Suzanne Alecia
President
Out-Of-Home Video Advertising Bureau, Inc. (OVAB)
Suzanne Alecia is currently the president of the Out-of-Home Video Advertising Bureau (OVAB). OVAB was launched in early 2007 by leading out-of-home video industry executives to support the growth and awareness of the industry and to take action in shaping its course. OVAB's core mission is to make it easier for agencies and advertisers to evaluate, plan and buy these networks by establishing audience measurement guidelines and standards in collaboration with the agency/advertising community. Prior to joining OVAB in February 2008, Suzanne was president of advertising sales for The Hotel Networks, the leading provider of national cable networks and video-on-demand programming into upscale and business class hotels across the country and a founding company of OVAB. In her tenure at The Hotel Networks, Suzanne's team was responsible for driving triple digit sales revenue and developing marketing, programming and new business initiatives amongst a variety of sectors. Familiar to OVAB, Suzanne served on OVAB's Executive Board and Research & Standards committee and was the organization's treasurer prior to becoming president. Previously, Suzanne held advertising sales positions with the Hallmark Channel, Oxygen Media and Home & Garden Television.
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David Armano
VP, Creative
Critical Mass
As VP, Creative for the Chicago office of Critical Mass, David has the privilege of leading a smart and talented group of 40+ individuals across a variety of disciplines and clients ranging from P&G to the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority. A creative problem solver and strategic thinker, David has over 14 years of experience in the field with the majority of his time spent in digital marketing and experience design. An active thought leader in the industry, David authors the popular Logic + Emotion blog currently ranked in the top 50 media + marketing blogs according to Advertising Age. David's writing and visual thinking has been cited by Forrester, The Boston Globe and landed him in BusinessWeek on several occasions including their "Best of 2006".
Prior to Critical Mass, David spent time as a creative lead at notable firms such as Digitas and Agency.com?putting in a combined tenure of 8 years in the large digital agency environment. He led multiple user-centered initiatives for clients such as HP, Allstate, Fifth Third Bank, Miller Brewing, Grainger, and Bally Total Fitness. Previously, David earned his interactive stripes working with The Chicago Tribune. David helped launch and upgrade site features, functionality and content for the Tribune's flagship site. David also accumulated broadcast and direct marketing experience while working for companies such as Fox and Columbia House.
David holds a BFA cum laude in Computer Graphics from Pratt Institute. He minored in Visual Communications and was fortunate enough to study under some of the most innovative minds in the industry. He currently resides in a near-northern suburb of Chicago, not far from Lake Michigan. When David isn't working, surfing the net, or riding his motorbike?he can be found spending quality time with his wife and two boys.
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Hashem Bajwa
Digital Planning Director
Goodby, Silverstein and Partners
Hashem Bajwa is Digital Planning Director at Goodby, Silverstein & Partners in San Francisco. His role is a mash-up of planning, new media and creative.
His responsibility is to help inject innovation and digital strategy into the agency's creative work across its largest accounts, which include the worldwide HP business, Sprint & Hyundai.
He also leads the agency's outreach with Silicon Valley and Web 2.0 companies as a matchmaker of technology & creativity to form new kinds or brand partnerships.
In 2007, Hashem created the Digital Innovation Salon @ GSP: an invite-only quarterly reception that features news-making thought leaders in technology openly discussing issues with the agency's top management, C-level clients and industry partners.
Hashem's career began at the United Nations in 2000 working in communications & research, and in 2003 moved to McCann Worldgroup as an account planner.
In 2007 he was the youngest person to be named in AdvertisingAge's "40 Under 40 to Watch" ...at the ripe old age of 26.
Hashem studied international affairs at New School University in New York, brand strategy at Art Center College of Design, and is the author of a new marketing blog ? Brain Sells.
Hashem is a major contributer to Kiva.org -- a web-savvy microcredit bank that lends money to social entrepreneurs living in poverty in developing countries. He focuses his micro-philanthropy on projects about education & women's rights in South Asia & Africa.
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Michael Barrett
EVP, Chief Revenue Officer
Fox Interactive Media
As Executive Vice President, Chief Revenue Officer, Michael Barrett oversees the worldwide revenue for all Fox Interactive properties which include MySpace, IGN, FoxSports.com, Fox.com, AmericanIdol.com, and Scout.com.
Before joining Fox, Barrett served as EVP Sales & Partnerships at AOL Media Networks were he was responsible for all branded advertising sales on AOL, AOL.com, Netscape, Mapquest, Compuserve, CNN.com, and all Time Inc websites. Prior to joining AOL Barrett was SVP Sales & Business Development at GeoCities, which was sold to Yahoo! Inc. He then assisted in developing eCommerce strategies at Yahoo! Inc.
Barrett's career in new media began at Disney Online where he oversaw all national ad sales and marketing for Disney Online Internet products. Prior to joining Disney, Barrett held positions with Meredith Publishing, Newsweek Magazine, and Family PC Magazine.
Barrett holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics from the College of the Holy Cross in Worcester, MA. He resides in New York with his wife and three daughters.
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John Battelle
Founder/Chairman/CEO
Federated Media
John Battelle, 42, is an entrepreneur, journalist, professor and author who has founded or co-founded scores of online, conference, magazine and other media businesses.
Prior to founding Federated Media, Battelle co-founded and continues to serve as Executive Producer of the Web 2 Summit conference, as well as "band manager" with BoingBoing.net.
Previously, Battelle occupied the Bloomberg chair in Business Journalism for the Graduate School of Journalism at the University of California, Berkeley. He was founder, Chairman, and CEO of Standard Media International (SMI), publisher of The Industry Standard and TheStandard.com. Prior to that, he was a co-founding editor of Wired magazine and Wired Ventures.
Battelle recently wrote The Search: How Google and Its Rivals Rewrote the Rules of Business and Transformed Our Culture (Penguin/Portfolio), an international bestseller published in more than 25 languages. He created Searchblog, a daily site which covers the intersection of media, technology and the Internet at www.battellemedia.com. He is an expert in the field of search and has appeared on many national and international news channels such as BBC World News, CNN, PBS, Discovery Channel, CNBC, etc.
Battelle was a founding Board member of the Online Publishers Association and sits on the board of the Interactive Advertising Bureau, as well as the Board of his children's school.
Battelle was named a "Global Leader for Tomorrow" and "Young Global Leader" by the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. He was a finalist in the "Entrepreneur of the Year" competition by Ernst & Young and has recently been named an "Innovator - One of Ten Best Marketers in the Business", by Advertising Age and one of the "Most Important People on The Web" by PCWorld. He holds bachelor's and master's degrees in Journalism from the University of California, Berkeley.
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Pete Blackshaw
Executive Vice President
Nielsen Online Strategic Services
Pete Blackshaw, whose professional background encompasses public policy, interactive marketing, and brand management, is executive vice president of strategic services for Nielsen Online, a combination of Nielsen BuzzMetrics, a firm Pete helped cofound, and Nielsen//NetRatings. One of Pete's key focus areas is helping brands interpret, manage, and act on consumer-generated media (CGM) -- a term Pete coined -- in the following three areas: online content & monetization, defensive branding, and influencer management. A former interactive marketing leader at P&G and founder of consumer feedback portal PlanetFeedback.com, Pete cofounded the Word of Mouth Marketing Association (WOMMA). He authors several blogs, including ConsumerGeneratedMedia.com, authors a regular column in the American Marketing Association's magazine, and is the author of an upcoming book from Random House, "Satisfied Customers Tell Three Friends, Angry Customers Tell 3000: Running a Business in Today's Consumer-Driven World." He's also a long-time board member of Ad-Tech's advisory board. Pete is a graduate of Harvard Business School and the University of California, Santa Cruz.
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Jason Brown
President of Sales & Marketing
IdeaCast
Jason is a 15-year veteran of media sales at companies such as Screenvision and Discovery Networks. In his role as EVP with Screenvision, Mr. Brown had oversight of custom content agreements with such leading national advertisers as American Express, HBO, Discovery Networks and Verizon Wireless. He also led the company's U.S national and regional sales teams, developing sales strategy and managing six sales teams in the firm's New York, Los Angeles, Detroit, Kansas City and Chicago offices. He was responsible for revenue generated via national and regional cinema Preshow ads, slides, promotional extensions and in-theatre integrated marketing programs. Previously he served as SVP of national sales for the company and as VP of its eastern regional sales team.
