumner M. Redstone will deliver the

Keynote Address at Opening Ceremony at NAB2000. Widely credited

with being one of the first industry leaders to recognize the

explosive growth of worldwide demand for entertainment content,

Mr. Redstone will discuss the challenges and opportunities of the

media and entertainment industries, and the requirements for

success in an environment marked by rapid technological change

and the dramatic increase in competition for viewers’ attention.

Recent Headlines: "The death of TV, the collapse of TV, the end of TV, the broadcasting industry is crashing all around us." As usual, the naysayers have it wrong. I say broadcasting is not in danger. It’s as compelling now as it has ever been. We’ll be a leader, not a left behind. We are in the opportunity age – an era of incredible possibilities. My message today is not that we need to reinvent ourselves. We have what we need to succeed. What we need is the resolve to exploit our strengths. The advantage belongs to broadcasters. No one else has our reach, brands, audience share. In a single moment, broadcasters capture the entire membership of AOL. You cannot beat the strength of our brands. Superbowl, World Series, Frazier, etc. I’m not saying there are no challenges. Rapidly evolving technology, over-zealous government regulation. Broadcasters who are mired in old assumptions are dinosaurs. The network affiliate relationship is changing before our eyes. In the age of expanded media, the era is long past when government regulation serves the consumer.

Advertising campaigns are most effective when they encompass broadcast as well as cable. Merger with CBS will make Viacom the most robust media entity in the world. We are clearly benefitting from the increase of advertising reach. As TV and internet converge, the number of options to consumers will increase, which will result in Viacom’s ability to distinguish ourselves. The advantage belongs to broadcasters. Content is indeed king. Content associated with leading brands is the big winner… will result in content becoming more valuable. Content is the fuel that drives technology. Bringing the nation together for mass events. The mass in massive media is still very important. Broadcasting has unparalled power to shape the culture. Broadcasting makes money. When did business stop being about making money? Have we been taken over by ‘dot-communists?’ When it comes to the internet, the challenge is to transform our reach into new audiences, platforms, revenue streams, business strategies. Fundamentally, all of our interests are the same. The opportunity to move local revenues to the internet are limited only by our creativity. Radio and TV are the nation’s most relied upon, most trusted source of information. The next chapter will be exciting: new ways to keep broadcasting vital, extend it into the future. There will always be differences of opinion. We don’t know the precise details of the path that lies ahead of us. Be we do know the direction. It’s a path of increased competition, decreased regulation. FCC is a market facilitator, not a market regulator. NAB is not a place for intramural jousting. Only by working together can we fulfill our destiny. People rely on us to bring them the world. The advantage belongs to the broadcaster.

Technology Luncheon and Presentation of the NAB Engineering Achievement Awards

Apr 12 2000 12:15PM - 1:45PM

Las Vegas Hilton Room Barron Room

Newly appointed FCC Chief Technologist David Farber will deliver the keynote address, Predicting the Unpredictable - The Future Communications and the Internet the Technology Luncheon. An extremely popular event, this is also the forum for the annual presentation of the prestigious NAB Engineering Achievement Awards.

Luncheon Speaker:

David Farber,

Chief Technologist, Federal Communications Commission, Washington, DC

Called "The Paul Revere of the Internet"

Predicting the Unpredictable

Mr. Farber sees a dramatic change in the technology of networks: We went from computers without networks, now its networks with computers. It’s been an exciting 20 yrs. We’re in for an even more exciting next 10 yrs. Main driver will be the all optical network. In the future, we’ll inject photons into one side of the network and pull photons out of the other side – no conversion to electrons. Price of connectivity will no longer be tied to cost, because bandwidth will become so plentiful.

Dramatic change in technology of wireless: everything in the house will get connected.

Lo cost data stores, fiber moving closer and closer to the household, wireless data rates of 100 to 200kbps, and affordable. Snowcrash, a pseudo-scientific novel that speaks of virtual reality’s basis (seems to be describing Bill Gates).

We need techniques for delivering content to tens of thousands of users at once, along with simultaneous feedback from them. The wired internet is very poor for this, whereas wireless is much more ideally suited.

Nobody in Washington has any desire to regulate the internet. It changes far too rapidly. One fear at the FCC is that the industry will come to them and ask to be regulated – protected from liability, etc. The digital divide is usually applied to people of different ethnic/economic backgrounds. Two nations – one connected, one not. Two worlds -- …

Other issues: network and computing systems are insecure. How to build that robustness into the architecture of the system is very complex. We’re going to have to use our technology to protect our citizens, and our government.

Plug: come to the FCC and talk to us. Come and dream with us. Come as technical people. Leave your lawyers at home. We really want to help you with innovation. No one ever comes into my office and says "I have this brilliant idea, why can’t I do it." Answer: "You can do it." We want you to do it. We at the FCC will do anything to help you do it. You can bring your lawyers in later.

NAB 2000 Engineering Achievement Award Winners:

Radio Recipient: Michael Dorrough, Dorrough Electronics, Woodland Hills, CA

Television Recipient: Max Berry, Capital Cities/ABC, Inc. (retired), Elkins Park, PA

The Technology Luncheon is sponsored by A.N.N. Systems.

Keynote: John Gage, Chief Researcher and Director of the Science Office, Sun Microsystems, Palo Alto, CA

NAB -> WAB or World Association of Casters

Terabyte storage in protiens the size of a sugar cube. Micro cameras. And it’ll all be free (or trivially cheap).

BodyCasts! You won’t listen to John Warnock – you’ll be John Warnock: his feelings, thoughts, views, senses. President’s breakfast (Willian Kennard, President of the United States). Being Bill… how 300 million Americans share our President’s life, and share their lives with each other – the impact of 30 million distributed cameras on our lives: who’s in charge?

Predictive technology: we predict the speeches, based on past performance and current events… see the speeches before they’re made… and after, see if the speakers could be unpredictable…

Bandwidth costs nothing, source devices are beyond our imagination, they’re in our clothing, in our bodies.

A spectrum from documentary to be-there-now, from recreation to being, from Jacques Coseeau to Eyes of the Sea – where is my whale? How does she sing? Can I feel what she feels? (using the military’s submarine listening technology). Technology brings empathy. From the Olympics 500 BCE to Olympics 2012 Be the athlete… From Mozambique satellite feed, or satellite picture, to 6 billion feeds, from worldwide distributed sources.

The challenge is design:

How the internet changes technology and business:

global immediacy, at zero cost

MultiMedia World Keynote

Internet Broadcasting: Seeing your Viewer as a User

Monday, Apr 10 2000 Venetian Ballroom G

5:00PM - 6:00PM

John Warnock, CEO Adobe

The Internet is more than a new alternative for content distribution

- it’s the biggest contender yet for audience attention - and has

spawned an entirely new business model for broadcasting. In this

presentation, Mr. Warnock will explore the challenges of

broadcasting on the Internet, where time becomes meaningless,

potential market segmentation endless, and the competition more

crowded with newcomers everyday. Citing analogies to such past

technological upheavals as the desktop computer and its impact on

the publishing industry, he will offer insights into how broadcasting can adapt to

the communications revolution taking place on the Internet. He’ll examine the

factors that can help differentiate an Internet portal, the new ways broadcasters

must generate revenue on the Internet, and the tools that make the Internet an

easily accessible broadcasting medium.

Business model convergence, tool convergence, media convergence. What really is happening: images, animation, text are coming together in one place, but adding a different component – interactivity. Some things don’t migrate to the internet – like the novel. A great deal of our TV content is storytelling – like a novel – and won’t migrate.

Driving Forces:

Viewer –> User

Adobe’s website started out as an informational site. It is now a forum for interaction.

Not so much ‘re-purposing’ assets as redelivering them interactively.

Historical perspective:

Desktop publishing democratized the way information is disseminated. There are way more content producers now. Same thing is happening with the economics of video production (it just took ten more years of technology development to do it). Proliferation of talent, with reduced barriers to entry (the internet). There will be video content on everything – it will explode. Current video production sources won’t necessarily be the major sources in a few years.

Dynamic Media Market

Web Economic Opportunities - Benefits to Providers

Dynamic Media Tools Demo: Dave Trescot Premier and AfterEffects product mgr

Premiere: If you are not doing video on the desktop, then you will be, because your competitors will be Pinacle Target 3000 card $6k 3 streams of serial digital video (uncompressed) plus 5 real-time streams of FX. Pinnace and Matrox are both shipping systems for $1k which can do 2 DV streams in realtime. Single editing system for professional broadcast as well as webcasts. It’s not just about getting the job done faster – creativity is an iterative process. Gone away is render time – the barriers to entry are gone.

AfterEffects: 2 new plugins Atomic Power ‘Evolution’ 13 plugins, and Maya

Multiplane plugin: allows specification how layers move against each other in space, how they intersect with each other

Card Dance: 3D based upon brightness value of image to control the position, how fast pieces spin, etc., in 3D space

Shatter: as ‘force ball’ moves across image, pieces break off and fall down, video keeps playing on falling pieces, gravity makes larger pieces fall faster. Special image maps can control how pieces break apart.

These are actually included in AfterEffects 4.1 production bundle.

Maya Parametric Painter allows painting on fire, waterfall, glass, wind, hundreds of presets. Parametric manipulation, and the computer does the rest.

These tools make it cheaper for you, but also allows a lot more people to do this kind of production. Getting independent product teams to work together is key. Standardization of interface between Adobe apps (what about AAF???).

Bringing it Together on the Web: Dave Helmly

How do we get the user involved on the web, clicking around on what they want to see.

LiveMotion: download it from website 18meg for Mac

Use to create fancy web banners with roll-overs. Replaced ImageStyler. Dragged in a standard PSD document. Separate layers from PSD remain accessible in LiveMotion. AfterEffects timeline is built into LiveMotion. Export options: Flash added.

GoLive 5.0: adds rollovers and clicking of video images

Digital Video Production Workshop - Day 1

Apr 8 2000 9:00AM - 5:00PM

Las Vegas Convention Center Room N255

Motion Graphics Design

9:00 am - 10:30 am

In the world of motion graphics design, it’s easy to get seduced by technology.

New releases of software and hardware bring with them the promise of achieving

previously unimagined feats. But at the end of the day, motion graphics designers

don’t deliver a spec sheet to their clients, they deliver art that communicates

ideas that your clients want to communicate. This session will cover issues

ranging from what makes for effective communication, trends in how type is used

and mis-used, visual style, and so on.

Sponsored by www.dv.com which does magazine publishing and dv and web-tv expositions. Next week, this workshop will be on website in compressed video. DV Web Video magazine

Moderator:

Harry Mott, Otis College of Art and Design, Los Angeles, CA

Motion graphics is a discipline practiced by designers to create movement.

Belief does 2D and 3D animation. www.otisart.edu large book list of resources, go to Harry’s page.

Panelists:

Mike Goedecke, Belief, Santa Monica, CA www.belief.com

Steve Kazanjian, Belief, Santa Monica, CA

This business is about passion. Designers need to act as artists to bring forward ‘The New Visual Language’ Form over function is coming back. We’re at the epicenter of Broadcast Design… everything is being designed. When design is done on a Henry or Flame, @ $500-800/hr, the creative process can’t happen very well. It may take a whole day to do 5 sec of animation. Before, you’d do your storyboards at home on Photoshop, but the final design had to happen in real expensive facilities. Then, a technological advance happened which gives the artists these tools at home (or in their shop) on the desktop. Fine artists are moving into commercial art, because of the availability of new tools. ‘Commercial’ is really about getting the artist’s work out to larger audiences. Fine arts are viewed in museums by thousands… commercial arts are viewed by millions. Definite trend toward doing everything in-house. These guys don’t like hiring freelancers or outsourcing work to facilities.

Demo Reel Clients: www.netaid.com, mTV, TV Guide, USA Movie, Two Step, Oasis, Toon, Ultimate Trek, Grammy Awards, Disney, Comedy Central, Magic on the Edge, etc.

Where do you guys come up with all these crazy ideas? There has to be a purpose behind all the graphics, it must tell a story – narrative – is the key. This kinda came from Steven’s film background. Styles come and go, but the concepts behind the design last forever. The fundamental concept must be the driving force. Don’t do stuff just because it looks cool or is hot today. Make the fundamental concept the Bible which you keep gong back to.

Comedy Central example: Steven does storyboards by starting with 35mm stills which he edits with the Media 100. Used Commotion to fake pushing guy out of cab.

Magic on the Edge (Fox Network): simulated film with video, printed out selected stills, scanned them back in and used that as the ‘jerky’ film (approx 2 or 3 fps). Incorporated with full motion video – very cool.

Network redesign for USA Movie Network (3 movie open packages were designed) – big networks used to use one big house to do everything, but now they’re using smaller design studios for various components. Belief decided that Light reflection/refraction was the concept used to create the network redesign.

Keep pushing your client, and if you do a good job for them, next time they’ll give you more freedom.

Playhouse Disney opener: ‘Daddy, playhouses don’t walk’ first educational Disney program.

Concept: the playhouse was constructed using elements from things found on the floor of a kid’s room. It walks, flies, swims, goes into space, etc. Belief did 30 holiday openers for Disney. Prepared storyboards with Photoshop into Electric Image, shot final with digital motion camera, editing on-set with Media 100. Post done with Media 100 back and forth to After Effects.

Ultimate Trek opener using clips from all iterations of Star Trek and Deep Space Nine.

Drive, dedication, perseverance is all about your art. Pushing it as far as you can. Do it 100%. New media just opens up more venues for your work. Reinterpret what interactive is. New language, words, to describe what happens in the next 5 years.

The ‘Grunge Movement’ we have just moved out of. Now, it’s more organic, ‘biotech’ Clean look. Simple. e.g. VW, iMac commercials.

Michael sees Flash as an interstitial technology, because there’s not much bandwidth now. With broadband, we won’t need Flash anymore – it’ll be full motion graphics. Broadband TV will not need Flash. Don’t invest in limited-bandwidth technologies, because in 3 years, it’ll be obsolete. Invest in concepts, not technologies. Shockwave is the interactive technology, which’ll be around for a long time. But Flash, the vector-based component, is what will go away with Broadband.

Belief Sound Design is done in-house by staff sound designer (damn!). Frequently, tho, a music composer is outsourced (like when client requests a particular composer).

Desktop tools used by belief: used to have a really current list on website

Mac G4, ultra-ice, one 21" mntr, media 100, after effects are the 2 core software tools. adaptec for scsi megadrive media-dock removable sneaker-net, every machine is identical. Commotion, cinema 4D, electric image, also.

Belief’s work is animation based, not pristine graphic based. Lots of 3D incorporated, but that’s not core. Layers to provide depth. Lot’s of blurs used, and the Ice board speeds up those renders.