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Pete Caban
CEO/Head of Digital
Mekanism
Pete Caban is CEO/Head of Digital at San Francisco creative production studio, Mekanism. Mekanism specializes in the creation, production and syndication of multi-platform, branded-entertainment campaigns.
In recent months, Pete creative directed and launched Rockband.com, an entertainment and social networking portal for the mega-hit video game from Harmonix & MTV. Recognition for other recent Mekanism collaborations include a series of Cannes Lions for 'Napster', 'Monkeyball' for Sega, and 'Clearification' for Microsoft Windows Vista.
Prior to joining Mekanism, Pete worked for nearly ten years at Macromedia and Shockwave. As part of the Flash product team, Pete helped establish Flash as the world's leading platform for multimedia content and applications development.
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Rick Clancy
SVP, Corporate Communications
Sony Electronics
Rick Clancy is senior vice president of corporate communications at Sony Electronics.
In this position, he is responsible for all of the communications and public relations activities for the company's U.S. electronics business, including a wide variety of corporate issues, new product launches, marketing support, technology developments, third-party relationships, manufacturing activities in the United States and Mexico, crisis communications, media relations and employee communications.
In the rapidly expanding world of social media, Clancy and his team launched the company's first corporate blog in July 2007, which he hosts, at www.sony.com/electronicsblog.
Clancy joined Sony in 1990 as a director of corporate communications, moving on to become a vice president in 1991. He assumed the senior vice president position in 1997.
Prior to joining Sony, Clancy was vice president, corporate communications, at the investment firm of Drexel Burnham Lambert in New York. Prior to that, he served in various client service and general management positions in the New York and Pittsburgh offices of the Creamer Dickson Basford public relations firm.
Clancy has also held public relations positions at the investment firm of E.F. Hutton and at the J. Walter Thomson advertising agency, where he began his career in 1976 after receiving a B.A. degree, majoring in communications, from Bethany College in West Virginia.
Clancy is a past chairman of the Consumer Electronics Association's Communications Committee and is an accredited member of the Public Relations Society of America.
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Jean-Paul Colaco
SVP of Advertising
Hulu
Jean-Paul Colaco joined Hulu as Senior Vice President of Advertising where he is responsible for all advertising sales and operations as well as innovating on advertising products and services. Before joining Hulu, JP spent over 12 years at the Walt Disney Company, where he last served as Senior Vice President, Business Development reporting directly to CEO, Bob Iger. Previously, JP was President and General Manager of Radio Disney worldwide, a music intensive radio network for kids and families. JP's experience also includes McKinsey and Co. where he served as a consultant focused on strategic planning for entertainment and high technology companies. JP earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in economics and an honors Bachelor of Arts degree in business administration from the University of Western Ontario in Canada where he was President of the Students' Council. JP received his M.B.A. from Harvard Business School.
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Frank Cooper
VP of Marketing
Pepsi-Cola North America
Frank is currently a Vice President of Marketing for Pepsi-Cola North America responsible for managing its non-cola soft drink portfolio (including Mountain Dew, Sierra Mist, Mug Root Beer, and other "flavored" soft drinks). In addition to heading PCNA's non-cola soft drink portfolio, he recently assumed responsibility for leading PCNA's Multicultural Marketing strategy and development. He joined PCNA in 2003 as the Vice President of Multicultural Marketing and Strategy and later as its Vice President of Promotions, Interactive Marketing and Entertainment. Prior to Pepsi, Frank worked in the entertainment industry as a Senior Vice President for PolyGram Holdings, was co-founder of the Internet company UBO.com, and served as Vice President of Interactive Marketing for AOL. Frank holds a Juris Doctorate degree from the Harvard Law School, where he served as the Supreme Court Editor of the Harvard Law Review and a B.S. degree in Business Administration from UC Berkeley. He and his wife, Nina, live in Westchester, New York with their two children.
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Jerry Courtney
Group Manager, Multimedia
Target
Jerry Courtney is Group Manager of Multi-Media at Target. In this role, he is responsible for the management of Target's media investment, driving integration and innovation along the way. Previously, Jerry was VP/Director of Interactive & Digital Media at GSD&M in Austin, TX. He started his career at Campbell Mithun Esty in Minneapolis. Jerry enjoys life with his wife, LeAnn, his two children Jackson and Addison, and his dog, Razzle. He is a graduate of the University of Illinois. Jerry takes pleasure in hacking up a good golf course and watching his beloved Cubs and Bears.
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Craig Daitch
Vice President/Group Director of Emerging Channels
Digitas
As Vice President/Group Director of Emerging Channels, Craig Daitch recently joined Digitas after leaving his post leading PHD's North American innovation practice, where he brought a unique vision of holistically integrating new media into PHD's client network. Previously a co-founder of emerging technology agency Eiko Media, Craig carved out his status as a new media thought leader by developing cutting-edge advertising solutions spanning across the new and social medium spectrums on behalf of clients such as DaimlerChrysler, General Motors, AT&T and Sony Ericsson.
A background focused on marketing technology, Craig was co-founder and Managing Director for Simplewire Inc., a wireless messaging infrastructure and software provider where he evangelized the utility of text messaging to companies such as American Greetings, Microsoft, Deutsche Bank, Gannett, and Telstra. In addition to his experience in wireless messaging, Craig was at the forefront of promoting the convergence of mobile blogging as well as J2ME games and applications. Craig received a BA from Western Michigan University and is active in the social media space, where you'll catch him twittering on trends in our industry.
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Colleen DeCourcy
Chief Digital Officer
TBWA Worldwide
Colleen DeCourcy, Chief Digital Officer for TBWA Worldwide, is responsible for developing and implementing a global digital strategy throughout the TBWA and TEQUILA networks.
She has worked at the forefront of digital technology and entertainment for most of her career and her areas of expertise range from digital postproduction and motion graphics design to creative campaign development and planning across digital platforms. Colleen is champion of innovative methods of persona development and implementation to develop experience touch points for online social networks, consumer activated branded entertainment, and word of mouth marketing. She has been cited extensively for her unique approach to gathering multiple agencies around personas in her work with Daimler Chrysler. Last year, Forrester Research cited Colleen's unique approach to understanding consumers as a Digital Industry best practice.
Prior to joining TBWA, DeCourcy served as Chief Experience Officer at JWT where she worked to strengthen and grow the integrated, multi-platform storytelling capabilities of the network as well as work with the agency's executive creative directors on client business including, among others, Unilever's Sunsilk, Kimberly-Clark, Cadbury Adams, Diamond Trading Commission and Ford. Additionally, she served as Executive Creative Director (North America) on HSBC.
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Donny Deutsch
Host of "The Big Idea with Donny Deutsch" and Chairman, Deutsch Inc.
Donny Deutsch is the host of The Big Idea with Donny Deutsch... Your Daily Roadmap to The American Dream. The American Dream is doing what you love, and making millions... every weeknight at 10p/1a ET, Donny interviews everyone from budding entrepreneurs to Billionaires, discovering their secrets to success and showing YOU how to turn your idea into a BIG IDEA.
As Chairman of Deutsch Inc., he implemented his "leaner, meaner, faster, smarter" philosophy to transform a small advertising shop into one of the nation's top 10 agencies. The $2.8 billion full-service agency has provided clients with strategic marketing programs that are intrusive, effective and talked about. Prestigious clients include GM, Johnson & Johnson, DirecTV, Novartis Worldwide, and IKEA.
In 2005, Harper Collins published Donny's business motivation book, Often Wrong, Never in Doubt, based on his career experiences. Reviews have called his writing "bold, funny and often irreverent," and Newsweek (November 2005) noted "his trademark candor can be cringe-inducingly un-P.C. ... But it's refreshing when he applies it to his agency's and his own successes and failures, and draws lessons from each." Deutsch is also Managing Partner of Deutsch Open City, the independent production company that has produced a string of highly acclaimed independent films. He also had a brief turn in politics as a lead member of the Clinton/Gore communications team in 1992.
A graduate of the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania, Deutsch now serves on two prestigious boards: UPenn's School of Social Work's Executive Committee and the Michael J. Fox Parkinson's Foundation's Board of Directors.
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Kevin Ertell
Vice President, E-Business
Borders Group Inc
Kevin Ertell, Vice President of E-Business for Borders Group, Inc., is a 20+ year veteran of the specialty retail industry and has been a leader in e-commerce since 1997. Currently, Kevin is heading the company's initiative to launch the new Borders.com as well as additional new digital business efforts as part of Borders Group's overall cross-channel strategy, which Kevin had a leading role in developing. Before taking on the .com and digital business initiatives for Borders, Kevin was instrumental in launching the highly successful Borders Rewards? customer loyalty program, which now has approximately 25 million members, making this program one of the largest of its type in specialty retail. He has also been responsible for spearheading all of the brand's e-mail marketing, advertising and CRM programs, which have been recognized as industry-leading. Prior to joining Borders in August 2005, Kevin spent more than 20 years with Tower Records, most recently serving as Senior Vice President of TowerRecords.com. Kevin's retail-focused marketing and technology skills and experience are ideally suited for his e-business and digital business leadership roles at Borders. His customer focused approach both informs and drives his efforts to create highly valued and innovative services and promotions for Borders customers.
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Chris Gagen
Senior Vice President, Managing Director
Posterscope USA
Chris Gagen is Senior Vice President Managing Director of Posterscope USA, a division of Posterscope World Wide. With more than 38 offices in 20 countries and headquarters in London, Posterscope is the largest out of home specialist communication company in the world with over $2.6 billion dollars in billings. Chris was named Media All Star for Out Of Home in 2006 by Media Week and AD Week magazine.
Before joining Posterscope, Gagen was with The Coca-Cola Company in Atlanta for 15 years, in a variety of positions including Director of Media for North America and Director of Strategic Media Initiatives World Wide Media and Alliances.
Prior to Coke, Chris worked for 9 years at several advertising agencies in New York as VP Media Director. He is a former Chair of the Traffic Audit Bureau, and serves on their Board of Directors and Executive Committee.
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Mike Geiger
Director of Interactive Production
Goodby, Silverstein and Partners
For more than 12 years Mike has led multidisciplinary teams in strategy, branding, interaction design, and development of cutting-edge new media and advertising content for clients including Hewlett-Packard, Adobe, Comcast, Sprint, Got Milk?, Gucci and the NBA.
In 2003 Mike started the Interactive Production Department at Goodby, Silverstein & Partners. He now manages a group of over 45 people. As Department Head of Interactive Production he oversees the production of all interactive and emerging technology projects.
Work that Mike has produced has won numerous awards at the most prestigious award shows including: One Show Interactive, Cannes Cyber Lions, Clios, The Art Directors Club and FlashForward.
Mike is also involved in many speaking engagements at venues like the Future Marketing Awards, Boards Creative Work Shops and Summits, the Media Strategy Forum and Flash Conferences like FITC and OFFF.
Before joining the world of advertising, Mike worked at design & production studios like Method, Spyplane and Thunk Design. Originally from Munich, Germany he now lives in San Francisco. Mike graduated from the University of San Diego with a BA in Business Administration and received an MBA in Marketing Management from the University of San Francisco in 1995.
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Dan Goodman
President
MRC, Digital
Dan Goodman is president of the digital division of MRC, a leading independent film, television and digital studio.
MRC is quickly becoming one of the industry's leading independent financiers in premium digital content and is currently funding unique digital content with talent partners like Seth MacFarlane ("Family Guy" and "American Dad"), Raven-Symon? (Disney's "That's So Raven"), and many more.
A fundamental component of these and other MRC digital content efforts is the presence of an array of major distribution partnerships across a wide range of digital channels, including Google's click-to-play video and Gadget Ad networks and AT&T's mobile platforms.
Prior to joining MRC, Goodman was the chief digital officer at Ogilvy, responsible for all digital efforts in the New York office and also head of OgilvyInteractive, named AdWeek's Interactive Agency of the Year in 2005. Ogilvy is well recognized for numerous award-winning initiatives for a significant roster of blue chip advertisers such as IBM, Unilever, Lenovo, DHL, American Express, Six Flags and Kodak.
Goodman has been an early pioneer of digital communications. In his former role as managing director of interactive at Lowe, he led digital efforts for some of the world's most well-known and respected brands, such as Mercedes-Benz, Dell, Marriott, and Heineken, including some major firsts like Mercedes' first ecommerce initiatives and multiple online marketing advances for Dell's Home System division.
After his tenure with Lowe, Goodman founded a viral email marketing company focused on digital referral and peer-to-peer based programs for clients such as Dell North America, Diamond Trading Company, Equinox Fitness Clubs and CNA Insurance.
MRC specializes in the creation of premium content, custom building distribution for each of its projects and partnering directly with leading creative talent. MRC's eight-picture, $250 million production slate for 2008 includes films such as "Shorts," written and directed by Robert Rodriguez; "Linha de Passe," written and directed by Walter Salles; and a new film by Sacha Baron Cohen. The company has offices in Los Angeles and in New York.
Goodman is a frequent participant in major industry events and has served as an interactive judge for several major industry award shows. He currently resides in New Jersey with his wife Amy, and three sons Josh, Noah and Ethan.
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Eric Hadley
Chief Marketing Officer
Heavy.com
Eric Hadley is CMO of Heavy Corporation, the leading Original Video Entertainment destination on the Inter-hWeb. Mr. Hadley manages all sales, marketing and ad operations for the company. Prior to Heavy, Mr. Hadley was general manager of Global Marketing for the Microsoft Digital Advertising Solution Team including MSN, Live.com, Xbox Live and all other Microsoft advertising-funded properties. Mr. Hadley produced and programmed Microsoft's industry leading Media and Marketing Conference, Strategic Account Summit (SAS) for the past five years. He also managed the global rollout of Microsoft adCenter, the company's next-generation advertising platform.
Mr. Hadley joined Microsoft in March 1998, from Ogilvy & Mather. He played a key role in launching the award-winning worldwide e-business campaign that successfully revitalized the IBM brand. Prior to his tenure at Ogilvy & Mather, Mr. Hadley worked on the Burger King Corp. account at Ammirati & Puris and regional McDonald's business at DDB.
Eric Hadley lives in New York City most of the time.
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John Harrobin
SVP-Marketing and Digital Media
Verizon
John Harrobin is Senior Vice President?Marketing & Digital Media for Verizon Communications, responsible for brand marketing, media, sponsorships, and content acquisition & programming Verizon's broadband, TV, and wireless services, including V CAST, FiOS TV, Mobile Web, and Get It Now services. He is based out of our headquarters location in Basking Ridge, New Jersey.
John join the company in 1997 and has served in a variety of field and national leadership positions in marketing, sales, and sales operations, including, just prior to his current role, Vice President - Advertising & Digital Media for Verizon Wireless. He has been recognized in both Advertising Age's "40 under 40" and "Marketing 50" lists and has received the prestigious "Communicator of the Year" award, whose previous winners include Tom Brokaw, Malcolm Forbes, and Hon. Ed Koch.
John earned his Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration from Villanova University and a Masters of Business Administration from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University. He is a Certified Management Accountant.
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Tony Hsieh
CEO and Director
Zappos.com
Tony joined Zappos.com in 2000, and under his leadership, Zappos has grown gross merchandise sales from $1.6M in 2000 to over $800M in 2006. Tony focuses on continuing to grow the business at a rapid pace while maintaining the culture and feel of a small company. Prior to joining Zappos, Tony co-founded Venture Frogs, an incubator and investment firm that invested in Internet startups, including Ask Jeeves, Tellme Networks, and of course, Zappos.com. Tony also co-founded and grew LinkExchange from a side business from his apartment to a cooperative advertising network that reached over half of Internet enabled households, according to Media Metrix. LinkExchange was successfully sold to Microsoft for $265M in 1998. Tony graduated from Harvard University with a BA in Computer Science.