16:9 won’t get really used as long as 4:3 compatibility is an issue.

Everything You Need to Know about Streaming Video Technologies:

Windows Media, QuickTime, and RealNetworks

10:45 am - 12:15 pm

An in-depth session designed to give detailed how-to tips on to serve video over

the Internet and closed intranets. Attendees are invited to bring their technical

questions to the session.

Moderator:

Ben Waggoner, Terran Interactive, Los Gatos, CA division of Media 100

Panelists:

David Workman, Product Mgr., Microsoft Digital Media Division

Formerly with Grass Valley, then Abekas, then vExtreme, which was acquired by MS.

He an interpreter between video-speaking and computer-speaking people. Produced the JumpStart CD, avail at Internet Theatre. Pick one up.

Digital Rights mgmt built into Windows Media Player. Redirects to content owner’s website, which is up to them. Can blow up in 2 weeks, charge you a fee, etc.

Windows Media 7 is in beta. Avail later in Spring 16:9 is an option. Interface looks a lot like Quicktime! Skins give interface a customized, branded look.

Coolest Thing today: integration of web and video is now assumed. Figuring out the business model is the current challenge. www.launch.com profiles your prefs by going back to engine. Sweet spot moving from 300k up to 700k or better. Moving to a time when people come home from work and watch evening news on computer instead of TV.

Mistakes being made: learning process, think about what the user is doing just before your show starts. More attention needs to be given to the show opener.

Next few years: Hi-Def may finally happen. Streaming video usage will be mainstream.

Steve Jacobson, RealNetworks, Seattle, WA Product Mgr.

Real Producer 7 tuned for midband to broadband 12k to >5mb, more live options, new RMEditor

Tuning Content:

Coolest thing today: content that’s targeted for the enduser. Personalization is the eCommerce key. Ease of use makes video on the internet ubiquitous.

Mistakes being made: when content is being created and encoded, give more consideration to who the audience is, and what their bandwidth is.

Next few years: Implementation of tools now available. Increase in stability and scalability of networks. Dropped packets is the bane of streaming. Streaming will get as stable as TV.

Ron Peters, Product Line Mgr, QuickTime TV

Formerly with Devo, bought by Avid. Now with QuickTime TV network. QT released in 1991. Oldest, most robust digital media format there is. Largest installed base is on Windows platform. It’s an architecture, not just a platform or format. It’s a digital video editing format. Video On Demand streaming technology typically 300 kbps stream. Go to www.apple.com and click on QuickTime link to see it. Streaming server is open source, runs on all platforms (incl. Windows NT server), is FREE.

Coolest thing today: tools you already use work w/QT. XMen trailers on website. Goes full-screen, not just in a player window.

Mistakes being made: figure out what it is your trying to do, and don’t let the coolness factor shadow the eCommerce issues, and why you’re doing the thing in the first place.

Next few years: Broadband will make video look good (will assume a minimum 300k base). But it’s not just about recreating the TV experience. What you put around the TV is what’s important. Enhancement of content.

Q&A:

OpenSource is catching on. Do RealNetworks or MS plan to open their source code?

Real: not yet, but still standards-based.

MS: ditto.

QT: stability is not the issue, even for mission-critical apps.

Streaming MPEG formats:

QT: is based upon mpeg-4 format. Server doesn’t have to know what the format is, as it’s contained within the streamed file itself.

MS: we have our own version of mpeg-4 v.1, v.2, now up to v.4. MS codec is stable with mpeg-4. Differs from QT opinion, because the codec itself, tho it can fit into a variety of wrappers, and tolerant of packet-loss on lossy networks.

Real: can’t answer. Mp1 and Mp2 works fine. Standard for MP4 is still evolving, so doesn’t have one yet. It’s not yet finished. Intellectual property rights issue has yet to be settled.

Hosting: DIY or farm it out?

If you’re a hobbyist or non mass-market site, then do it yourself. If you need to feed more than a T3 can handle, outsource it.

Why don’t you guys all use the same format for stills, text, etc. so we don’t have to develop 3 different shows?

We’re heading that direction, we recognize that the authoring process is much more complicated, but not today. SMIL is the answer Synchronized Multimedia Integration Language is trying to standarize this. Standards bodies set a base line, but they take a long time to do it. Each of the 3 of use are always pushing the edge, tho, so that’s what creates the incompatibility. But over time, a new baseline emerges from standards bodies. It just takes awhile. Companies respond to market demand. RTSP spec support helps. Real Time Streaming Protocol.

Plan to re-encode from source every 6 months, in order to keep up with evolving codecs.

With multi-channel digital TV, why would anyone want to watch streaming video?

The key is adding value to the TV content – interactivity – the things you put around it.

Both technologies are very compatible with each other. The mixing of both technologies creates more power than separate.

Discuss strengths of your technology

WebVideo magazine article by Ben discusses strengths and weakness of each of the 3 technologies.

Real: we’re better at streaming, open system (not open source) with SDKs, installed base penetration on win, mac, linux.

QT: streaming is about standards, QT’s 100% standards support and open source at the server allows more 3rd party integration.

MS: I’ts all about providing the best end-user experience. Video quality is phenomenal, and scalability is it’s strength.

Metadata: what are you doing to infuse your product with metadata?

Real: keyword, title, authoring data. Speech to text conversion for keyword search engines. Real Guide has search engine for searching streaming media.

Content creators need to code meta tags correctly.

www.streamsearch.com does streaming search

MS says Monday morning there’ll be an announcment from a company to allow input from sources other than rca or s-video connectors. Like aes/ebu, composite or component, etc. NOT MS.

When Worlds Converge

1:45 pm - 3:15 pm

After years of so-called convergence, two trends are finally clear: 1) Computer

monitors (attached to powerful, multipurpose computers) will replace television

sets as vehicles for most video presentation. 2) Ultimately, networked video will

become the dominant form of media handled by such computers at home, at work,

and in theaters.

Established techniques and conventions are being questioned as Web video goes

mainstream. Unrealistic expectations, an absence of proven business models, and

an urgent need to jump on the Internet bus before you get left behind are

creating career-changing consequences and opportunities for the entire digital

media industry.

Learn how the Internet is changing the day to day workflow at production and

post production houses. And glean essential tips for surviving the convergence of

broadcasting and webcasting.

Moderator:

Nels Johnson, Download Recordings, Inc., San Francisco, CA

Panelists:

Scott Klososky, Webcasts. com, Oklahoma City, OK

Paul Halperin, Northwest Teleproductions, Edina, MN

Check out notes on DV magazine’s website I missed this one, and heard it was good.

www.dv.com

Data and Interactive Services

3:30 pm - 5:00 pm

As the Internet and broadcast television converge, interactive television is

becoming more than a concept waiting to become an idea that will eventually

become a product plan. Today, it is possible to watch a football game and

interactively call up player stats, game stats, and more via enhanced content

served over the Internet. Today, it’s possible to play along with contestents on

Jeopardy and Wheel of Fortune—in realtime via a WebTV box. And on a localized

basis, folks who attend basketball and hockey games at Madison Square Garden

can experience the game both live In this session, veterans share their insights on

how to add interactive elements to existing broadcast content.

Moderator:

Dominic Milano, DV Group, San Francisco, CA

Panelists:

Alex Thompson, Mixed Signals Technologies, Inc. Los Angeles, CA

Suzanne Stefanac, Respond TV

Jeffrey Dawes, CSI, Inc.

Digital Video Production Workshop - Day 2

Apr 9 2000 9:00AM - 5:00PM

Las Vegas Convention Center Room N255

Using DV Format Tools in a Professional Setting

9:00 am - 10:30 am

Thanks in part to the success of a few low-budget cinematic releases, the DV

format is often thought of as the format that brought broadcast-quality to

wannabe Spielberg’s everywhere. But DV format equipment in the form of

low-cost, high-resolution cameras, editing systems, and VTRs has found its way

into all manner of professional facilities that take advantage of the lower cost,

smaller gear.

Attendees will learn technical and aesthetic limits and benefits of DV gear, with

tips on dealing with 4:1:1 resolution. Find out where DV just won’t cut it, and be

surprised by some cases where it did.

Presenter:

Adam Wilt, Menlo Park, CA columnist for DV magazine

What is DV and why do we care

Video: A family of compression methods

Audio:

Data: timecode, time, date, camera info

Program codes: WX data; and so on bungie jumping; bed racing, etc. not of much professional value – remember, DV was developed as a consumer format

With Canon GL-1, long takes of 1 hour can cause 2 or 3 frames of drift between video and audio when you pull them into an editor which separates audio and video streams for editing, like QuickTime editors (EditDV, FinalCutPro, etc.).

Synchronization is defined in the "Blue Book" IEC 61834

Why do we care:

Firewire: Apple’s FireWire; Sony’s i.LINK

DV50: the next step

DV100: the HDTV step

JVC and Panasonic backwards compatible, play SDTV D-7 or D-9, 720/60p, 1080/50I, 1080/60I, 1080/24p formats not cheap, VTRs start around US45,, even so, HDTV pix at DigiBeta pricing. Shipping now

How does DV measure up?

Objective testing using Sarnoff JND (just noticable difference) analysis, based upon psychological testing, hard numbers from an impartial machine

Subjective testing: expert viewers in blind comparisons showed DV25 close to ‘601’

DV25 defects

DV NLE (NonLinear Editor): The Big Deal

DV NLE: the downside

DV RT (Real Time) NLE:

DV RT NLE: the bottom line

Twice the data rate needed for realtime performance: single disks won’t work: RAIDs required

What can’t it do in realtime: chroma-key? Moving GFX?

DV NLE vendors:

DV in M-JPEG NLE

m-jpeg works and it’s cheap needs 3:1, 2:1 or lower conmpression for quality more and faster disks requiraed

some transcoding concerns: DigiSuite, DSLE, Media100

DV in MPEG-2 NLE

DV or MPEG-2 NLE

Matrox RT2000, DigiSuite DTV

Connecting audio:

Case Study: HD Production at a Local Station

10:45 am - 12:15 pm

From The Tonight Show to football games, producing early high-definition

television broadcasts has been a game played almost exclusively by network folks

with big budgets. But how do you produce compelling HD content at a

local-station? See how local stations have met HD’s budgetary, technical, and

other challenges to produce high-definition content that sets them apart from

their competitors.

Presenter:

Larry Shenosky, KRON, San Francisco, CA

HD Post with Workstation-Based Tools

1:45 pm - 3:15 pm

You don’t need millions of dollars to design and edit DTV and HD video. Learn how

smaller post houses and stations use desktop tools to produce short-form and

long-form content without going broke. Discover how they manage to get

workstation tools to deliver the speed they need to meet tight deadlines. Learn

which tools work best for them, and which ones don’t.

Moderator:

Kimberly Reed, DV Magazine

Panelists:

Jack Krooss, ViewGraphics, President jack@viewgraphics.com

Manufactures uncompressed serial digital boards which capture into HiDef. open system architecture. also makes software apps for capture and laydown of HD clips encapsulated in QuickTime container, so clips work with any app that supports QT native, or which can import or export QT. Uses multiple PCI 64 buses on server class computers with multiple Intel Xeon processors. Doesn’t need over-the-top bus like Intelligent Paradigm.

Noel Stearet, AdmitOne Pictures

Got started in HD to use it as a medium to create special effects for films. Uses ViewGraphics capture card. Noel says ‘film’s over’ does everything in video HD. uses server class processors Intel Xeon 2 and 4 processor versions with 512 or 256meg RAM. Showed a HiDef film clip shot on HD video and edited nonlinear. When editing, they just leave blank spaces for any areas that need effects, and go render them in AfterEffects, then cuts-only add them back to the blank spaces.

Keith Altunian, Apple, Digital Video division

Connects Apple to videographers. QuickTime is the glue that makes all this work.

Brett Bilbrey, Intelligent Paradigm, CTO

Manufactures Video Explorer II card. Has 6 specialized chips on each card to allow realtime effects and rendering, as well as capture. Much more sophisticated than ViewGraphics card, which is really just a pump. Visit hospitality suite 5106 in Hilton.

Understanding the New Advanced Authoring Format AAF

3:30 pm - 5:00 pm

In the age of digital postproduction, many producers find that their biggest

challenge doesn’t come when working within an application, but when working

between them. Exchanging media between applications and workstations is largely

dependent on file format, so in this world where recompression or transcoding of

digital data means quality loss, initiatives like AAF aim to solve the problems of

distributed collaboration and inter-application file exchange.

Built on the foundation of Avid’s OMFI format, AAF was officially announced at IBC

1999. What’s happened since then? The list of supporting companies has shrunk

since AAFs introduction, but the initiative still has industry support from key

players. Find out what the current status of AAF is, what future support looks like,

and how you can prepare for open-format file exchange between systems.

Featured speakers include key industry representatives behind AAF, and

demanding producers already using AAF.

www.AAFassociation.org

Moderator:

Q: If AAF is just a container, how come QuickTime doesn’t just replace need for AAF?

A: Oliver says there’s no conflict. They are complementary technologies. An AAF plugin fits within QT. A QT plugin fits within AAF.

Observation: Applications exist to conceal metadata from end user. AAF keeps the that info there, so when it comes back, it’s still there. I stays invisible to users, but is still available to the application program when it comes back.

Panelists:

Bill Roberts, Discreet Logic

Discreet has actually contributed code to AAF now. Discreet’s greatest interest in AAF is to ease project transportation by the user from one hardware/software platform to another; like Avid to Discreet or vice versa.

Oliver Morgan, Avid Technology, Inc. Tewksbury, MA www.AAFassociation.org

What is AAF association?

Who is AAF?

Where did AAF come from?

[ it really came from OMFI, but got its name changed to draw in more vendors ]

What problems does AAF solve?

Simple Content Model

Wrapper

Content Package

Content Item clips

What is AAF?

What is AAF not?

What can you do with AAF?

Semantics of user extensions?

What’s happening soon?

What’s in the blue sky?

Q: What about problems w/OMFTool when going from Media Composer to ProTools?

A: Avid would like to publicly acknowledge "There were some black holes in OMF. The way to fix this, is to conform to an external, open standard. This will fix the Avid / Digidesign problem."

Avid to QT linkage is getting better all the time. Lot’s of export/import support there.

OMF to AAF conversion has been a major purpose at Avid.

MPEG-7 represents the greatest opportunity for reconciliation of all manufactures with AAF.

The perils of ‘missing media’ issue of external referencing, resolving of external references. The function of the Object Manager is designed to address this.

Brad Gilmer, AAF, Exec. Dir.

Adobe dropped out… what’s up with that? Brad says ‘we’re talking with them.’ Adobe AfterEffects is a pivotal application. AAF sounds like the successor to OMF. OMF was perceived by Avid’s competitors as an Avid initiative. AAF is trying to ease their minds. AAF is an open format. "AAF is not the nose of the Avid camel coming in under the tent." We need to get Adobe and Media100 to participate (not to mention Apple QuickTime).