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Eric Johnson
EVP, Multimedia Sales
ESPN Customer Marketing and Sales
Eric Johnson was named executive vice president, multimedia sales, ESPN Customer Marketing and Sales in October 2007. In his role, Johnson will lead, develop and manage ESPN's multimedia sales team, designed to manage all sales activity across the spectrum of ESPN media assets, including television, Internet, radio, print, wireless and broadband. He also oversees group leaders for magazine, digital and specialized sales.
Since April 2006, Johnson was senior vice president, multimedia sales overseeing the Burbank, Calif. office, which is responsible for national advertising sales for West coast-based clients and agencies, which include all ESPN networks as well as ESPN Radio, ESPNZones, ESPN Outdoors and ESPN International.
Johnson joined ESPN in 1999 as an Account Executive and was directly responsible for west coast account television sales.
Prior to joining ESPN, Johnson was a media director at Grey Advertising and an account executive for TIME Magazine in Los Angeles.
Previously, Johnson served as vice president, associate media director on the LA Cellular (now AT&T Wireless) and Baskin Robbins accounts at Deutsch Advertising in 1997-98. He also served as vice president, media director at G2 Advertising (a division of Grey). Additionally, Johnson worked at FCB and Rogge Effler & Partners on a number of media accounts including, Mazda, Suzuki, Mattel, Sizzler, El Pollo Loco, Men's Health Magazine and Sunkist Growers.
Johnson was graduated from the University of California, Los Angeles in 1991 and received a bachelor of arts degree in economics.
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Linnea Johnson
Director, Consumer Services
Unilever
Linnea Johnson is the Director of Consumer Services for Unilever, a Fortune 100 company. Unilever is one of the leading consumer products companies with major brands in the nutrition, home and personal care categories. Linnea is responsible for the strategic leadership of the two Consumer Services contact centers in the United States and Canada. The centers handle over 2 million consumer contacts annually for Unilever's brands sold in those countries. Linnea has worked for Unilever for over 25 years in Brand Management, Consumer Promotions and Consumer Services. Over the past 13 years, she has developed and implemented strategies to transition Consumer Services from a cost center to a value- creation center. Additionally, she has consolidated 5 diverse centers for North America to reduce costs and increase quality of service and has leveraged consumer insight to enhance marketing programs. Linnea earned bachelor's degree from the University of Delaware and an MBA from Cornell University.
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Mitchell Kanner
CEO and Founder
2 Degrees Ventures
Mitch Kanner has been a connection point between entertainment, consumer brands, advertising agencies, and creative talent for two decades, as evidenced by Mitch's inclusion in the book Madison and Vine where Mitch was described as "one of the earliest leaders and architects of the space" and his notable Rolodex which was voted number five in the advertising business by AdAge which said "...everyone knows him, and he knows everybody".
In January 2005 Mitch formed Two Degree Ventures LLC, after serving as President of the Brand Group for The Firm, and a founding partner of Integrated Entertainment Partners LLC. Mitch has carved out a unique niche around the strategic marriage of entertainment, emerging media platforms, and consumer brands. The results this past year have yielded a new digital content model around global entertainment relationships with MSN.
Mitch spent 8 years with Jim Cameron's Digital Domain where he created the most significant visual and digital effects operation serving the production of television advertising, prior to that. Before the creation of Digital Domain, Mitch was a well noted agent, primarily representing commercial film directors. Mitch is also on the Board of Directors at VCU Adcenter in Richmond, Virginia.
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Trevor Kaufman
CEO
Trevor has guided Schematic (a WPP Digital Company) as it has become one of the world's fastest growing and most innovative interactive agencies. Over the last seven years, Kaufman has played a central role as CEO, leading the convergence of media and technology - developing groundbreaking projects on the Internet, interactive television, game consoles and mobile devices for leading brands, along with winning countless awards.
Trevor and the Schematic staff have completed projects for many of the world's leading companies, including Microsoft, Disney, Intel, Discovery, Electronic Arts, Sony, Accenture, Yahoo!, Panasonic, Comcast, CNN, Motorola, Fox, AOL, MTV, BMW, Target, Volkswagen, Pfizer, Nokia, and the NFL.
Trevor appears regularly as a technology expert in business, trade and broadcast media outlets. One of The Hollywood Reporter's "Next Generation," featuring the 35 top Hollywood executives aged 35 and under, he is also one of Newsweek's "Net 50: The Fifty People Who Matter Most on the Internet."
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Patrick Keane
Executive Vice President, Chief Marketing Officer
CBS Interactive
Patrick Keane was named Executive Vice President, Chief Marketing Officer at CBS Interactive, in February 2007. Keane's responsibilities span across a number of core CBS business units with his primary focus being to help CBS monetize new inventory generated by next-generation platforms. Keane oversees the implementation of systems to market and sell CBS content on a growing variety of emerging media platforms and expand the Company's roster of advertisers. In addition to working on sales strategy, he manages CBS Interactive's efforts in online research, reporting and analytics as well as competitive research, sales training and search engine optimization.
In his role, Keane works closely with Jo Ann Ross, President, CBS Network Sales, as well as George Schweitzer, President, CBS Marketing Group and David F. Poltrack, Chief Research Officer for CBS and President, CBS VISION.
Prior to joining CBS, Keane spent more than four years at Google. He served as Head of Advertising Sales Strategy at Google, overseeing the group responsible for developing and managing the strategic plans and relationships critical to growing Google's advertising customer base. Keane also built and lead Google's North American Field Marketing team, an organization comprising industry marketing, sales analytics, sales marketing, and corporate events.
Prior to Google, Keane was Vice President and Senior Analyst at Jupiter Research where he contributed to all facets of their Marketing and Media research, as well as the company's conference division and business development. As head of Jupiter's Online Advertising service, Keane led research on the buying and selling of interactive media. He and several analysts delivered insight into and advice on strategies that helped online advertisers maximize return on investment, publishers generate ad revenues, and technology vendors and service providers position themselves to prospective clients.
Keane is a member of the Interactive Advertising Bureau's Board of Directors and was featured in AdAge's "40 Under 40" section in 2007.
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Abbey Klaassen
Editor, Ad Age Digital
Abbey Klaassen is Ad Age's Digital Editor, responsible for covering the fast-evolving digital media and marketing space. She produces a weekly e-mail newsletter and section in the print edition of Ad Age that delves into the myriad new forms of digital media and their effect on how marketers engage consumers. Since joining Ad Age two years ago, Abbey has also covered cable TV, radio and out-of-home advertising. She's a regular guest on national TV and radio programs. Prior to Ad Age, Abbey worked for MSP Communications in Minneapolis.
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John Mayo-Smith
Executive Vice President, Chief Technology Officer
John joined R/GA in 1997. As EVP, Chief Technology Officer, he manages R/GA's award-winning, innovative technology department, which comprises approximately 20 percent of R/GA's staff in New York and London. John and his team have been instrumental in creating some of R/GA's most groundbreaking and award-winning initiatives for the web, retail, and out-of-home advertising. They provide strategic insight for clients and client teams at R/GA, helping to develop ideas, executions, applications, and concepts that create brand-transformative experiences across channels. John has managed enterprise-scale global development on more than 30 platforms.
Prior to R/GA, John was SVP at Byron Preiss Multimedia Company (BPMC), a Viacom-backed company that he helped bring public in 1995. John led the group that developed more than 40 award-winning software programs for Intel, Simon & Schuster, and Microsoft, and managed project teams in North America, Europe, and Asia. He programmed an award-winning customized CAD (computer-aided design) program for Microsoft, one that allowed users to construct a virtual Frank Lloyd Wright house, plus a computer game featured in Intel's software museum.
Prior to BPMC, John developed a prototype for the first flat-panel electronic newspaper with Roger Fidler, Alan Kay, and Tony Ridder. This work led to Knight Ridder's early backing of Netscape.
John has been quoted in the Wall Street Journal, New York Times, ABC News, and MIT's Technology Reviews. He has lectured at NYU and Parsons and published articles in marketing-related publications such as Advertising Age and Brandweek. John earned a B.A. from Franklin & Marshall College and an MBA from Columbia Business School.
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Jim Nail
Chief Strategy & Marketing Officer
TNS Media Intelligence/Cymfony
Jim Nail is a thought leader and frequent speaker on how companies can tap social media like blogs and social networks to gain consumer insight and develop stronger bonds with influencers. He has an extensive background in integrated marketing through his 22-year career that spans online marketing, market research, brand advertising and direct marketing. Jim was an analyst at Forrester Research for eight years, focusing on how marketing strategies and tactics must adapt to technology-driven changes in consumer media consumption habits. Prior to joining Forrester, he helped launch Web advertising network AdSmart, where he served as director of marketing. He spent 15 years planning and managing integrated marketing campaigns at leading advertising agencies including Ogilvy & Mather Direct, Draft Worldwide, Bates USA and Hill Holliday. Jim is also a member of the Board of Directors of the Word of Mouth Marketing Association.
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Tom Nicholson
CEO, Founder
Icon Nicholson
Tom Nicholson founded IconNicholson in 1987 as New York City's first digital agency. Under his leadership, the firm has grown to become one of the top US agencies, among the largest independent digital firms in NYC and a member of LBi International, a premier global digital agency. IconNicholson is distinguished by its commitment to innovation and design that has kept the company at the forefront of industry growth for over twenty years. The firm's experience servicing clients across a broad range of digital solutions began with public venues for banks and museums, evolved to CD-ROM publishing in the 90's and has led to the firm's cutting-edge internet solutions for major global brands such as MasterCard, McKinsey, Nestle, Prada, BT and The Metropolitan Museum. As the internet moves "beyond the browser," IconNicholson continues to be an industry leader in bringing digital solutions to physical-world settings. The firm's groundbreaking Social RetailingSM solution for fashion designer Nanette Lepore was named by TIME Magazine among the Best Inventions of 2007. Tom and his firm have been the recipients of numerous industry awards that include One Show Gold Pencils and Best of Show, Gold Lions at Cannes, Clios, Graphis, Communication Arts, ID Magazine, SIGGRAPH, New York Festivals, and the Webby Awards. The company's work has been featured in over 100 publications worldwide including the NYTimes, USA Today, BusinessWeek and Forbes. Tom hold's a Masters Degree in Design from Cranbrook Academy of Art in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan and his undergraduate studies included architecture and film at the University of Detroit. Tom remains one of the most recognized and sought-after leaders in the interactive industry today.
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Rob Norman
CEO
GroupM Interaction Worldwide
Rob Norman is a member of the GroupM Global Executive Committee and is CEO of GroupM Interaction Worldwide. GroupM is the world's largest buyer of advertising media with billings of US$ 60 billion (RECMA). GroupM Interaction is also the world's largest buyer of online media with 2008 billings of approximately US$4 billion and is one of the largest global agency customers of Google, Yahoo and MSN.
GroupM Interaction employs 1800 people across the world and operates four agency brands being Beyond Interactive, MEC Interaction, Mindshare Interaction and now the integrated global search organization that combines Outrider, Catalyst and 24/7 search. Its major clients include AT&T, Dell, Ford, VW, GSK, Citi, LVMH, Chevron, BP, Unilever, Warner Brothers and Paramount. Rob's principle tasks are developing the interaction organization within GroupM, developing positioning and thought leadership and leading the interaction contribution to business development, most recently for AT&T and Dell.
Rob is a frequent keynote speaker at industry events and writer in its publications and was named a Media Maven by Advertising Age in 2007. Rob sits on the advisory board of WPP Digital, the venture arm of WPP and is a member of the board of Wild Tangent the online gaming a network and of digital design agency Schematic as well as the Search Engine Marketing Professionals Organization. Prior to moving to the USA in January 2005 Rob was Chairman of the Mediaedge:cia Group in the UK, also a unit of GroupM and, in partnership with Mindshare UK, created GroupM trading which consolidated the Group's media billings to gain increased leverage, a model which now operates across the world.
He joined the Group in 2001 as a result of WPP's acquisition of Tempus Group of which he was a board member and leader of the digital competence that he started In 1994.
Rob lives in New York with his wife and dog and is widely believed to be the only Englishman with a working knowledge of the infield fly rule. He is a fan of the New York Mets, the New York Jets, Tottenham Hotspur and Warren Buffett. His blog can be found at robnorman.wordpress.com.
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Christine Peterson
New York Media Director
Carat
Christine is Carat's national broadband video specialist, and is working in a lead role to integrate the Broadcast and Broadband buying groups at Carat. Working hand-in-hand with Carat's broadcast buying teams, she regularly advises clients on topics such as Broadband TV, Mobile Advertising, Video-on-Demand, and other digital technologies.
Christine works with some of the world's biggest brand marketers to help them deliver insightful digital marketing programs in the online marketing space. She is currently overseeing a group of media strategists working on planning and buying media for clients such as Alberto-Culver, Revlon, Outback Steakhouse and Wyndham Hotel Group. Carat is one of the world's largest integrated marketing communications agencies offering media planning and buying, digital marketing and other media services.
Previously, Christine was part of the media planning team at OMD Digital, and worked on the GE campaign that was awarded the MediaWeek 2003 interactive media campaign of the Year. Christine also spent time at RappDigital, acting in media, production and account roles for various clients.
Christine regularly speaks at industry events about online video and has written for MediaPost's Online Video Insider. She is currently working with many industry leaders to develop standards and metrics for Broadband Streaming video. She also serves on the board of the 212 Interactive Advertising Group in New York.
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Eric Plaskonos
Director of Brand Communications
Philips Electronics North America
Eric Plaskonos is currently Director of Brand Communications for Philips North America, the $10 billion Region of Royal Philips Electronics of the Netherlands, active in the healthcare, lighting and lifestyle arenas.
In his position, he serves as the brand steward responsible for brand advertising and marketing in the United States and Canada. He oversees advertising and media strategy agencies and promotion houses that work together to build the Philips brand.
Most recently, Eric oversaw several innovative advertising executions which earned him industry honors from the New York Times and The Delaney Report as well as being designated a 2007 Media Maven by Advertising Age. He was the architect behind the highly acclaimed and industry trend setting "60 Minutes" Single Sponsor Broadcast, that highlighted, Philips' new "Sense and Simplicity" campaign. Rather than using all of the advertising time in the broadcast, Philips returned almost all of it back to the program, allowing it to produce longer news segments. A 15 year veteran of the advertising and marketing industry, Eric also has worked at Grey, Ogilivy & Mather, Euro RSCG and Publicis.
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David Polinchock
Chief Experience Officer
Brand Experience Lab
David is the Chief Experience Officer (CXO) at Brand Experience Lab, an innovation think tank, creating the next generation of brand experiences. His goal is to challenge marketers to create better stories and to understand how consumers want to hear those stories. It's a little theatre 101 - find the right script; know who the audience is and direct a great production.
He is also a leading voice in the conversation on the socialization of retail, exploring how the emergence of online social technologies are impacting the physical retail space. His blog, Experience Manifesto, was called "one of the best blogs so far on experiences and marketing" by leading event design company, Jack Morton.
In 1990, he was introduced to virtual reality and quickly became a well-respected expert in the field of marketing with new technologies. Today, he continues that work, in partnership with leading university research labs including the Entertainment Technology Center at CMU, the Media Convergence Lab at UCF and others. The goal is to explore new technologies that enable companies to create more compelling, authentic and relevant brand experiences.
David is a top-rated speaker, who has spoken on brand experiences, emerging technologies and the future of marketing in South America, the World Summit of Innovation & Entrepreneurship in Oman and across the country at industry events including GlobalShop, ARM Expo, PROMO Live, PMA, the Virginia Healthcare Marketing Association and many POPAI events. Clients who have hired David for speaking engagements have included MTV Networks, Nokia, GSK, Pepsi and Nike. David has also taught an eight-week class called Creating Consumer Brand Experiences at NYU. In addition, David is a contributor to Marketing at Retail and was featured in two recent books, Experience the Message by Max Lenderman and Living Brands by Raymond Nadeau.