Send them email to encourage them to do so!

Internet Weekend Workshops

Weaving Your Web:

A Primer for Current and Aspiring Web Professionals

Apr 8 2000 10:00AM - 5:00PM

The Venetian Room 501

This intensive workshop examines the various components of successfully

managing a website. Topics include: Real World Site Development:

The Good, Bad and Ugly;

Managing a Website; Audio and Video on the Internet, Using Dynamic

HTML and Javascript to Create a Sexier Website and PR and Marketing Internet

Strategies. This workshop is a must-attend if your goal is to get your website

noticed. Developed by the Internet Professionals Network (IPN).

Moderator:

Don Baarns, Baarns Consulting, Sylmar, CA

Content Management www.microsoft.com/backstage 25k (out of 400k) pages a day change. They have several automated tools they’re building internally to maintain content. Check links, validate stuff. More info on www.t1.net or www.tieronenertwork.org

Panelists: Lynn Macias, Silicon Valley P.R., San Francisco, CA; Greg Faciane,

Digital Media Design, Sierra Madre, CA; Tom Marcoux, West Coast Business

Academy, San Francisco, CA; Gary Ream, H.O.T. Network, Santa Monica, CA;

Janice Norton, H.O.T. Network, Santa Monica, CA

10-10:15 - Introduction - Don Baarns

10:15 -11:30 - Real World Site Development: The Good, Bad and the Ugly - Don

Baarns

11:40-12:55 - Using Audio and Video on the Internet: How to do it Right! – Tom Marcoux

2:00-3:15 –

DHTML and Javascript: Creating a Sexier Website

Gary Ream, H.O.T. Network, Santa Monica, CA (Hands of Time Animation and Design)

Janice Norton, H.O.T. Network, Santa Monica, CA

www.handsoftime.com www.hotad.com

Web design, streaming of video. 11 yrs in business. Sites get 1million hits per month.

Their site includes artificial intelligence robots.

Janice Colors: www.hotad.com/NAB for examples

Five kinds of contrast to make your website have impact:

Color Wheel: 3 primaries Red Blue Yellow Purple Orange Green Yellow to Purple (opposites) really grab attention Plasticity is the term applying to opposites. Good for action novels. Color is a vibration. Opposite frequencies – yellow is highest freq, purple is lowest. Effect can be used in a more subtle way, like for corporate sites. Dilute yellow to pale yellow or cream. Adjust purples into blue. The balance between contrast –vs- harmonious. [Reduce color palette to 16 colors or fewer, speeds up download time. Or use spot color, reducing color palette to 3 colors] There are 40 color combinations which the human eye can distinguish. But most people use only 3 or 4 colors. Yellow to Black is the strongest color combination. Contrast of color temperature: hottest is red, coolest is blue. Dark always falls back, red always moves forward. Foreground needs to be hotter color temp, background needs to be cooler.

Fonts: don’t use too many different ones. Find 2 fonts that are serving your purpose, mix a serif and a sans-serif font. Also use font weights for emphasis. Justification or ragged right.

Gary DHTML and Javascript: www.hotad.com/javascript for examples

Use top-down design. Make sure the technology doesn’t get in the way.

Jpgs take longer to load than gifs. Do you need java and dhtml.

Java applets are small programs downloaded. Unpredictable across browser, may crash your computer, ISP may not allow their execution, many disadvantages.

JavaScript offers most of the advantages of Java applets, but with few of the disadvantages. Numerous libraries avail for free on the web. View source of java script and paste it into your page. ChronJav is a javascript which controls what’s seen when. Usefull for randomizing pages pulled up. Or you can create a random number generator. Tell browser to check where user went the last time, and use that to determine content delivered.

Variation on the Eliza robot: by changing the keywords and responses, you can adapt the chat robot to almost any subject or situation. Popup boxes with text and a few small pictures loading first can cover load time of a big graphic page behind. DHTML, not here yet, won’t work cross platform between IE and Netscape. Must insert a javascript which will do a browser detect, and load pages accordingly. Will allow more control than with tables, more animation of fonts.

3:25-4:40 –

PR and Marketing on the Internet

Lynn Macias, Silicon Valley P.R., San Francisco, CA (not the former IICS President)

PR tells a story.

Why do you need PR? Build it and they will come doesn’t work for websites

Add a press and investor section to your website.

The net’s "buzz" factor

PR is a lot cheaper than advertising, but doesn’t generate sales directly.

PR Resources: wire, general info, clipping svcs, media sources.

See website for slides

Michael Terpin, Internet Wire, founder and CEO Mterpin@internetwire.com

Internet Wire is a leading PR firm, which uses internet eMail ‘digest’ form exclusively to convey press releases to reporters, ad agencies, other PR firms.

Billion dollars a year that are spent on faxed press releases are ticking journalists off. Internet Wire uses email on voluntary opt-in basis to get press releases out. Distribution is what matters. It’s not spam – they send 1 email message in an area of interest that subscriber picks out. This email contains links to press releases contained.

PR and Marketing are converging. They’re synergistic. John Scanlon gives example: PR shapes opinion, advertising shapes image. Days of mailing a Press Release with a stamp are long gone. Integrated Marketing used to mean that the agencies were buying the PR firms. Now, there’s an increasing need for speed, vast amount of trade-centric publications have an hourly need for news to fill sites. The real convergence is between website, b-to-b or eCommerce companies and PR firms (?).

Greg Faciane, Digital Media Design, Sierra Madre, CA www.dmdot.com greg@dmdot.com

Marketing on the Internet

Targeting ads to the right audience

Double Click is the largest ad agency on the web. Combining of profiling recently backed off of

Search engine targeting

Leaving tracks

Dynamic pricing

Tailoring your site to your users

Q&A:

What does the little guy, who can’t retain a big PR firm, do?

If you’ve got a sexy story and tell it simply, one press release can do a lot. Needs to be very succinct, 1 paragraph or less. Never send attachments. Rather, sell the story in the subject of the email, never use word ‘revolutionary,’ and provide a link to the site and/or the full text of the press release.

Michael says: Alternative advertising and word of mouth are best forms of advertising, worst forms are radio and tv ads. Rented limos to take journalists around to parties at Internet World last year, and a ‘flying wedge’ truck with a banner ad to drive around the show.

 

4:40-5:00 - Wrap up/Q&A

Streaming Media: The New Wave in Broadcasting

Apr 9 2000 10:00AM - 5:00PM

The Venetian Room 501

This workshop examines the various uses for streaming media broadcasts over the

Internet. Panelists will explain how broadcasters, web professionals and marketers

can use this technology to tie in with current breaking news, events and

meetings. Panelists will provide insight into the cost involved in streaming media

and what is needed to make it happen. Come and see examples of web

broadcasting by companies who are successfully doing it right now! Developed by

the Internet Professionals Network (IPN).

Moderator: Scott Salter, Intervu, San Diego, CA

Panelists: Chad R. Badiyan, Badiyan, Inc., Evanston, IL; Curtis Palmer, Sonic

Foundry, Inc., Madison, WI; Linda Thurman, New Media Prime, Inc., Los Angeles,

CA; John Brier, BroadcastAMERICA.com, Portland, ME; Philip Fracassi, House of

Blues Digital, Inc., Hollywood, CA; Stephen L. Felisan, House of Blues Digital, Inc.,

Hollywood, CA; Mike Rick, FastBroadcast.com

10-10:05 - Introduction - Scott Salter

10:05- 11:05 –

How to Use Streaming With Breaking News, Events and Meetings

Chad R. Badiyan, Badiyan, Inc., Evanston, IL chad@badiyan.com will email slides if requested

Distribution:

By 2005 155Mbps to 600Mbps to the home multiple streams

Viewing: Broadcast vs Broadband, characteristics in defining a solution

Quality image, 30pfs Quality dependent on bandwidth

Narrative, long form content interactive, short form content

Passive experience Active, engaging experience

Viewing distance 6’ Viewing distance 18"

One way Two way

Fixed time slot programming VOD (Video on Demand)

Audience has minimal influence on content Viewer has total control

Unbundling the PC: processing and user interface

"In a world of stupid devices, networks have to be smart. But in a world of smart devices, networks have to be dumb."

Server side processing HotMail is a server side processing task browser is dumb terminal

NetComputers: PCs won’t go away, but we’ll see a lot of smart devices emerging:

Internet enabled devices which support streaming media:

These devices each become a Nielsen box, reporting user’s habits back to the advertisers, etc.

Webcasting = the end of TV = personal TV

Webcasting apps:

11:15-12:15

What’s Out There and How You Can Use It?

Chad R. Badiyan, Badiyan, Inc., Evanston, IL

B2B

As audience size increases, interactivity decreases. When you reach about 20 people in an event, interactivity needs to be controlled. After you reach 1000 people, interactivity goes away.

Chat packages that help you manage Netpodium, PictureTel

Webcasting App Server Features Include:

Servers: email Chad for current list of manufacturers

PictureTel eVideo application server features a video window for the presenter, a slide window, and a Q&A scrollable text window.

ITalk is an audio encoding service: you call into a phone number, it encodes and broadcasts on the internet.

The average employee attends more than 60 mtgs a month, one-third of which they rate as unproductive.

The typical executive flies to 4.6 mtgs a month, wasing untold hours on airplanes, in transit, in hotesl – all for a meeting that lasts, on average, 2.2 hrs. NFO InfoCom, 1998

In an attempt to combat ever-risign airfares, most corporations are substantially cutting back on travel; more than 60% have indicated they are using conferencing more often as one way to meet cost-effectively.

Tools:

RealPresenter Plus G2 and RealProducer

MS also has tools set

Praja provides a template for encoding live content, sports centric.

iShow interactive tradeshow webcasting using MS technology

Producing a webcasting event: Questions:

Before the event:

During the event:

Which is the best streaming software?

He likes Real for consumer events because of the installed base of players

1:15-2:15

What Does It Cost?

Linda Thurman

2:15-3:15

What’s the Future of Broadcasting on the Internet?

Curtis Palmer

3:30-5:00

Case Study: Example of Successful Webcasts

John Brier, Mike Rick, Stephen L. Felisan, Philip Fracassi

MultiMedia World Reception

Apr 9 2000 5:30PM - 7:00PM

The Venetian Room Ballroom J

The Internet - Cyberlaw Bootcamp for Broadcasters

Apr 10 2000 10:30AM - 11:45AM

Las Vegas Convention Center Room N235/237

A must session for broadcasters streaming or planning to stream their signals or

other programming on the Internet. Experts will provide cyberlaw checklists for

intellectual property, defamation, obscenity, contest and contract issues. Also

included will be updates on iCrave TV (the Canadian ISP streaming U.S. and

Canadian TV signals) and the controversy surrounding liability to record producers

for streaming broadcast signals.

Ben Ivins, Sr. Attorney for NAB Copyright and Intellectual Property

A site’s data collection is replete with privacy issues, litigation. Develop a plainly stated privacy policy, state what you are collecting.

Kurt Wimmer discussed evolving FCC rules and regs

John I. Stewart, Jr., Corwell & Moring LLP www.crowellmoring.com

Clash between the global nature of the internet and the territory that defines our industry. The internet ovelays a global structure over the historical territories.

Protecting your signal: the iCraveTV case in Canada

The Website

The Lawsuit: quickly settled, injunction granted

A new compulsory license for the internet? Copyright Office proceeding: NAB and others opposed new license. Copyright office agreed in 1997 report to Congress

Congression hearings: Is localism threatened? Broadcasters and others opposed.

A station’s own website: the risks of reach

Domain Names: the cybersquatting problem

The Law of the Land: UCITA

Bruce G. Joseph, Wiley, Rein & Fielding bjoseph@wrf.com

Anti-circumvention Provision of recent copyright law: prohibition of technologies used to enable others to pirate copyrighted work. Streambox was one recent case.

RIAA’s war against MP3. Napster (Nabster?) software allows other users to search your computer for mp3 files. MP3.com has service which allows user to prove he has an original CD, and then allows that user to download copies of that CD which is on mp3’s website.

RIAA is doing a technology thrust to support SDMI compliance (Secure Digital Music Initiative).

Webcasting Rights Issues

Music Licensing (public performance right). BMI, ASCAP

Reproduction Right (ephemeral recording exception allows user to make 1 copy) No statutory exemption for more than one copy.

Sound Recordings: in 1971, Congress passed a law that didn’t deal with broadcast.

In 1998, sweeping revision of public performance for non-subscription broadcast (webcast): Statuatory license issued by arbitrary mediator. 15% of revenues is standard.

Bruce Rich, Weil, Gotshal & Manges LLP, NYC

Coping with Copyright: The Hot Issues For Broadcasters

Breaking developments in music licensing:

1 Radio streaming and the Digital Millennium Copyright Act

  1. Local broadcast TV and the performing rights societies
  1. Broadcast radio and the performing rights societies

Enactment of the Digital Performance Right in Sound Recordings Act of 1995 (DPRA) and the Digital Millennium Copyright Act of 1998 (DMCA)

Complex web of statutory provisions include creation of compulsory licenses for certain types of licensable public performances

eBrands: From Online to Primetime

Apr 10 2000 1:00PM - 2:30PM

The Venetian Room 501

You’ve got a killer media brand, so how do you translate that

to revenues? Tips and tactics on creating content that works

with your brand. Make the most of migrating your assets across

the mediums to maximize the reach of your Web presence. Get

ready for eTV by transforming your Web strategy from a minor

adjunct to your marketing efforts into a powerful revenue source.

Moderator: Tony Winders, iAgency, Santa Monica, CA

Panelists: Brian Bowman, ABC.com, New York, NY; Jeff Morris, Yack.com,

Emeryville, CA; Tim Carruthers, Webcasts.com, Santa Monica, CA; David Bohrman,

Pseudo Programs, Inc., New York, NY; Jordan Kurweil, News Digital Media

Creating Interactive Content for Webcasting

Apr 10 2000 1:00PM - 2:30PM

The Venetian Room 604

Panelists will discuss insights gained from experience, webcasting live and re-broadcast events working

with top players in the industry. Interactive features, including taking live questions from the viewing

audience, polling with real time results, chat, user controlled VR and surveys will show broadcasters the

look and feel of their future.

Moderator:

Jerry Sullivan, Dynacom, Inc., Chicago, IL www.dynacominc.com www.gifte.com

Definitions: webcasting:

Three different streams typically sent: live video, audio, data (includes slides, graphics, questions and answers, etc).

Replaces video-conferencing Typical events have audiences of 1000 viewers.

Uses win95 platform. WinMediaPlayer, IE, T1 network connection and routers.