David has combined theatrical training with a vast knowledge of technology to create new territories for marketers. He believes that it is not enough today to simply play with the latest technologies; we must understand their role in moving your brand story forward. Where Marshall McLuhan once said, "The medium is the message," today's world has now moved beyond that simple statement. Audiences today expect more then just to be wowed by how we send them the message. They want to be wowed by the message and they want to be wowed by the product as well!
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Amanda Richman
SVP, Director of Digital Services
MediaVest
As Director of Digital Services, Amanda Richman heads MediaVest's world-class digital team, leading product and capability oversight and strategic business for 20+ clients including Coca-Cola, Continental, Mattel, P&G, Wal-Mart and Wendy's. She oversees 90 digital professionals in New York and Los Angeles.
Amanda has established a well-earned reputation for motivating clients to embrace innovation in the digital space, garnering Advertising Age's "40 Under 40" recognition in 2006. Prior to her elevation, Amanda served as the Digital Group Client Director at MediaVest on P&G. In this role, she led the development of digital strategy, innovation and portfolio management for more than 100 P&G brands resulting in hundreds of unique digital programs across search and mobile, advanced television applications, social networks, online gaming, viral video and virtual worlds?work which was recognized with P&G's Global Media Innovation award in 2007.
Prior to joining MediaVest in 2005, Amanda held several senior development and management positions at The Interpublic Group's interactive firms including most recently VP, Account Director at Zentropy Partners. In this role, she helped drive business integration and marketing innovation across McCann-Erickson's key clients ― from launching Microsoft's Xbox Live online gaming service to developing an emerging-media process and programs for Johnson & Johnson.
Before Zentropy Partners, Amanda was Managing Director of Thunder House, where she managed interactive investments for an enviable client roster including Coca-Cola, Unilever, L'Oreal and MasterCard. The integration of creative and media context, client commitment to the digital space, as well as general health of the operations flourished under Amanda's watch.
Amanda also held a variety of marketing and business development positions at Time Warner, developing entertainment marketing programs for Warner Music Group, as well as new business efforts across emerging marketing channels, including The Full Service Network ? one of the first interactive television launches ? and Roadrunner broadband service.
As a senior officer within MediaVest's Digital unit, Amanda has a seat on the company's Executive Committee. She is Chairperson of the American Association of Advertising Agencies' Search Committee, an honorary Board of Directors member of the Mobile Marketing Association, and a member of Microsoft's Agency Advisory Council. She started her career at ad agency Young & Rubicam and was also Marketing Director of The Majestic Theatre, a multi-venue entertainment complex.
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Steve Rubel
SVP, Director of Insights
Edelman Digital
Steve Rubel, SVP, Director of Insights, is responsible for keeping Edelman Digital, Edelman and its clients in the vanguard. Rubel studies global technology and social trends and shapes actionable insights on how they will influence marketing communications.
In this role, Rubel serves as a strategic advisor to key clients. In addition, he supports the account planning processes, intellectual property development and the firm's innovation and business development efforts. He is a member of the Edelman Digital senior leadership committee.
Rubel's Micro Persuasion blog on digital trends (www.micropersuasion.com) has 50,000 daily readers and has been cited as a must-read by the Wall Street Journal, Forbes, CNET, PC Magazine and Forrester Research. He also writes a bi-weekly column for Advertising Age and is often sought by the press and as a speaker.
Prior to joining Edelman in 2006, Rubel worked for 15 years in a variety of marketing communications positions in corporate, non-profit and small/mid-sized PR firms. Most recently, he spent five years at CooperKatz & Company where he pioneered the use of blogs as a marketing vehicle for clients such as the Association of National Advertisers and Vespa.
Rubel hails from Long Island, New York, and is a graduate of Hofstra University.
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Herb Scannell
CEO
Next New Networks
Herb Scannell is CEO and co-founder of Next New Networks, a media company that is creating micro-television networks over the Internet for targeted communities united by a common interest. It has launched 16 networks in the past year ranging from three car networks to progressive politics, youth fashion and "green" culture.
Prior to Next New Networks as Vice Chairman of MTV Networks/ President of Nickelodeon Networks, Mr. Scannell oversaw all creative and business operations for a portfolio of brands and businesses for MTV Networks including Nickelodeon, the #1 rated network in cable TV for 10 years running, TV Land, the cable home of classic TV, and Spike TV, the first network for men. Additionally, Mr. Scannell was responsible for Nickelodeon's digital cable TV networks (including Noggin/the N), its robust online offerings and its successful feature film division. Mr. Scannell also led the Consumer Products division of Nickelodeon and Viacom, which under his watch grew into the third largest licensing business in the world.
Earlier in his career Mr. Scannell held various marketing and promotional positions in pay TV at The Movie Channel and Showtime. Mr. Scannell's career in media began at WHN Radio, a leading NY radio station where he led local marketing activities. He's a 1979 graduate of Boston College with a Bachelor of Arts and Sciences.
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Ian Schafer
CEO and Founder
Deep Focus
Ian Schafer, CEO and Founder of Deep Focus, has redefined the way brands and entertainment properties are marketed online, and actively promotes the idea that "interactive" is not just a medium ? it's a philosophy.
Deep Focus, OMMA Magazine's 2007 Media Planning & Buying Agency of the Year and winner of a 2007 Cannes Promo Lion, is a full-service, thought-leading interactive marketing agency and consultancy that boasts a client roster that includes some of the most recognizable names in entertainment, lifestyle and CPG brands, including: HBO, Glaceau, TruTV, MSG, Comedy Central, New Line Cinema, Picturehouse, CBS, Nike and Bacardi USA.
Under Ian's guidance, the agency has consistently crafted innovative, creative campaigns and promotions that are not only industry firsts, but raise the bar for the entire interactive industry worldwide. Deep Focus has been responsible for many memorable, award-winning campaigns over the years, and in addition to being named by AdAge as one of 2007's hottest indie interactive agencies, was most recently the recipient of a 2007 IAC award and two 2007 Webby Awards, including one for People's Choice.
Most recently tapped as an AdAge 2007 Media Maven, Ian is considered by many as the foremost expert in interactive marketing and social media solutions, and has been featured in a number of outlets including The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Advertising Age, Adweek, New York Magazine, Variety, CNN, and The Hollywood Reporter.
Ian is a graduate of The George Washington University and currently resides in New York City with his wife, Cheryl and dog, Mookie.
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Doug Scott
Sr. Partner & Executive Director, Ogilvy Entertainment
Ogilvy North America
Douglas Scott is Executive Director of Ogilvy Entertainment at Ogilvy North America, responsible for branded content initiatives for clients including IBM (Business of Innovation Series with CNBC and Mini-Documentaries with PGA, Scripps Institute, and others), Cisco, Unilever (Hellman's In Search of Real Food and Pond's The Starter Wife) and BP (Green Curve short films). Prior to Ogilvy, Douglas was Senior VP, NY General Manager at Bragman Nyman Cafarelli. In 2004, Scott launched MATTER, an entertainment marketing company that developed programs for Fortune 500 companies. Prior to MATTER, Doug was EVP, Branded Entertainment Creative Director at Hypnotic. Prior to Hypnotic, he was EVP, Sales & Marketing and General Manager of the Hollywood Stock Exchange. Scott is a boardmember of the National Association of Television Program Executives (NATPE) and Goal4.org, and is an advisor to the Action Sports Environmental Coalition (ASEC), Treehugger.com, and Desihits.com. He holds a B.S. in Economics from University of Maryland, College Park.
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Brian Steinberg
Television Editor
Advertising Age
Brian Steinberg is the Television Editor at Advertising Age, where he covers the big broadcast networks and broader changes in TV advertising. Prior to his arrival at Ad Age in May of 2007, he was the Advertising Columnist at The Wall Street Journal, a post he held since the Spring of 2003. He was the media business reporter at Dow Jones Newswires starting in 1998. During that time, he wrote and edited a weekly column on marketing. Over the years, his work has also appeared in the Boston Globe. Entrepreneur, The Washington Post and Chile Pepper.
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Bruce Stewart
Vice President and General Manager, Connected Life Americas
Yahoo!