David Hon, Event Design, Seattle, WA www.designevent.com

Five Castes of Interactive Webcast live 2-way events

Not Interactive webcast events – can have streaming media

  1. Streaming Media with long distance conference calling makes a 2-way event, but is expensive and not self-contained – very expensive for 10k participants on ma bell.
  2. Do It Yourself – Side by Side streamed video on one side, html on the other
  3. Data Pre-Load to Hard Drive leader can spontaneously move elements onto the as appropriate, in response to live input from the audience. Everything isn’t streamed simultaneously, heavy stuff is pre-loaded. Very stable, since small streams sent live. Requires users to come in 30 minutes early to pre-load.
  4. Point 2 Point Link buttons for users to move outside event. Uses html links. Not just streaming audio and video, but elements that have to be synchronized. Here though, expenses start going down. www.interactiveview.net uses video ahnd presentation streams 2 streams.
  5. NetPodium High interactivity and design options thru html page and image switching video, presentation image and question input – answers back – questions pending streams. 3 streams. John McCain used this method, charging 500 users only $1000 each, raising $50k at a whack.
  6. WorldStream Many streaming events to up to 20k users – per heaqd per streaming byte cost model. Video, presentation image, addl images, text, questions, answers, pending questions… every element is a stream many streams.

Differences in methods/vendors:

www.choiceradio.com stream recording sessions, chat with artist, create buzz around new releases.

Ric Rhodes, WorldStream Communications www.worldstream.com

Mobile Studio in a Box in a 3’ hi by 19" skb case on wheels. self contained

just finished an MGM Grand archive 100s of sessions streamed live and archived. What we use to prepare the event.

Chat, questions, polls, hosted Q&A,

Event Director is his software interface product (Event DesignTool) for managing / administering the webcast. 4 hour training course. Looks good for ‘on the fly’ webcast production.

ASP model: application service provider Worldstream sells the box, but you subscribe to the service and tools, player or client for audience, reporting and demographic analysis, etc. provided with your subscription. Event Director is over 500k lines of Java.

Megabits to Mega-hits: Cutting Edge Strategies for Success

Apr 10 2000 2:30PM - 4:00PM

Las Vegas Hilton Room Pavilions 1-3

Staying on top in a competitive playing field demands vision,

fortitude and tremendous creativity - leadership qualities that

transcend time or gender. This panel will examine the management styles, talents

and innovative thinking of broadcast architects who help pave the road to digital.

Perpetually on the hot seat, quick of wit and fast on their feet, these industry

newsmakers will share their thoughts on the future of over-the-air television. They

always make their voices heard and always turn the horizon into reality.

Moderator:

Barbara Cochran, President, RTNDA, Washington, DC

Panelists:

Susanne Daniels, President, Entertainment, The WB, Burbank, CA;

Kay Koplovitz, CEO, Working Woman Network, New York, NY;

Mary Lou Quinlan, Vice Chairman, MacManus Group, DMB&B, New York, NY

The Best of Interactive Design

Apr 10 2000 3:00PM - 4:30PM

The Venetian Room 604/605

DVD allows interactive designers unbridled freedom from technical

limitations and points the way to the look and feel of future

converged media. It spans the gap between the CD era and the

interactive TV era. This session drills down into DVD and DVD-ROM

authoring for insight into authoring the programs of the future.

Moderator:

John Sands, IPC Communications, Lake Forest, CA

Convergence of our cultures, not just media. DVD removes limitations which designers face.

Panelists:

Richard Diercks, The Richard Diercks Company, Minneapolis, MN

Producer of 350 titles in last 3 years

"Form follows Function" Mees Vandero

"It’s how it feels" Frank Lloyd Wright

William Volk, YouWorkIt.com, Cardiff, CA;

"There is no spoon"from Matrix Collected thought on DVD, Media and Interactivity

My 15 minutes of fame was in the late 80s, CD-ROM era. I wasn’t always a dot-com guy. CD-I, CD-ROM, and The Manhole, The Return to Zork, Lightspan. Why I’m not doing shiny disks. Because the buz is now in dot-coms. Failure, Collapse, Disaster Great beginnings, and a bit of history: Aspen Movie Map virtual navigation using laserdisk.

Adventure Games: what happened? ‘DOOM-ed’ by 3D. MYST-ified by interactivity.

Interactive Myth #1: people want interactive movies

Interactive Myth #2: it’s the production values, stupid

How about something constructive?

Convergence, The Flying Car, and Reality:

Conclusion: Learn from the mistakes of the CD-ROM and make DVD-ROM something wonderful.

Dr. Panos Nasiopoulos, Daiken US Comtec Laboratories, Vancouver, BC

One of world’s foremost experts on MPEG compression.

DVD: Present and Future

What we can do today: define interactivity; examples -> limits (limits not defined by what we’ve done so far)

What will be possible tomorrow: re-define interactivity

Using Scenarist Pro as the DVD interactivity tool

DVD Interactivity: stream-based 2D video streams, all abjectsw as one video can’t separate the objects. Multiangles, multiple languages, audio, subtitles.

Menu access: button1 button2

Video access: overlay - allow user to link to another video stream

Only this? Commands can incorporate menu and video access

Registers to help us interact hides the keyboard, mouse and stuff that looks like a computer. Location 0, 1, 2, 3,… when finished playing video stream 1, make value in location 0 = 1, so the next action depends upon what the user has done. Location registers are like mailboxes, which tracks user’s path of responses. For example, stream 2 will play only after stream 1 has been played. DVD lingo: GPRM General Parameters

A step further – can create a title with a lot of buttons, but only one button plays a video.

Up to 32 buttons on a menu. Useful for codeword which can prevent movies from playing. Entered from IR keypad.

Panos is developing MPEG4 which has layers separated as different streams: background, foreground, actors, etc. all as separate objects. Each object is encoded separately. The decoder decodes each separate stream, then gets Scene Information which tell which streams to play when, where, etc. This opens up tremendous interactive possibilities for the user changing characters, sets, etc.

DVD: MPEG-4 based

Conclusion

MPEG4 all authoring is done when you do the encoding Java and C++

Decoder Chips in current DVD players are not powerful enough yet.

Breaking Bandwidth Bottlenecks

Apr 10 2000 3:00PM - 4:30PM

The Venetian Room 501

Through sky, sea and land, new solutions to bandwidth

problems continue to stream onto the scene. From chip

technology, to satellite, to alternate delivery systems-all have

their proponents. Hear and judge for yourself. Moderator:Dave

Burstein, DSL Prime, New York, NY

Panelists: Brad Pumphrey, Cidera, Laurel, MD; Miles Harrison, Lucent

Technologies, Murray Hill, NJ; Greg Schoenborn, Tranz-Send Broadcasting

Network, Inc., San Francisco, CA; Todd Sawicki, Loudeye, Seattle, WA; Frank

Schwartz, burst.com, San Franciso, CA

Electronic Commerce: It’s E-Business or No Business!

Apr 11 2000 9:00AM - 12:00PM

The Venetian Room Ballroom G/H/I

Over the past year the growth of electronic

commerce has been unprecedented. Are we

witnessing the ultimate test for companies pioneering business on

the Internet? Those who do their homework will be winners on a

global scale and may present a challenge for our traditional business

models. Find out how doing business on the Net can connect you

with a whole new marketplace where partnerships and alliances are

the name of the game - a game you can’t afford to lose!

9:00 am

Keynote Address: Greg Rohde, Assistant Secretary of Commerce For

Communications and Information, Administrator of The National

Telecommunications and Information Administration, Washington, DC

Galilei Galileo developed a telescope to test the theories of Nicholas Copernicus: that the Earth moved around the Sun (not the other way around). That transcended the common wisdom of the time. This Copernican revolution spawned the cultural revolution of the Renaissance. I believe that the electronic revolution underway now is creating a dramatic shift in our cultural universe now. I grew up in North Dakota. We believed that in order to have economic opportunities, we’d have to leave North Dakota. Electronic commerce is changing all that. eCommerce is no trend or fad. It’s a permanent fixture of our economic statistics. Commerce Dept. now issues regular reports of eCommerce. Last month, Stephen King’s latest book sold 400k copies in 24 hours on the internet. iMode is a company that miniaturizes websites for transmission to web-enabled cell phones. In a couple of years, web access via cell phones will far surpass access from desktops and laptops. The internet is creating new lines of business for broadcasters. Digital spectrum will be used by broadcasters, not just for better pictures and sound, but for a whole new spectrum of opportunities in datacasting and eCommerce. Historically, local programs have been delivered free over the air. Now we’re dealing with how to deliver Local-to-Local over satellites. Broadcasters need not fear the internet. Protection of privacy… the information snooper-highway. Websites that collect personal information rarely state a privacy policy – if they do, it merely says they won’t sell it to others. Websites need a strong commitment to protecting personal privacy. The way to avoid government regulation is for the industry to take the lead in protecting privacy.

Electronic Commerce and digital convergence provide broadcasters with tremendous opportunities. Copernicus had to challenge the dogmas of his day. Maybe one day we’ll look back and see the current dogmas of how we perceive the world today as archaic as the pre-Copernican views.

It’s a ‘mammoth shift’ of culture.

New Ways of Thinking

Moderator:

Gary Arlen, President, Arlen Communications, Inc., Bethesda, MD

9:30 am

A New Way of Thinking The Internet is challenging our traditional business

models and forcing broadcasters, advertisers and retailers to think in terms of new

one-to-one relationships. Bandwidth is increasing rapidly to keep pace with the

Net-generation and soon a world of products and services will be at the fingertips

of everyone, everywhere. Are you ready for the opportunity of the century?

Panelists:

Thomas W. Patterson, Partner, KPMG LLP, McLean, VA;

Graeme Weston, Managing Director Entertainment Division, The Fantastic Corporation, Santa Monica, CA;

Fantastic is:

Fantastic’s Role: enabling aggregation, broadcast and consumption

William Moses, IBM Global Telecom, San Francisco, CA; VP Broadband

$6 billion in TV commerce by 2005

27 million interactive TV enabled households, $15 billion total ITV revenue opportunity, $4.5 billion in eCommerce

TV Commerce: easy as 1,2,3… and 4

  1. Creation
  2. Broadcast
  3. Playback device (settop box) ELN: edge of the network device, palm pilot, TV, etc. that enables interactivity.
  4. Transaction: enhanced ad, interactive sports, enhanced programming

How?

  1. Interactive content creation tools
  2. Interactive content broadcast: data schedluling, bandwidth optimization, mpeg-2
  3. Intereactive content playback: client in settop box that enables transaction hotlink tracking transaction data interface (HTTDI) data mining, business intelligence
  4. Interactive content commerce: WebSphere Commerce Suite – massive servers

Hotmedia Technology for TV and WebSphere

Jon Devaan, Senior Vice President, Consumer & Commerce Group, Microsoft, Redmond, WA

Defining Enhanced TV:

The T-Commerce Opportunity: TV commerce growth of 1000% in next five years

Intangible benefits of T-Commerce as well:

Using the network to create a much closer relationship with your viewers

What is Microsoft doing?

What YOU can do today

10:45 am

The Potential of E-commerce

Today we are merely viewing the tip of the iceberg regarding e-commerce. Never

before have there been so many trials, successes and failures of e-commerce

ventures. As we move forward to test new business models we should recognize

the challenge before us to mold society around the concept of doing business at

the speed of light - well, almost!

Panelists: Alan Masarek, Chairman & CEO, AdOutlet.com, New York, NY; Bonnie

Lowell, Acting CEO, Founder, and CTO, YOUpowered, New York, NY; Susan

Storms, Vice President, MyPoints.com, New York, NY; Vincent Pluvinage, President

& CEO, Preview Systems, Cupertino, CA

Nonlinear Storytelling – Interactive TV Pilots

Apr 11 2000 1:00PM - 2:30PM

The Venetian Room 501

This session provides attendees an invaluable opportunity to

experience demonstrations of interactive pilot programs and see

how convergence can really work for the public and for

broadcasters on television.

Jerry Schlei Senior Producer

www.IICS-MN.org/Pioneers for bios and contact info on all IICS workshop speakers

Moderator:

Gregory Sales, Seward Learning Systems, Minneapolis, MN

Panelists:

Kevin Welsh, Antics Online Inc., San Carlos, CA; COO

Formerly with Digital Pictures, Inc.

Interation Spectrum: control over what to view and I to view it

Will focus on what current systems offer in terms of interactivity and video games, which use live action – interactive.

How did we do?

What interactive TV is NOT

What interactive TV will be

what’s left?

James O’Brien, American Video Resources, Potomac Falls, VA; www.tvontheweb.com an Ampex Company

Has produced interactive programs for the Smithsonian, using database collection

Mississippi Towboats and NMAI (national museum for the american indian)

The Heye Center NYC an american indian exhibit

How convergence may affect the public and the broadcaster.

www.imon.com interactive TV on the web

Tivo and Replay are gadgets which allow commercial skip – huge impact to conventional TV advertising. They both run on Linux OS.

Robin Mudge, 20 yrs as documentary filmmaker @ BBC, London Exuberant Digital Interactive Media Architecture

Database driven service pieces. Robin@exuberant.com

UK DTV scene govt mandated and implemented Digital TV, analogue services to be turned off in 6-8 yrs. Multiple carriers (all digital): terrestrial, satellite, cable, DSL

MPEG-2: 625 lines, multiple channesl, 16:9, split digital stream: pictures,sound,data interactive TV

Pushing the envelope of I-TV

New interactive services

The Convergence of Entertainment & Technology:

A View from the Year 2010

Apr 11 2000 2:00PM - 6:00PM

The Venetian Room Ballroom G/H/I

The convergence of technology and media has already begun

with MP3, DVD and other new platforms for content. In the

next decade, this convergence will open new markets, create many new

investment opportunities and produce financially bountiful revenue streams. A new

millennium is here and the titans of technology are promising to unleash the

creativity in all of us. Take a sneak peek into the future as we travel warp-speed

to the year 2010 - to Hollywood, to the fountains of new technology, and finally

toward the essence of content creation and distribution. Produced in association

with Film Scouts™ LLC, co-produced by CAA and BWR.

Session Visionary: Mayra Langdon Riesman,

Founder, Film Scouts™ LLC, New York, NY

2:30 pm

HOLLYWOOD 2010

It’s the year 2010. How has convergence evolved in the last ten years? What

does the term "broadcast" mean? Contemplate the future as a dynamic group of

panelists explore the technologies that have radically affected the "new"

entertainment industry.

How are people entertaining themselves in the year 2010: the Internet,

DVD, personal home theaters?

How is filmed entertainment distributed? Digitally to theaters and/or digitally

to your personal home entertainment center?

Is Hollywood still the center of the entertainment industry, or has

convergence allowed for decentralization?

Moderator:

Allison Dollar, Program Director, eTV World

Dot-commandos and dot-communists

Panelists:

Errol Gerson, Senior Agent New Media, Creative Artists Agency, Beverly Hills, CA;

Gordon Paddison, VP Worldwide Interactive Marketing & Development, New Line Cinema, Los Angeles, CA;

Austin Powers

The current fever in the market from dot-coms drives valuation in the marketplace, but for traditional entertianment brands we need a constant, persistent connection to the consumer, regardless of the technology being used.

Bernard Gershon, Vice President, ABCNEWS.com, New York, NY;

Traditional background. Repurposing current content and creating new content. Sam Donnelson does an internet-only program now.

Don Mischer, President, Don Mischer Productions, Inc., Los Angeles, CA;

Traditional media production company. Don Mischer Technologies formed 6 mos ago.

David Grant, President, Fox Television Studios, Beverly Hills, CA

Fox Foundry, works in the web space

Stewart Gross Random Order

Advertising has been the primary engine for programming, we’re migrating to the new media

Bill Wagner, MCA Media Lab

Panelists are not sure how web technologies apply to TV viewers in entertainment.

Interesting point: Sponsors currently follow the content (program), but in 2010, advertisers will follow the viewer (consumer).

Democratized media will exist, but we’ll still want to watch events with slick production, hi-buck talent. In 1930, everyone referred to the ‘icebox’, then refrigeration happened; in 2010, people won’t refer to the ‘computer’ or ‘TV’, they’ll be the same thing.

Jupiter, 2 days ago, released a report that in 2005, TV would receive the fewest advertising dollars, with the internet receiving the most. One panelist said "Advertising that becomes content, and adds service, is where it’s really going – facilitated by highly targeted advertising."

Web could be the ‘Planet Hollywood’ of the new millennium, but it will allow people to experiment, which is good. Currently, it’s far more labor intensive than the economics justify. But we have to try new stuff.

The power of brands to drive the adoption of technology. Arthur C. Clark predicts that by 2010, electronic monitoring will virtually eliminate professional criminals from society.

Permission based marketing: consumer must have ultimate power, and must receive something in return from the advertiser. Maybe content isn’t king, maybe the individual is king.

3:30 pm

TECHNOLOGY 2010

Technology never was and never will be an end in itself for entertainment. It must

work in tandem with the creative community. Think about the technologies that

are driving the entertainment industry in 2010. How are they implemented:

broadband cable, wireless, satellite? How has technology expanded the reach of

the broadcaster?

Moderator:

Mayra Langdon Riesman, Founder, Film Scouts™ LLC, New York, NY

Panelists:

Brice L. Clark, Director of Strategy, Hewlett-Packard, Roseville, CA;

Scott Sander, President & CEO, SightSound.com, Mount Lebanon, PA;

Benjamin Feinman, Vice President and General Manager of Broadband, NBC Internet, Inc., San Francisco, CA;

Craig Parrish, Creative Artists Agency, Beverly Hills, CA;

Larry Foster, recordLab.com, Issaquah, WA;

Gail Currey, Vice President & COO, ILM, San Rafael, CA;

Jeffrey Payne, Chief Technology Officer, Don Mischer Productions, Inc., Los Angeles, CA;

Anthony Knape, Global Project Manager, Ericsson, Richardson, TX;

David Schwartz, President & CEO, ImaginOn Software, San Carlos, CA

CinThespian is the new term applied to actors that aren’t real. Industrial Light and Magic. You can’t tell what’s real and what’s been added. Over 80% of frames from StarWars were done with CinThespians.

Everything in the future will be microprocessor driven, meaning decompression will happen as close as possible to the end user, thereby reducing number of bits necessary to send down the pipe.

As engineers, we’re ahead of the artists. We’ve created these revolutionary tools. We’ll be amazed by what the artists come up with.

Stability of tools and platforms is a big problem right now. Today, many of our creative cognitive resources are being used up just to keep up with the rate of change. We’re all confused today, but maybe by 2010, the fog will clear, and we’ll be able to start using the tools creatively.

Maybe music should be viewed as a service, not as a hard good. Why do you have to ‘own’ a copy of the song? Maybe instead of using the current model for selling content, we could embed ads in content, and give it away; or, charge for the same content which has no ads.

4:45 pm

BRAVE NEW CONTENT (in the meantime...)

New technology leads to new types of content and subsequently new revenue

streams. Broadcasters and content creators enjoy a symbiotic

relationship-broadcasters will always need stories to tell and content to convey

and creators will always be searching for new ways to tell their story, convey

their content, and distribute it to the widest possible audience. Explore some of

the paths future content creators may travel as the technological evolution

continues.

Moderator:

Marc White, Publisher, Electronic Media, New York, NY

Panelists:

Austin Harrison, Chairman & CEO, MediaTrip.com, Los Angeles, CA;

Mark Wilson, TVG, Los Angeles, CA;

Gary Adelson , Partner, East/West Capital, Los Angeles, CA;

Roger Raderman, Founder & Co-Chairman, IFilm, San Francisco, CA;

Adam Clampitt, Vice President Business Development, Vidnet.com, Los Angeles, CA;

David A. Neuman, President, Digital Entertainment Network, Santa Monica, CA;

Todd Harris, President & CEO, Hit Play Media, Los Angles, CA;

Bill Wagner, Creative Artists Agency, Beverly Hills, CA;

Godfrey Reggio, Director, Institute for Regional Education, Santa Fe, NM

Managing Media Assets: Trends and Experiences

Apr 11 2000 3:00PM - 4:30PM

The Venetian Room 501

The new demands of convergence-multiple digital and analog

formats, intensified production requirements, alternative modes of

distribution, leveraging assets through re-licensing, and more-have

generated the requirements for comprehensive content management

systems for broadcasting and related industries. Panelists will

describe their experiences regarding the design and implementation of media asset

management systems, while select vendors will provide glimpses into the future of

content management software and systems.

Moderator: Larry Hiner, IBM, Sacramento, CA

Panelists: Jim Reimer, IBM, San Jose, CA; Cynthia Francis, eMotion, Inc.,

Redwood City, CA; Gordon Castle, CNN, Atlanta, GA

Reception and announcement of NetStorming Winners

Apr 11 2000 6:00PM - 6:30PM

The Internet & Media Connection: Where is the Value?

Apr 12 2000 8:30AM - 12:00PM

Las Vegas Hilton Room Pavilions 1-3

As the convergence of media continues and as e-business

and e-commerce grow exponentially, where will the

broadcasting, telephone, cable and satellite industries fit? Are these industries

complimentary, substitutable or both? Where is the value in this larger more

connected environment? Broadcasters, cable, satellite and telephone companies

who have partnered successfully with web site companies will share the keys to

their successful relationships. Representatives from Wall Street will reveal where

tthese values may emerge and what partnerships may increase these values.

8:30 am

Keynote Address: Steve Canepa, IBM, Santa Monica, CA VP Global Media and Marketing

Value Creation: Macro forces at work

What is Value? Traditional criteria:

Cash flow, market cap, growth, revenue, earnings, audience size

Relationship between cable and satellite: satellite is very efficient in the one-to-many model.

Media and Entertainment value creating process

Create from:

New business models will emerge to take advantage of these changes. 3 things will emerge:

Observations: it’s easy to think of the web as a mature marketplace, but in next 3 yrs, we’ll see a ten-fold increase in content. We’ll also see an exponential growth in online consumers – eCommerce.

Agents have become aggregators, where buyers and sellers have been put together. Multiple versions of content, served over multiple networks, to multiple devices at the consumer level. E.g. audio-enabled web surfing in your car.

Solving the last mile infrastructure: this will enable whole new sets of devices at the end of the chain. Wireless devices with 2 MegaBit bandwidth.

Digital distribution of music: label/studioà clearinghouseà consumerà content hosting; store in the middle of all these transactions. Will enable digital books, magazines, video and film.

Key issues for CEOs: How do I: Use eBusiness to streamline processses, provide new revenue streams, etc.

Linking existing physical business with digital business. Today’s market forces: increased competition, rising costs, shorter time-to-market, need to own and exploit original programming, demand for content customized to viewer

Linkage of new digital platforms to existing infrastructure and content is key

Leveraging the Brand: hotels, films, theme parks, consumer products, book publishing

Threshold entertainment example

What will it take:

Skills of your workers, workflow they function in, leadership opportunities in new markets

The eBusiness cycle

9:00 am

The Companies Views

Moderator:

Joe Flint, Staff Reporter, Wall St. Journal, New York, NY

Panelists:

Jeff Craig, Sr. Vice President, Interactive Technology, Discovery Communications, Bethesda, MD; www.discovery.com The Discovery Channel, Animal Planet, TNSC

Creating a 1:1 relationship with the consumer, thru interactive media of the web. How will users differentiate between 500,000 websites? Brand will be the key. Aggregators will focus on brands to bring content to viewers.

Discovery’s website was always a new media play. Has its own editorial section. It’s a destination, with its own activities. Broadband is the next step in the evolution. Must be treated as a new medium, not adjunct or just more channels of programming.

Titanic expedition on the Discovery Channel: streaming live video from deck of ship prior to the airing of the show, built anticipation. Web traffic during the actual TV program was the biggest ever, and this activity was sustained for weeks with chat, etc. Engaged the audience before, during and after the actual TV broadcast. Liberty Bell Seven and Raising the Mammoth expedition programs did the same thing.

Biggest impediment is adoption in the marketplace: More settop boxes, broadband deployment. The quicker we can do that, the sooner we can make money at it. On Greenspan: Companies such as Akamai are key to our success. If they can’t get money they need to develop new stuff, we’re screwed.

James Moroney, President, Belo Interactive, Inc., Dallas, TX

Over the air TV is one of the few businesses where you have an intense loyal relationship with a station or channel. Yet, we have no idea who that consumer is. It’s a great frustration of the TV business that we can’t leverage that loyalty to our benefit. Then, along comes the web. The internet is a great opportunity for personalization. Fanatically geared to privacy statement. Targeted programming to a users viewing habits.

Local markets won’t have 5 or 6 different news sites, like they have 5 or 6 broadcast TV news stations, because you won’t have the network programming differentiation (programs from ABC, NBC, CBS, FOX). There will only wind up with one or two on the web.

Broadcasters need to treat the web, not as a ancillary thing, but as part of its core business.

Example of an experimient: took a tv camera into a newspaper’s editorial meeting staff as they discussed an editorial with city council members they would write, then streamed this out to the newspaper’s website. It gave the viewer/user a look behind the type, that they never see.

The broadcast industry gave up the Gulf War event coverage to CNN by continuing with entertainment programming. Viewers went to CNN because they knew coverage would be on. If local broadcasters give up timely event coverage on their TV websites, viewers will get their info elsewhere (they’ll bookmark the site where the local/national event is covered, and go back there when they want local/national news), and they won’t come back to TV’s website or programming. We then lose their loyalty, and we’re out of business.

Biggest impediment: creating a culture of convergence of traditional and new media. On Greenspan: what is the investment community going to withstand and still allow us to grow (potentially without enough money)?

Creative: won’t abrogate traditional journalistic standards. Broadcasters will be careful to protect the trust they have built up with their viewers. Throw the story out there and confirm it later? Not at our organization. And the website philosophy won’t be any different.

Ross Levinsohn, Vice President & Executive Producer, Alta Vista Network, Alta Vista Company, Palo Alto, CA;

The most successful viral aspects of the web have been email, instant messaging one-to-one.

Can a broadcaster survive? Broadcasters who are accepting the new model, exemplified by ‘who wants to be a millionaire,’ will succeed. Both broadcast and web need to be merged.

Ross thinks that more categories will emerge, in 4 general areas:

Just as AOL merged with media partner TimeWarner, other internet companies will need to partner with media (content) companies. Alta Vista knows that it needs to do this in the next couple years. If you want to be a major player, you need the exposure that a broadcaster/media/content company can bring. AltaVista was the first viral success story. Grew to a top ten site.

The web is event driven. That’s what the web’s about right now. Don’t have to wait for a newspaper to get delivered, or local TV station to get the story up – that’s old news.

Understanding the business of the internet: it’s the buzz right now. Hollywood doesn’t understand what it’s all about. The internet is about frequency and distribution. The challenge is to give people a reason to come back to your site. Discovery’s doing it the right way. The idea in Hollywood is that if I build it, they will come. Putting up an interview with Arnold Schwatzneger or Jack Nicholson once a month doesn’t bring people back. It doesn’t work that way. Frequency is key.

Biggest impediment: Alan Greenspan You need money to develop. For him to stifle development is the biggest impediment to growth of new media. If the Fed Chairman in 1905 had said, ‘you know we don’t want them to develop those wheels,’ where would the automotive industry be now? When was the last time Alan Greenspan walked thru startups in Silicon Valley to get his finger on the pulse of what’s really happening in new media?

Creative Control: Southpark signed a 35 episode with Shockwave. After first episode, Shockwave said NO. It just wasn’t good content, Shockwave said.

 

10:15 am

Keynote Address: Jerry Yang, Yahoo Inc., Santa Clara, CA

Internet Reach: only as big as the number of people who use it.

From 1999 to 2003

US: 101m to 197m

Global: 293m to 602m

Yahoo: 145m unique monthly visitors worldwide

Internet is one large cooperation between all members of internet community (see grid below).

Convergence:

Blurring of traditional boundaries between

How does it benefit consumers

Major factors driving convergence

The Value of Convergence

Multiple levels of choice will define winners and losers.

Open up a new group of consumers with convergence – provide more choices to them.

[Grid referred to in Jerry’s conclusion]

The media and internet connection: successful because it’s open Not a heirarchical structure

Content: music, TV/Movies, games, on-demand, pay-per-view, new broadband content

Integrators: communications & community, transactions, personalization, programming

Distribution: cable, wireless, DSL/ISPs, satellite, terrestrial

Devices: settop, cd/dvd players, receivers, phones, cellular phones, home appliances

Yahoo plays a role as integrator. More value to be added into the future.

Role of the Integrator:

Basic rules for the new world:

Broadband access growing, connections used by online consumers

Yahoo has the world’s largest broadband audience, loyal customer base

Yahoo customers are consuming:

The future of the internet

The internet will transform how media and entertainment is consume and delivered using the factores driving convergence (digitalization, bandwidth and mobility)

New ways of thinking:
programmer: network consumer

Broadcasters: 4 networks everybody

Channels: limited unlimited

Business Broadcasting: broadcast vision directly to audience

Compress the time to deliver a message to audience: Victoria’s Secret

Consumer side of things:

Communication email, chat

Commerce

Content sports, news, entertainment

We’ve come a long way in moving from a text world to a multimedia world

Yahoo! FinanceVision leverages Yahoo Finance www.financevision.yahoo.com

Streaming video with dynamic window displaying what video is talking about, voting, links to company info, press releases, user voting, etc. Below that is MyYahoo views.