Bruce Stewart is currently the Vice President and General Manager for Connected Life Americas with Yahoo! Inc. based at the company headquarters in Sunnyvale, CA. Mr. Stewart is responsible for a team in the Connected Life group that leads all strategic and business development activities in the Americas for Yahoo!'s broadband, mobile/wireless, digital home and PC desktop application businesses and partnerships. Prior to joining Yahoo!, Mr. Stewart served as Vice President and Senior Vice President with America Online, Inc. based in Dulles, Virginia outside Washington DC, and was responsible for all strategic and business development activities for the AOL low cost Access Group. Prior to this role, Mr. Stewart was SVP and General Manager of the AOL Strategic Business Solutions unit. Mr. Stewart joined AOL in April of 2002. Prior to joining AOL, Mr. Stewart served as the Executive Vice President, International, and the Managing Director of both Exodus Europe and Exodus Asia Pacific for Exodus Communications, Inc., as well as President and Director of its international subsidiaries. Prior to the acquisition of Globalcenter Inc. by Exodus Communications, Inc. in January 2001 for $3 billion, Mr. Stewart served as Executive Vice President of International and Corporate Development for Globalcenter Inc., a subsidiary of Global Crossing, Inc. From January 1993 until January 2000, Mr. Stewart served as Partner, Vice President & General Counsel and Executive Director of Communications with InterMedia Partners, then the nation's 9th largest broadband cable system operator and providing advanced cable communications services, high-speed Internet access and digital entertainment services. InterMedia Partners was sold in late 1999 to AT&T Broadband, Charter Communications & Insight Communications. From early 1991 to January 1993, Mr. Stewart served as legal counsel for Scholastic Productions, Inc., a subsidiary of Scholastic, Inc. based in New York, which develops, produces and distributes family programming to the network television, cable, feature film and home video markets, and manages a licensing and merchandising business. Mr. Stewart received a B.A. degree from Holy Cross College in 1986 and a J.D. from Case Western Reserve University Law School in 1990. Mr. Stewart currently lives with his wife and family near Washington, DC in Potomac, Maryland.
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Robert B. Stone
Director of Interactive & Emerging Media
Cadbury Schweppes Americas Beverages
Robert Stone is the director of interactive for Cadbury Schweppes Americas Beverages (CSAB), one of the world's leading beverage companies. In this role, he oversees all interactive strategy development, online media planning, and online creative development and production.
Robert joined CSAB in 2006 and served as a manager of interactive and has worked on online initiatives for well-known CSAB brands that include Dr Pepper, 7UP, Accelerade, and Sunkist Soda. Most recently, Robert worked on a viral video for the launch of Cherry Chocolate Diet Dr Pepper called 'Cherry Chocolate Rain' featuring Internet sensation Tay Zonday.
Robert began his career at Click Here, the interactive division of The Richards Group in Dallas, Texas where he worked on client such as Microsoft's Ensemble Studios, National Pork Board, Nokia, Nortel and Pergo Laminate Flooring.
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Joshua Stylman
Managing Partner
Reprise Media
As Managing Partner, Joshua oversees all aspects of the organization, from technology and product marketing to media management and sales. Joshua calls on more than a decade of experience in building and diversifying businesses in the digital economy.
Prior to co-founding Reprise Media, Joshua was vice president of Business Development & Syndication at Ask Jeeves (now Ask.com), a leading search engine, where he worked on extending Ask Jeeves' revenue streams through the development of partnerships with media and technology companies. Josh initially joined Ask Jeeves in April 1999 as the company's vice president of strategic partnerships, leading the initiative that moved the company's flagship web site, Ask.com, away from traditional banner ads and toward a more integrated advertising approach. Those programs were a key driver in his division's annual revenue growth from $500 thousand to $63 million. Before Ask Jeeves, Stylman was co-founder and President of Rotomedia, Inc., a boutique consulting and advertising firm for web marketers and publishers, which was acquired by Ask Jeeves in April 1999.
Along with Reprise Media managing partner Peter Hershberg, Joshua was recently named a finalist for the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award. His leadership was instrumental in Reprise Media being named to Entrepreneur Magazine's list of the 'Hot 100 Fastest Growing New Businesses in America' for the last two years.
Stylman has been cited in and has contributed to a number of publications, including The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, BusinessWeek, USA Today, Marketwatch, Advertising Age & Mediaweek. He is also a regular speaker and presenter at events including Ad-tech, Search Engine Strategies, OMMA and the Direct Marketing Association conferences & seminars.
Joshua received a BE in Sociology and History from Stonybrook University in New York. A world-class rotisserie baseball player, Joshua also sits on the board of Into the Outside, a non-profit organization focused on enriching the educational experiences of students through field-based activities.
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Danny Sullivan
Editor-in-Chief
Searchengineland.com
Widely considered a leading "search engine guru," Danny Sullivan has been helping webmasters, marketers and everyday web users understand how search engines work for over a decade.
Danny's expertise about search engines is often sought by the media, and he has been quoted in places like The Wall St. Journal, USA Today, The Los Angeles Times, Forbes, The New Yorker and Newsweek and ABC's Nightline. He writes a monthly column about search marketing for Ad Age.
Danny began covering search engines in late 1995, when he undertook a study of how they indexed web pages. The results were published online as "A Webmaster's Guide To Search Engines," a pioneering effort to answer the many questions site designers and Internet publicists had about search engines.
The positive reaction from both marketers and general search engine users caused Danny to expand the guide into Search Engine Watch, where he served as editor-in-chief through November 2006. Now he heads up Search Engine Land as editor-in-chief, taking it into the next generation of search coverage. Danny also serves as Third Door Media's chief content officer.
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Vince Thompson
Middleshift LLC
Vince Thompson has lead teams responsible for selling over one billion dollars in interactive advertising.
With his firm, Middleshift LLC, Vince and his partner Mark Chassman, help Internet companies build revenue by creating advertising solutions and scaling sales and business development efforts. Vince has helped launch advertising businesses for Napster, Break.com, StreetFire.net and Total Beauty as well as several early stage startups. His firm also provides strategic consultation to TVGuide.com and Spark Networks.
In the realm of original online programming Middleshift was involved in the launch of My Damn Channel and represents to marketers the original content for the web created by Michael Eisner's Vuguru. After the success of Prom Queen, Vuguru and Middleshift are following up this spring with The-All-For-Nots.
Prior to his consultancy, Vince led sales teams at AOL for seven years. Starting in 1998 as the Director of Western Sales he went on to help launch AOL's first sales training and leadership organization as AOL's Vice President of Capability.
As Regional Vice President of AOL Media Networks, he built AOL's Los Angeles office into a marketing powerhouse that brought advertising and branded entertainment solutions to Automakers, Entertainment Companies and other National Marketers.
Earlier in his career he worked in sales and business development for Third Age Media and before that managed local television station sales forces.
Vince Thompson has spoken for the AAAA's, NAB, AMA and written the "Selling Interactive Media" chapter in the widely used, Iowa Press Text "Media Selling". He holds an undergraduate degree in Communications from The University of Southern California's Annenberg School of Communications and a Masters in Business Administration from Pepperdine University's Graziadio School of Business.
His first business book, "Ignited: Managers, Light up Your Company and Career for More Power, More Purpose and More Success" is available now on FT Press. To learn more about his book and his mission visit, www.BeIgnited.com.
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Mike Vorhaus
Senior Vice President and Managing Director
Frank N. Magid Associates
Mike Vorhaus, Senior Vice President and Managing Director, founded the Magid Internet and New Media research and consultation practice in 1995, with AOL and Excite as his first two clients. Mike's team has completed over 2,500 engagements with over 100 Internet clients. Mike began the Magid Gaming Practice in 2001 with EA and Sony Online as his first two clients. The Magid Game Practice now works with most of the major game publishers. Mike provides research and consulting services to a number of major traditional media companies in regard to their new media initiatives, as well as consulting a number of leading Internet and gaming companies. He has also provided advice to venture capital and private equity firms in regard to investments in the media space. Mike has been involved in strategic and tactical consulting, including the launch of new services and programming, as well as development and implementation of online and offline marketing programs. Mike has also been extensively involved in video and PC gaming strategies for a number of our companies, as well as the development of game concepts. Mike has consulted on a number of film projects such as You've Got Mail and The Matrix. He holds a B.S. in psychology and sociology from Wesleyan University and has worked as a fundraiser and transfer of technology officer at the California Institute of Technology and the University of California. Mike also worked for the U.S. House of Representatives, The U.S. Senate, and for two Administrations in the White House
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Damon Wayans
Founder
WayoutTV.com
An outrageous cueball-domed comedian of film and TV satire fortified by a dazzling, sly smile, New York-born Damon Wayans was the third of ten children born to a grocery store manager and a social worker and grew up humbly in the Fulton Housing Projects. He began zeroing in on his comedic skills while still a child, conjuring up a number of weird characters that were later utilized on his older brother Keenen Ivory Wayans' ground-breaking "In Living Color" (1990), the show that made Damon a huge comedy star.