Aggregates: streaming content, dynamic window, and personalized element

Voice on the internet:

Internet Everywhere: worldwide WAP enabled cellphones will be doube wired web access in 2004

The future of our industry resides in our belief that all aspects of the Media and Internet Connection grid (above) will be advanced by cooperation of all participants.

What is the new definition of braodcasting? As lines blur, don’t do something that slows down growth.

The possibilities are endless:

10:45 am

The Analysts Views

Moderator:

Michael Feazel, Managing Editor, Communications Daily, Washington, DC

Do braodcasters really understand how important the convergence transformation is?

Are broadcasters particularly well positioned for this convergence?

Are they moving fast enough?

The need to partner… who are likeliest candidates?

Will the government get in the way of subscription services? Cutting into the spectrum of HDTV?

Panelists:

Scott Cleland, Founder & Managing Director, Legg Mason Precursor Group, Washington, DC;

Broadcast industry is pursuing a congression business model. They’re trying to slow the rate of change. Preserve the old business model. Not forward thinking. Adapting to past threats, not reconfiguring the industry to respond to new model. Regulator changes needed: more size (ownership caps don’t make sense); think more creatively to grow more in niche areas.

The internet hasn’t arrived in cable or broadcast. Internet model changes the distribution: the consumer becomes the programmer. Broadcasters haven’t addressed this. They don’t get it. In the future, you’ll see more niche marketing to passionate audiences, not the mass market audience. There will always be a mass market for advertising, but a lot wil shift over to niche marketing. Yahoo also wrestles control over the relationship between content provider/distribution and the viewer.

Darwin said "It isn’t the big or the strong that survive… it’s those that adapt to change."

The broadcast industry spends most of its time trying to delay change, rather than adapt to it.

Brand is a powerful tool if your business model isn’t decimated from the side.

Q: Video-on-demand: when can I quit going to BBV? Residential Broadband Gap: will not be there as fast as expectations. Cable is rolling out slow, DSL’s a big disappointment, Satellite is plagued by physics. Broadband to the home is massively expensive. Cable is the easiest – all the others are having huge problems. Answer: a lot longer than being promised right now.

Q: The need to partner… who are likeliest candidates? AOL/TimeWarner may be the only one, since AOL was the only one which really owned the internet users.

Broadcast is an advertising model. Cable is a subscription model. Yahoo is an ad model. We don’t know what model will emerge in the future.

Broadcasters have a unique control over Congress – they lean on that. Overdependence on Congress. Congress won’t punish broadcasters for mis-using the spectrum give-away.

Victor B. Miller, IV, Managing Director, Bear, Sterns & Company, New York, NY

Washington was extremely helpful to broadcasters by giving them spectrum. If you don’t do HDTV, then you owe us 5% of the revenues you collect from non-HDTV activity. The government has been helpful. Now it’s up to the broadcast industry. CUFDM technology is the future. It’s a portable TV and web browser, wireless using broadcast signal.

How is your life going to change if all this new stuff is available to you? Are you going to stop jogging and playing basketball with your kids to watch this new stuff? We have to figure out what kind of sea change this is going to be. Content owners will be beneficiaries of this fracturization.

Nielsen last week started rating local service (broadcasters).

Broadcasters has a huge opportunity to be involved in broadband. We’ll see what they do with it.

Keith Faucet, Merrill Lynch

Copyright and intellectual property: video-on-demand is a complete quagmire of legal issues, and will take ten years to sort out. For a vertically integrated provider, the business they lost in broadcast they gained in web or cable (Disney, for example). Internet will move from a national scale to a more local portal.

Change seems to be slowest at the local level.

Why can’t the networks and affiliates cooperate more to capitalize on convergence?

Tom Wolzien, Sr. Media Analyst, Sanford C. Bernstein & Company, Inc., New York, NY;

Broadcasters who don’t get it will die, they’ll have their bandwidth taken away from them.

AOL/TimeWarner gets it. There is no backchannel. They should be saying ‘I’ll trade 6 down to 5 meg of bandwidth for 1 meg of backchannel. Broadcasters are asleep on this. 1.5 terahertz vs. 400 megahertz of bandwidth: cable –vs—broadcast.

TIVO: if you have a Tivo box, your setting up the copyright battle of all time. The Tivo provider could preempt the spots broadcast with spots the Tivo provider places. Who controls the last switch before the viewer/user? AOL/TimeWarner could do the same preemption of broadcast spots. Do any broadcasters really plan to give any spectrum back? NO

What’s to keep TV broadcasters from using their bandwidth to beam radio directly to your car?

The NAB needs to get on this in Washington, or it’ll be a real mess.

I think the big guys are moving fast enough. In 2 years when the AOL/TimeWarner vertical integratioin begins to be felt, there will be a lot more pressure for more mergers of content and distribution entities. Yahoo may say today that they don’t want to be content providers, but they may change their minds in a couple of years.

Commoditization: AOL’s focused on commodotizing the transport (cause they don’t have it). Yahoo’s focused on commoditizing content (cause they don’t have it).

75% of homes braodband capable next year, Tom says.

Q: what about someone inserting themselves between broadcaster/distributor and viewers?

30 years ago, broadcasters didn’t realize that cable would be inserting themselves between the broadcaster and the viewer. They lost that battle and now have only 25% market share. I don’t think they’ll make that same mistake again (with AOL or Tivo trying to insert themselves just before the viewer).

The need to partner… who are likeliest candidates? Maybe no more megamergers, but lots will happen at local level, as cable companies do it, with local advertisers, broadcasters, newspapers. It’s all about getting as close to the customers as possible.

eContent: Grand Slamming with Multiple Models

Apr 12 2000 9:00AM - 10:15AM

The Venetian Room 601

Who’s going to pay to play? Mass market viewerships continue

to erode, programming niches fragment and the traditional

advertising model often stands on its head. Pay-per-view,

sponsorship and eCommerce increasingly impact not only how

programming is packaged, but the creation of content itself,

which now must enhance interactivity generally and specifically deliver tracking

and sales. Furthermore, mass audience events will command even more of a

premium in the future. These case studies on hybrid models will open your eyes.

Moderator: Nick deMartino, American Film Institute, Los Angeles, CA

Panelists: Tim Nye, Sunshine Amalgamedia, New York, NY; Andrew Langhoff,

Virage, Inc., New York, NY; Jeff Rule, Discovery Communications Inc., Bethesda, MD

eLiving is Easy: Personalization in Home Networks and Mobile Media

Apr 12 2000 10:30AM - 12:00PM

The Venetian Room 601

The eLiving Room™ of the future is here, combining eTV boxes and systems with advancements in smart

appliance technology and home data centers with portable devices that push the range of access and

control even further. Check out the latest and greatest and learn how they impact the decisions you make

for your media business.

Moderator: Peggy Miles, Intervox.com, Washington, DC

Panelists: Sheldon Safir, ICTV, Los Gatos, CA; Kishore Manghnani, TeraLogic,

Mountain View, CA; Ken Soohoo, PlanetWeb, Redwood Shores, CA; Tony Schaller,

RioPort, inc., Los Angeles, CA; Dan Levin, ReplayTV, Mountain View, CA; Art Clark, GO.com

Authoring Animated 3D Interfaces

Apr 13 2000 9:00AM - 10:15AM

The Venetian Room 502

Broadcast designers are already masters of 3D animated graphics

but with the advent of interactive programming on TV, 3D animation

will become an integral part of user interfaces. See how the best

interactive designers and authors use these new and exciting

interfaces in this dynamic session.

Moderator:

Darcy Gerbarg, Digital Virtual Imaging, Ltd., Grahamsville, NY

Robin Mudge wrote a book about interactive TV. He’s with the BBC, and Europe is way ahead of the U.S. in iTV

see his talk earliier, around page 26. A handout outline was distributed during this session.

Econicmis, technology of Digital TV, which Darcy authored.

Panelists:

James Khazar, Macromedia Developer Relations for Director, San Francisco, CA;

How do I approach the authoring of 3D animated interfaces?

Consider the design principles: semiotics philosophical theory of functions of signs and symbols

3D ain’t really 3D: it’s a 2D representation of things that physically could not exist in the real world. Add interactivity. Consider the elevator, it’s a familiar metaphor. A button that took you directly to your room wouldn’t be realistic. Any metaphor needs to be consistent with your expectations. The point is, people coming to a 3D interface will bring with them a large set of expectations. A virtual car: a steering wheel should behave like a steering wheel.

Unlike 2D desktop metaphors, which rely on a level of abstraction which is difficult to figure out at first, 3D offers the advantage of offering more cues and clues to the user. Like a virtual library which has books grouped by similar subject, with the most popular ones having worn covers.

Advantage:

Imagine: it’s unbelievable the things you might come up with

We’re at a precipice: standards are evolving, the technology is mature.

ACIUS is the standard, out of Boulder CO, which will sweep the 3D industry. Ask Wyndham Hannaway about this.

Dwight Prouty, Shaman Exchange, Foxton, CO;

30 yrs of experience: the interfaces aren’t ready yet. If you’re experienced, you can craft. If you want to drop a ball and watch it bounce, the physics aren’t there yet. He writes in hard code. He’s developed several particle-based tools. Make damn sure you thoroughly test a tool to make sure it does what you need it to do. The hardware will soon be to the point that it can run tools alluded to by Macromedia and Newtek, but the tools are definitely not there.

3D Tip: provide an horizon line. If people get turned around, they throw up (and they won’t come back to your site). Take baby steps before taking enormous steps.

If you’re going to make a 3D interface (like an elevator), then you must provide a benefit to the user to incur the poly expense of the enhanced interface.

Download Tip: If it takes 10 minutes to download something that you use for 10 seconds, you’re getting screwed. If it takes 10 seconds to download something you use for 10 minutes, you’re gettting a good deal

Business Tip: If you offer people something they can’t get anywhere else, you’ll make money.

Rob Myers, Sony U.S. Research Labs, San Jose, CA;

Steerable Media

A system for Late Composition:

Starting now and over the next 4 years, you’re going to see a dramatic increase in tool

Graphics rendering hardware

Mrfis vompodiyion plsygotmd

Scene synthesis techniques

Presentation markup

Video synthesis: strengths

Live interface approaches

X3D Standardization

The coolest interface I saw at the show: Global Beat is the program Blendo is Sony Research’s internal working name for realtime synthesis engine. It blends linear and interactive techniques. Interface is left-right, up-down, in-out (zoom). As you zoom in, linear video and audio are triggered, and just appear. Shows a globe which you move around, zoom into to see more detail. You don’t click on things, you just move around, and things happen. Way cool!

Philip Nelson, NewTek, San Antonio, TX

Used Lightwave and VideoToaster to do all 3D creation at his video production facility back east.

3D Element Creation: product is Inspire LightWave Lite for multimedia producers

Lathe tool turns a silouette of half an object into a 3D object.

Text extruded creates a 3D version can export a 3D object into Flash.

Animation:

Converged Media and Education

Apr 13 2000 10:30AM - 12:00PM

The Venetian Room 504

Educational interactive TV holds great promise for uplifting and

enabling the public. IICS presents their vision for the interactive

media of the converged future. Panelits will illustrate how to take

new media ideas and develop them from talent and concepts into

attractive and viable companies.

Moderator: Jerry Schlei, IICS, Cumberland, WI

Panelists: Greg Daigle, The Jack Morton Co., Minneapolis, MN; Corrie Bergeron,

Walden University, Minneapolis, MN; Mariana Danilovic, Digital Media Business

Incubator, Los Angeles, CA

Enhanced TV and Interactivity:

Driving the Future of Television

Apr 12 2000 2:00PM - 6:00PM

The Venetian Room Ballroom G/H/I

Are you ready for the challenge of

interactivity? It’s been talked about for years

and modeled in a variety of forms - with little success. As the

millennium dawns, new technologies are becoming available for

content producers and consumers that will forever change the way

we experience television. The experts say smart set-top boxes will

be the trend allowing a continuous flow of integrated entertainment

and information to and from a variety of platforms - traditional

broadcasts, the NET, satellite and cable. True convergence is only a click away.

Co-produced in association with eTV World™.

2:00 pm

Keynote: Mitchell Kertzman, CEO, Liberate Technologies, San Carlos, CA

What we’re really talking about is: what we do has to stand the test of consumer acceptance. The key to engaging consumers is not technology, it’s context. Interactivity alone is insufficient. Color TV never caught on until Bonanza started being broadcast in color. Liberate is a software company, the leading provider of Internet platform software.

Interactive TV can move the point of sale to the point of advertising. www.liberate.com Erik Smith, Dir of Developer Relations Oracle owns a 40% stake in Liberate! Mitchell founded PowerSoft, he was formerly CEO of Sybase.

Interactive TV in the Past: an idea ahead of its time. Consumer acceptance was high, but

Interactive TV today: this time it’s real

Deployments (examples):

AOL is about to launch AOL/TV users will have same identity on AOLTV as on AOL

UK using Liberate platform for Interactive TV

Ask yourself: is it going to happen with you or to you?

Some things to think about:

The rewards:

Dave Limp, Liberate Demo god:

Interactive Sesame Street, Liberate did this with CTW. Interactive content is embedded in broadcast signal, written in Flash. CTW believed this interactivity really enhanced the education quality of the experience to the kids. Authoring cycle is very fast – took 2 weeks to add interactive layer. Integration of parents into the learning of the kids: go out and find more info, follow up.

Embedding Local News into traditional broadcast - done for KRON

Bugs on-screen link to: News, traffic, weather, sports, myKron: drilldown menus thru stories, maps. Also serves to engage viewer thru the end of the news cast. Allows you to pick the final segment of the news broadcast - streamed to full screen.

Interactive music video: new T-Commerce revenue models Impulse buying is an incredible opportunity. With music channels: who is singing, what’s the name of this song, how can I buy it. Also Karaoke mode, which paints lyrics, line by line, along with the song.

Liberate takes existing websites and makes text look clear on the TV screen (it normally looks lousy, if even readible).

Who can help me?

Accelerate TV, big band media, bullseye interactive, commerce tv

Q&A: Tom diGiovanni: are all demos ATVEF compliant? Yes All AOLTV settops going out this fall will be ATVEF compliant. MS WebTV settops are also compliant.

Mitchell’s closing thought

Interactivity: If you don’t use it, it will use you. There was always a fear that Radio would kill newspapers, TV would kill Radio, and now, Internet will kill TV – it just doesn’t happen that way. But you as broadcasters must embrace the new technology.

Moderators:

Jimmy Schaeffler, Chairman & CEO, The Carmel Group, Carmel-by-the-Sea, CA

The Judgement of Paris, circa 1570, by Raphael Zeus is asked to decide who is the most beautiful goddess: Paris chooses Aphrodite, sets up a chain of events which eventually leads to the Trojan War. Paris thought with his heart, and didn’t avoid the Trojan war.

Sean Badding, Vice President Business Development, The Carmel Group, Carmel-by-the-Sea, CA

2:30 pm

The Landscape

PCs are plentiful, but TVs are ubiquitous. If the trend is to offer the interactivity

of the Internet to everyone, everywhere, then the Net platform must evolve from

the PC to other consumer devices. Many feel the TV screen should top the list. In

fact, Forrester Research predicts that by 2004, 25% of all households will use

their remote controls to interact with Internet-based graphics on their TV

screens. Today the enhanced TV landscape is populated by a handful of pioneers

charting the course for broadcasters, advertisers and viewers. This is their story.

Panelists:

Richard Fisher, President, RespondTV, San Francisco, CA;

Why is 2000 the year?

ATVEF is adopted by a huge number of companies.

Lead Generation: The Killer App the broadcaster drives it they’re the aggregrator

Web TV iTV

Impressions - ++ +

Leads + - ++ ß this is the killer app

Commerce ++ - +

Two examples:

KBHX TV Melissa Etheridge Concert / CDNow 46% response rate 22% conversion rate

World Wrestling Federation: 13.8% response rate 13.4% conversion rate

Image the challenge: the beginning of the end of spots and dots:

Two networks, identical spot, identical ratings, both are enhanced worth the same, right?

We’re moving into performance based marketing, accountability

Roger Keating, CEO & President, Zatso, San Francisco, CA;

World’s first interactive, personalized newscast

Interactive TV will give you the opportunity to deliver custom-built newscast to each and every viewer. We’re a dot-com, not a TV company

For iTV to really happen

The "lean forward" PC experience, but interface must be changed for "lean back" TV screen

Jan Steenkamp, CEO, OpenTV, Inc., Mountain View, CA;

Pioneered payTV in early 80s. Early 90s, developed European payTV systems, he’s from South Africa

About OpenTV:

Recently merged with Spyglass will enable broadband.

Viability of interactive TV

How big is the business?

Current viewer profile:

Maggie Wilderotter, President & CEO, Wink Communications, Alameda, CA;

Complete end-to-end system for interactive TV into the home. Pioneer in delivering eCommerce to TV.

Interactive commercials: 21 national advertisers which do ads on their system.

ITV: Better for consumers than PC internet?

T-Commerce The Players

Navigating the Future

Jean-Marc Racine, CEO, Canal+ U.S. Technologies, Cupertino, CA

We’re one of you, we’re global, we’re real

Who will win the iTV battles?

Key strategies for broadcast

What is truly’Open TV’

The iTV revolution

The reulting market place

Phil Goldman, Microsoft TV TV platform division of MicroSoft, formerly with WebTV

The landscape for what TV can be [see Phil’s presentation on the weekend]

Our vision and Mission:

Enhanced TV we’re not content providers we want to help you jump-start this industry

Defining Enhanced TV

Enhanced TV @ MS

What is MS doing

What this means to you: you can do it now, the tools are there.

www.microsoft.copm/TV

3:30 pm

The Consumer

Interactivity with the TV screen is very new. While broadcasters debate their

digital future, personal video recorders (PVRs) have hit the marketplace providing

a preview of how consumers may interact with their TVs. Can such interactivity

change the landscape of advertiser-supported television, or can broadcasters and

content providers maintain control, seize the moment, and develop new revenue

opportunities.

Panelists:

Bruce Leak, President and Co-Founder, WebTV, Palo Alto, CA;

Does MS plan to add broadband to WebTV? Yes, later this year. Come by our booth and see the STB integration (eliminating lots of STBs).

Disk space grows at 16% per year. The TiVo box can currently store 40 hours of program.

VCRs go away, and you can get VOD anytime you like it.

Dov Rubin, Vice President and General Manager, NDS America, Newport Beach, CA;

TV economics 101 the future of personal video recorders

PVRs (personal video recorders) put a wedge in the value chain: creation, aggregation, delivery, consumer. Upsets the advertisers, because they support the content creation, aggregation and delivery.

DVR yesterday

PVR today

PTV tomorrow personalized TV w/integraated disk as the broadcast center

The PTV scenario: a broadcaster-friendly solution to content-based viewing video content enhanced w/meta-data content protection: broadcaster-centric systgem

Metadata enabales enhanced viewer experience

Benefits:

Viewer: greater content relevance and immediacy, enhanced programming

Broadcaster: new revenue models – NVOD, new advertisers, open arch;itecture – lower cost consumer equipment

Advertiser: targeted audiences

Traditional advertising certainly will change. Ability to skip ads does that. But metadata and tagging will allow advertisers to prevent skip, or present an abridged version of the ad.

Stacy Jolno, TiVo Inc., Sunnyvale, CA;

There a lot of boxes out there doing separate things, but the future is going to be bringing these boxes together – integration. The caching we’re looking at is video. Cached movie trailer, music video, or ad for a TV show.

Dan Levin, Chief Technology Officer and Vice President of Strategy, ReplayTV, Mountain View, CA

Why is replay going to be an inexpensive alternative to other players?

We don’t intend to compete with the large corps in the marketplace in consumer electronics. We intend to work with those: Panasonic is partnering with us. We understand TV in a way manufacturers do not, so they’ll partner with us.

Are STB’s going to cache interactive data, like they cache programming.

4:45 pm

The Future

The future looks exciting for enhanced TV services. Compared to buying a PC and

sifting through myriad specifications, buying a TV is a no-brainer. Everyone can

have one. If it comes packaged with enhanced services such as personal TV,

program guide, t-commerce and video-on-demand - the "lowly" TV suddenly

represents an extraordinary opportunity. According to DB Alex Brown, TV is poised

to be the next major interactive advertising and t-commerce portal - where the

Internet becomes completely transparent with users focusing more on content and

services. Let’s see what the future holds and put an end to the TV vs. PC debate.

Q: What about the stock market?

A: I don’t believe the dot-coms will survive if they don’t partner with real world stores. Have to show real value.

Q: Do you see the Government as a threat?

A: If we don’t police ourselves on privacy, the govt will. However, the gov’t shouldn’t regulate an industry which doesn’t yet exist!

Panelists:

Larry Marcus, Senior New Media Analyst, Deutsche Banc Alex Brown, San Francisco, CA;

Larry.marcus@db.com to get copy of Media Research report Internet, Broadband and Enhanced TV

Five key forcasts

Five killer apps (note that the ‘internet’ is not among these)

Five golden rules

Stock Recommendations: Gemstar, Terryon, Real Networks

The stock market today (and last week) is a reminder that you have to focus on management teams, real value. Next 1 – 3 quarters, you’re going to see the real tech leaders pull away.

Brian Seth Hurst, Managing Director of Convergent Media, Worldwide Pittard Sullivan, Culver City, CA;

The future of Media: the future of media will belong to those who know how to deliver relevant programming, information and services to where the audience is living.

Competition for brands is now 360 degrees with realationships bei;g built on and extending across a myriad of devices.

It is about lifestyle, service and relationshiop.

Convergence is over.

All of the things that had to happen for convergence to be true, it’s been done. Now it’s about divergence – content going out to multiple devices.

Future of TV Landscape:

STP –> TV –> EPG, IEG, IOG (multipe branded guide) – all sources of programming

TV as we know it will not go away.

The opportunity for media companies now is to ‘get together’ They need an ‘Integration Officer’

We’re innundated with myriad stuff coming to market now – it’s very challenging. You have to read tons every day, but one thing remains true: What doesn’t work with the audience and consumer – won’t work.

Jonathan Goldsmith, Entertainment and Media Practice, PricewaterhouseCoopers, Los Angeles, CA;

The future’s about making change happen. You can’t prepare in advance for a show like this – things are happening too fast.

Direction of change: get on the bus or get run over by the bus

It’s important to get all stakeholders up the learning curve.

Key issues

The ‘if’ debate is over: now it’s about what, when and how

Colin Dixon, Head of Interactive TV, Oracle Corporation, Redwood Shores, CA

OVS Oracle Video Server head-fred

Define your interactive TV future: today

With TV-on-Demand

With Video On Demand

Easy access to needed information

PPV and NVoD

Electronic Program Guide:

On-Line information TV:

It’s going to be a retail bonanza eCommerce:

Personalize yhour customer services Self-managed services:

Consumers pay for convenience, and that’s a tremendous advantage for eCommerce.

Q: What does Oracle see as greteast opportunity?

A: To centralize a lot of services that currently are being stored in consumer hardware. I hate VCRs. Also, the ability for consumers to interact directly with content providers, creators.

Internet.Theater @ NAB 2000

selected MicroSoft Windows Media Player Partners presentations

note: a 64kBit Windows Media stream is comparable, in audio quality, to a 128kBit MP3 stream, to the point that experts can’t distinguish them. This improved audio fidelety leaves more bandwidth available for video, without degrading the audio quality.

Adobe: Capturing and Editing Video for Web Delivery

Matt Douglas, Product Manager for Premiere

Exports to *.wmv Windows Media File format, which is then placed on your streaming server (see below under ‘Hosting Windows Media.’

Premiere v.5.1c now in release, supports RealTime hardware. Purchase in bundle from:

Matrox RT2000 package $1295 list currently win98, win2000 by end of summer, incl:

Microsoft: Hosting Windows Media

Windows streaming server is included in Windows 2000 (and NT4) Server. Either NT4 or win2000 Server will work, but win2000 has a Performance Monitor, a Load Simulator wizard (and other fine qualities, I’m sure). Just place streaming media file ( *.wmv) in root directory of publishing server, the ASFRoot, and it’s available for streaming. The Jump Start CD, included in the Inside Windows Media book, has a technical article which discusses streaming directly from the webserver machine –vs- streaming from a separate Windows Media Server. In addition to performance considerations, there are firewall issues at the client side the look at (Port #, TCP –vs- HTTP, etc.)

Deployment Guide at http://microsoft.com/windowsmedia

Streaming media is RAM intensive, recommend 256-512meg RAM.

Microsoft: Advertising Scenarios for Streaming Media

There are four scenarios supported by Windows Media:

These are implemented with a Playlist written in XML (similar to HTML).

The Playlist script references: audio, video, scriopts, images, text, URLs. It makes calls to an ASP (Active Server Pages) server.

Engage working with iBeam, and Adforce working with Activate are advertising server software/hardware partners which facilitate:

Windows Media has been in development for over two years, and fully supports such interactive streaming advertising, in conjunction with partners mentioned above.

 

Press Releases during NAB 2000

Wall Street Edge 4/11/00

Akamai Technologies Inc. (AKAM: 133 5/16; Down 12 3/8; Volume 1,415,800), which provides services that speed the delivery of Web pages, said on Monday it signed an agreement with RealNetworks Inc. (RNWK: 44 3/4; Down 5 1/4; Volume 5,189,000) to improve the delivery of audio and video content over the Internet. The deal expands Akamai’s reach into the Internet media market by combining RealNetworks’ "RealSystem G2" software with its own service package to speed the broadcast of music and videos over the Internet. "By integrating RealSystem G2 with Akamai's massively distributed network, we will be able to deliver the highest quality broadband Internet media for mass audiences worldwide," said Tom Frank, chief operating officer for RealNetworks, Inc.

Chase Hambrecht & Quist said it started coverage of Loudeye Technologies Inc. (LOUD: 25 1/16; Down 2 13/16; Volume 433,800), which helps companies convert songs, pictures and video from tape or film into digital formats, with a buy rating.

Avid Unveils Innovative New Products, Solutions and Strategic Alliances at

NAB 2000

Monday April 10, 8:48 am Eastern Time Company Press Release

LAS VEGAS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--April 10, 2000--

Company Showing Includes New Avid ePublisher Streaming Media Tool, New Releases of Editing and Finishing Products for 601 and HD Delivery, Revolutionary Next-Generation 3-D Animation Product;

Announcement of Interactive Television, Alliances with Intel and Microsoft-

At the 2000 National Association of Broadcasters Conference (NAB), Avid Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ: AVID - news) today announced new streaming media, networked encoding, news editing and web publishing products, new versions of current editing and finishing products, significant alliances to more quickly deliver interactive television and web encoding capabilities, and new programs to meet customer satisfaction demands.

At NAB, Avid unveiled two new products: Avid ePublisher, the industry's first complete streaming media publishing tool for Web-enabled video production; and the Avid Newscutter® XP system, the low-cost version of Avid's industry-leading NewsCutter family of digital editing products for broadcast news production.

Avid formally launched AvidProNet.com(TM), a business-to-business Web services portal for media professionals which includes plans for Digidesign, a division of Avid, to develop a full-featured audio component of AvidProNet.com. Avid is also showcasing new versions of current products: Version 1.2 of Avid Unity(TM) MediaNet, the revolutionary media network for professional media production and distribution; Avid Xpress® Version 4, the next generation of Avid's affordable, broadcast-quality video editing system; and a sneak-peek of Avid Xpress DV Version 1.5 software on the IBM® IntelliStation® workstation, which will feature significant collaboration and interoperability enhancements to enable efficient digital media production workgroups. Avid also unveiled new feature sets for the Media Composer® Version 10.0 system, a worldwide standard for editing, and Symphony(TM) Version 3.0 software, the most efficient finishing and 24P universal mastering solution for editorial productions. In addition, the much anticipated release of SOFTIMAGE®|XSI(TM), a revolutionary next-generation 3-D animation solution, will be showcased during the show.

To demonstrate its commitment to customers, Avid unveiled two new customer service programs: Avid FlexSupport, which is designed to provide all Avid customers in the U.S. and Canada with the flexibility of choosing the technical support options that they need backed by a per-call money back guarantee; and the

Avid Certified User program, which will allow editors to prove their proficiency on Avid Media Composer systems and earn official recognition from Avid. Avid's customer commitment is also demonstrated through its alliances with Intel Corporation and Microsoft Corporation to develop a new authoring tool for creating

interactive digital television content compliant to the Advanced Television Enhanced Forum (ATVEF) specification. Additionally, Avid announced a feature protection program for the NewsCutter Version 15. and NewsCutter XP systems that will enable customers to upgrade to Version 2.0 at no additional cost.

Avid Announces New Professional Post-Production Products

Avid Unity Products Receive Major Enhancements Avid introduced Version 1.2 of Avid Unity(TM) MediaNet, the revolutionary media network for professional media production and distribution. With this release, the power and scope of MediaNet is expanded to include larger workgroups or several smaller workgroups,

who can concurrently work with access to as much as 650 hours of broadcast-quality video. This new version includes support for up to 25 real-time clients each with four audio tracks (total of 50 video streams plus 100 audio tracks), with simultaneous access to as much as 5TB of media storage.

New Feature Sets for Symphony Version 3 and Media Composer Version 10

Avid unveiled the upcoming releases of Media Composer Version 10.0, a worldwide standard for editing; and Symphony Version 3.0, the most efficient finishing and 24P universal mastering solution for editorial productions. Both releases are planned for shipment in the third quarter of 2000. Symphony Version 3 builds on the capabilities of the Media Composer system, offering the full Media Composer Version 10 feature set, and adding the real-time performance and depth of control required for high-end editorial finishing. New features include: Real-time Ultimatte Keying, Real-time Secondary Color Correction, Motion Tracking and

Image Stabilization. The milestone Media Composer Version 10 release raises the bar in terms of online capabilities for finishing mainstream programming, adds streaming capabilities so users can re-purpose video assets on the Web, and delivers real-time power, speed-of-operation enhancements and workflow efficiency features. Feature highlights include: Real-time moving mattes, Real-time hardware multicamera play, and Video Archive.

Avid Launches Strategic Web Initiatives

First All-In-One Streaming Media Publishing Tool for Web-enabled Video Production Avid unveiled Avid ePublisher, the industry's first complete streaming media publishing tool for Web-enabled video production. Developed for new media producers in the broadcast/``webcast'', corporate, education and training markets,

the Avid ePublisher solution will simplify how streaming media content is produced, encoded and distributed. This single application will enable content creators to capture, edit or re-purpose video content and combine it with information and graphical elements to create HTML-based interactive multimedia content that can be

published to the Web as well as to CD and DVD for easy distribution. Avid ePublisher is schedule for release in North America in Q2 2000.

B2B Web Services Portal for Media Creation Professionals

Avid formally launched AvidProNet.com, a business-to-business Web services portal for media professionals. AvidProNet.com provides Web-based tools, information and services to enable the content creation community to take advantage of the power of the Internet in their business - to improve their workflow efficiency, stay informed, and reach and interact with fellow professionals. AvidProNet.com provides content, community, commerce, and services targeted at media creation professionals. Digidesign will develop a full-featured audio component of the Avid Production Network(TM) (AvidProNet.com). Digidesign's plans include creating a web community for Pro Tools® workstation users, featuring a variety of networked products and services for audio creation and production. Avid and Digidesign are committed to providing seamless integration between their industry-leading desktop audio and video tools and the Avid Production Network.

20% Performance Increase for the Avid Xpress DV on IBM IntelliStation Digital Video Editing and Publishing System

Avid announced that it is now shipping a new 733 MHz model of its Avid Xpress DV software on the IBM IntelliStation product, the company's professional editing and publishing solution for digital video (DV), Web streaming video, DVDs, and CDs. Avid's highly performance-scalable Avid Xpress DV software combined with the increased CPU performance of this new model enables demanding video processing functions such as rendering, effects, and encoding to execute up to 20% faster than the previous model. Avid also announced that it will preview the upcoming Version 1.5 of Avid Xpress DV on the IBM IntelliStation, which will feature significant collaboration and interoperability enhancements to enable efficient digital media production workgroups.

Avid Xpress Version 4

Avid introduced Avid Xpress Version 4 software, the next generation of Avid's affordable, broadcast-quality video editing system designed for video and multimedia professionals. Available in summer 2000 simultaneously on Macintosh and Windows NT platforms, the Avid Meridien(TM)-based Avid Xpress

Version 4 system will offer powerful new features for creating digital media for the Web and DVD, enhancing workflow and increasing editing flexibility and efficiency. Avid also announced limited-time promotional upgrade pricing for current owners of Avid Meridien-based Avid Xpress Plus and Deluxe customers.

Avid Announces New 3-D and Animation Solutions

SOFTIMAGE|XSI

Softimage Co, a subsidiary of Avid, announced the much anticipated release of SOFTIMAGE |XSI system, the company's next-generation 3-D animation solution. Expected to ship in May 2000, the SOFTIMAGE|XSI system will allow animators in the broadcast, feature film and games industries to take advantage of this

truly non-linear animation system. The SOFTIMAGE|XSI system is revolutionary in its approach to 3-D animation by providing a powerful, sophisticated tool that is intuitive to use. This environment, which takes the idea of animated content to the next level, has been designed with the needs of animators in mind. The

SOFTIMAGE|XSI system provides non-destructive, non-linear animation features that allow users to be far more productive and creative without having to extend deadlines.

Digidesign Announces New Audio Tools

AVoption|XL

Digidesign is showing AVoption|XL, a hardware option for integrating Pro Tools digital audio workstations with Avid video editing systems. Both the AVoption|XL and AVoption hardware options allows capture, import and playback of Avid-compatible video from within the Pro Tools application. Together with the advanced editing and post-production features of Pro Tools Version 5 software, these options represent an unprecedented level of integration between audio and video, and an improved workflow for sound-for-picture professionals.

Windows NT Compatible Version of DigiTranslator

Digidesign announced the release of DigiTranslator 1.1, a Windows NT-compatible version of Digidesign's OMFI (Open Media Framework® Interchange) session interchange application. DigiTranslator accurately handles the conversion of Pro Tools session files to OMF® files, and of OMF files to Pro Tools session

files. Dozens of manufacturers now support OMFI, and hundreds of Pro Tools customers rely on OMFI every day for file interchange with other workstations, such as Avid's Media Composer system. With DigiTranslator, the complex process of file interchange is made simple and dependable, allowing post-production professionals to spend more time on creative decisions and less time on file management.

FilmFrame(TM) Delivers Avid Film Composer® Compatibility to Digidesign Pro Tools

Digidesign announced FilmFrame, a software module that adds 24 frame Film Composer media support to AVoption- or AVoption|XL-equipped Pro Tools systems. FilmFrame software allows Pro Tools users to work natively at 24 frames per second in Pro Tools with picture elements that have been created by an Avid Film Composer video editing workstation.

PostConform® Version 2.0

Digidesign announced the release of PostConform Version 2.0, an update of its auto-conforming solution for Mac OS-based computers. With this release, the PostConform software is now fully compatible with Digidesign's Pro Tools|24 and Pro Tools |24 MIX systems. This new version of PostConform software plays a key role in integrating current Pro Tools systems into a post-production workflow. PostConform software automatically locates and captures EDL elements from external source decks, and conforms those elements to specified positions on the list, saving hours of extra work capturing and spotting elements to picture.

Windows 98 Support with Pro Tools Version 5.0.1

Digidesign announced the first upgrade to its Pro Tools Version 5 software. With Pro Tools Version 5.0.1, Windows 98 support will be available for Digidesign's home and project studio products, the Digi 001(TM) and Digi ToolBox(TM) XP. The recording, editing and mixing capabilities of Digi 001 and Digi ToolBox XP

are powered by Pro Tools LE software. Pro Tools LE supports up to 24 tracks of 16- or 24- bit audio and introduces the newly developed Real-Time AudioSuite (RTAS) plug-in architecture, delivering real-time, host-based mixing and effects processing. With the Version 5.0.1 release, Digidesign also adds Windows 98

support for the SampleCell II(TM) Plus PCI sampling card, a low-latency monitoring feature for Digi 001 systems, and an MP3 export option for Windows-based Pro Tools systems.

Avid Announces New Solutions for Broadcast News

Low Cost Avid NewsCutter XP

Avid unveiled the Avid NewsCutter XP system, a low-cost version of Avid's industry-leading NewsCutter family of digital editing products for broadcast news production, designed to deliver content both to air and to the Web. For less than $25,000 USMSRP, this new product will offer a high-performance alternative to

traditional two-tape-deck suites, delivering a new price point for this functionality. Using industry standard DV25 compression, NewsCutter XP will connect the speed of the NewsCutter system to the workflow benefit of Avid Unity media network. In order to ensure a scaleable solution for its customers, Avid will provide

a simple upgrade path from NewsCutter XP to upcoming releases of NewsCutter DV50 or MPEG-2 non-linear editors.

Future-Proof Workgroup News Editing Solution

Avid introduced a feature protection program for the NewsCutter Version 1.5 and NewsCutter XP systems that will enable customers to upgrade to NewsCutter Version 2.0 at no additional cost. Scheduled for availability in Q4 2000, the NewsCutter Version 2.0 system builds on Avid's industry-leading NewsCutter family of digital editing products for broadcast news production and is expected to include capabilities such as support for popular DV50 and MPEG2 formats. In addition, the NewsCutter Version 2.0 system will be capable of full support for Avid Unity for News, a broadcast-specific version of the Avid Unity MediaNet

shared storage network. The Avid Unity for News system also adds the Avid Unity MediaManager asset management solution, as well as a new high-speed media transfer capability.

Avid Announces New Service Initiatives and Alliance Announcements

New Editor for Authoring Interactive Content for Enhanced Digital Television

Avid unveils its development and licensing agreements with Intel Corporation and Microsoft Corporation to develop a new authoring tool for creating interactive digital television content compliant to the Advanced Television Enhanced Forum (ATVEF) specification. Avid is previewing an early version of the tool, code

named ``Avid ITVauthor'', at the major industry tradeshow this week in Las Vegas and expects to ship a functional pre-release version to qualified customers in the fall of 2000.

Avid Certified User Program

Avid's Certified User Program is designed for Avid system editors that would like to have a program that certifies their considerable skills, the Avid Certified User program will allow editors to prove their proficiency on Avid Media Composer systems and earn official recognition from Avid. The Avid Certified User program

is being developed by Avid Certified Instructors - most of whom are Avid system editors, Avid senior instructors, Avid product developers, and experienced Avid customers. The program will provide Avid system editors with a method to prove proficiency with all aspects of system operation, including media capture, media management, editing, effects and graphics, output options and basic troubleshooting.

Avid Revamps Customer Service with Avid FlexSupport

Designed to address needs expressed by customers, new Avid FlexSupport customer service offerings will provide all Avid customers in the U.S. and Canada, including non-contract customers, with the flexibility of choosing the technical support options that they need, backed-up by a per-call money back guarantee. In

addition to the worldwide total solution provided by Avid Assurance annual support contracts, Avid FlexSupport options allow customers in North America to tailor their own support plans by purchasing only the individual support services that they require. For complete details on the above announcements, visit

www.avid.com or www.softimage.com.

 

 

Apple extends push into professional video market

By Jim Davis

Staff Writer, CNET News.com

April 10, 2000, 5:30 p.m. PT

URL: http://news.cnet.com/news/0-1003-200-1677722.html

Apple bought a software company today and said it will partner with two others to accelerate a push into professional-level digital video publishing.

Apple, having successfully rejuvenated itself in the consumer market, is trying to do the same in the lucrative market for video publishing equipment for ad agencies and Web designers.

The company said it had acquired the intellectual property of Astarte, a DVD authoring software company. Astarte's DVD engineering team will join Apple as part of the acquisition. The company did not disclose a purchase price nor the number of employees involved in the transaction.

Simultaneously, Apple said it would partner with Pinnacle Systems, a provider of digital video editing tools, and graphics hardware specialist Matrox, on new products for the content authoring markets.

Pinnacle will work on supplying new technology for editing high-definition video. A Mac with PowerPC G4 processor and specialized chips from Pinnacle will cost around $30,000 and will compare to specialized editing workstations costing much more, Apple claimed.

Matrox, best known for its graphics display hardware, will provide hardware for editing digital video on the fly. The product will be available starting this fall.

Both the Pinnacle and Matrox technology will be available first on the Mac platform, a turnabout from recent years when companies were increasingly focused on bringing Windows-based products to market first.

Apple's efforts to increase its visibility in the publishing arena--a historical stronghold for the company that has been absorbed in recent years by Windows-based PCs --comes as the company is set to release second-quarter earnings next week.

Apple is expected to post earnings of 80 cents a share, according to analysts polled by First Call/Thomson. A move to sell more of its high-end products should please

Wall Street, as the company must look to new areas to continue its strong revenue and profit margin growth after having successfully mined the consumer market with its

iMac and iBook products.

"Our goal is to expand the market (for digital video products) dramatically by reaching out to new users and customer segments," said Phil Schiller, Apple's vice president

of worldwide marketing.

For instance, Matrox is developing a new video accelerator card, called the RTMac, to go along with Apple's revised Final Cut Pro software for video editing. There are

real-time video editing packages available for PC users, but Schiller said customers have had to stitch together several different programs, each with a specific function

and often running on separate computers, resulting in a less efficient workplace.

Matrox and Apple Announce Real-Time DV Editing for the Mac

Monday April 10, 2:01 pm Eastern Time Company Press Release SOURCE: Apple Computer, Inc.

NAB2000, LAS VEGAS, April 10 /PRNewswire/ -- Matrox Video Products Group and Apple® (Nasdaq: AAPL - news) today announced the first PCI video card for real- time digital video (DV) editing on the Macintosh®. The RTMac, architected by Matrox and Apple engineers, is tightly integrated with Apple's award-winning Final Cut Pro(TM) video creation software to provide real-time editing, effects and compositing.

Fully configured systems are expected to start at under $5,000.

``With our incredibly fast Power Mac G4, award-winning Final Cut Pro software and innovative FireWire technology, Apple is the platform of choice for desktop video editing,'' said Philip Schiller, Apple's vice president of Worldwide Product Marketing. ``The combination of the G4, Final Cut Pro and the new Matrox RTMac card provides the most powerful, real-time editing environment on a personal computer.''

``We are extremely excited to be working closely with Apple to bring real- time DV editing to the Mac,'' said Alain Legault, vice president of Product Development for Matrox. ``Matrox recognizes Apple's commitment to desktop video and is proud to partner with an industry leader.''

In addition to real-time DV editing, the RTMac PCI video card, available this summer, supplements the built-in FireWire® capabilities of the Power Mac(TM) G4 with composite and S-Video analog video capture and export; provides support for a second computer display for extended desktop real estate, and offers full-quality, real-time video playback and resolution on a computer display and NTSC/PAL monitor simultaneously.

About Matrox

Matrox Video Products Group is a technology and market leader in the field of digital video hardware and software for realtime editing, DVD authoring, and web streaming applications. The award-winning Matrox DigiSuite product line is used by television broadcasters, post-production facilities, and project studios worldwide.

The new Matrox RT Series of products is designed for corporate communicators, event videographers, and video enthusiasts. Founded in 1976, Matrox is a privately held company headquartered in Montreal, Canada with offices in the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Italy, and Hong Kong. For more

information visit www.matrox.com/video.

About Apple

Apple ignited the personal computer revolution in the 1970s with the Apple II and reinvented the personal computer in the 1980s with the Macintosh. Apple is committed to bringing the best personal computing experience to students, educators, creative professionals and consumers around the world through its innovative hardware, software and Internet offerings.