Known throughout the world for his no-holds-barred comedic genius, Wayans recently wrapped five seasons of the hit ABC series My Wife and Kids, which he co-created and executive produced. Currently in syndication, the series received numerous awards, including the 2002 People's Choice for Favorite New Television Comedy Series, and Favorite Male Performer in a New Television Series for his portrayal as patriarch Michael Kyle.
Wayans is most fondly remembered for his three seasons as writer and co-star on the Emmy Award-winning series In Living Color. There, he made characters like "Homey the Clown," "Handiman" and "Men on Film" household names. His writing for the series earned him two personal Emmy nominations.
Additional television credits include the half-hour Fox sitcom Damon, in which he starred and executive produced, and the hour-long drama 413 Hope Street, which was nominated for a People's Choice Award. He served as an executive producer on Waynehead, a Saturday morning animated cartoon for the WB, which featured the voices of his siblings, Kim, Marlon and Shawn Wayans.
On the big screen, Wayans starred most recently in Spike Lee's critically acclaimed film Bamboozled. He just completed work on Harlem Aria, an independent film in which he starred and executive produced. Other feature film credits include starring roles in Major Payne, Blankman and Mo Money, which he also wrote and executive produced, The Great White Hype, Celtic Pride, The Last Boy Scout, Earth Girls Are Easy, I'm Gonna Git You Sucka, Colors, Punchline, Hollywood Shuffle, Roxanne, Beverly Hills Cop.
Wayans has also enjoyed tremendous accolades for his success in stand-up. After starting his career in 1982 touring the comedy club circuit, he landed a role as a featured player on the famed NBC series Saturday Night Live. Wayans went on to star in his own critically acclaimed HBO specials, One Night Stand, The Last Stand? and Still Standing.
Wayans is also a talented author. In 1999, he penned "Bootleg," a humorous compilation of his observations on family, children, marriage and politics. The book was a tremendous success and quickly hit the New York Times Bestseller List.
He recently launched the comedy website WayoutTV.com. WayoutTV.com is the brain-child of Damon Wayans and is designed as an incubator to develop innovative television shows for the internet which will include: comedy, drama, action, reality, and animation. A creative haven for up and coming writers, directors, producers, actors and musical talent, WayoutTV.com will seek out and nurture the vision of these young artists. Unlike MySpace and YouTube, Mr. Wayans will work with these artists to develop original content. By creating a turn-key operation for the Hollywood community of the future, WayoutTV.com will produce weekly programming.
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Jeremy Wright
Global Director, Mobile Brand Strategy
Nokia Interactive
Jeremy Wright is Global Director, Mobile Brand Strategy, of Nokia Interactive.
He was previously Co-Founder and CMO of Enpocket, the mobile advertising technology and services company acquired by Nokia in October 2007.
At Enpocket, Jeremy also served two years as Chairman of the UK Mobile Marketing Association (MMA), where he led development of the first comprehensive code of conduct for the mobile marketing industry. He currently serves on the North American Board of the MMA.
Jeremy was previously Marketing Director and subsequently Managing Director of Engage Europe, the online media sales, analytics and technology company.
Jeremy brings 20 years' experience in publishing, broadcasting, ad agencies and online to the mobile medium.
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Troy Young
CMO
VideoEgg
Troy Young began his work in interactive media in 1992 when he worked on the launch and management of the first newspaper-owned online service in Canada. Prior to joining VideoEgg, Troy served as EVP, chief experience officer at Organic, one of the world's leading digital marketing agencies. Troy spent his first three years with the company building the Canada office. Prior to joining Organic, Troy was a co-founder and managing director of Vickers & Benson Direct, Interactive (now Arnold Worldwide). He is a graduate of the Queen's University Business School.
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Natalie Zmuda
Reporter
Advertising Age
Natalie Zmuda is responsible for covering retail and non-alcoholic beverages at Ad Age. She covers both markets on a daily basis, analyzing the latest marketing trends, interviewing the decision makers and reporting on breaking news. Prior to joining Ad Age, Natalie spent five years at Conde Nast Publications, where she held the positions of Retail Editor and Associate News Editor at Footwear News. She has also been a Contributing Editor to Women's Wear Daily Accessories. Natalie has a degree in Magazine Journalism from Ohio University's E.W. Scripps School of Journalism. She resides with her husband in Brooklyn, NY.
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Jeff Zucker
President and CEO
NBC Universal
Jeff Zucker was named president and chief executive officer of NBC Universal in February 2007. With annual revenues of more than $16 billion, NBC Universal is one of the world's leading media and entertainment content companies, with unparalleled expertise in the development, production, and marketing of entertainment, news, and information to a global audience across a variety of distribution platforms.
Zucker had served since December 2005 as chief executive officer of the NBC Universal Television Group. In this role, he was responsible for the strategic development and operations of NBC Universal's extensive portfolio of broadcast and cable television networks, which accounts for two-thirds of the company's overall revenues.
Zucker has had a diversified 20-year career with NBC as a producer and business leader. He served as president of the NBC Universal Television Group from May 2004 until December 2005. Before that, he was president of the Entertainment, News & Cable Group since December 2003, and president of NBC Entertainment since December 2000. Before taking the helm of NBC Entertainment, Zucker spent nearly eight years as the executive producer of NBC News' Today.
During Zucker's tenure as head of NBC Entertainment, NBC's primetime, late-night, and daytime lineups all finished first in the key adults 18-49 demographic category for three consecutive seasons?a feat unmatched by any other network. Under his leadership at Today, the program was the nation's most-watched morning news show and the most profitable program on television. Zucker has also served as executive producer of NBC's coverage of several major events, including the "Decision 2000" election night broadcast, the 1993 and 1997 presidential inaugurations, and the Persian Gulf War.
Zucker was appointed executive producer of Today in January 1992 at age 26, which made him the youngest executive producer in the history of the program. He also served as executive producer of NBC Nightly News with Tom Brokaw in February and March 1993, a post held concurrently with his role at Today.
Zucker joined NBC in 1986 as a researcher for NBC Sports' coverage of the 1988 Summer Olympic Games in Seoul, South Korea. From 1986 to 1988, he traveled the world, compiling and writing background information for NBC Sports commentators and producers. He joined NBC News as a field producer for Today in January 1989.
A five-time Emmy Award winner, Zucker graduated from Harvard College in 1986 with a bachelor's degree in American history. He served as president of The Harvard Crimson from 1985 to 1986. He and his wife, Caryn, live in New York with their four children.
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Mat Zucker
VP, Executive Creative Director
Agency.com
Mat leads Agency.com's New York creative department of about 30 creative directors, art directors, copywriters, information architects, designers and developers. His current clients include British Airways, CIT, LG Electronics, Snickers and Del Monte Foods.
Previously, Mat was executive creative director at R/GA for Subaru and Johnson & Johnson, leading digital work for Acuvue, Clean & Clear, Johnson's Baby, Splenda and Viactiv.
At OgilvyOne worldwide in New York for six years, Mat was senior partner, group creative director for Cisco Systems, American Express, Ameritrade, Andersen, and The US Office of National Drug Control Policy.
Mat has worked across media channels, including advertising, promotion, direct and digital. He is among the earliest advertising creatives who emigrated to the Web, designing the first corporate sites and some of the earliest successful online marketing. Mat has helped pioneered brands in emerging media, including video and podcasting.
He has won numerous industry awards, including the London International Advertising Awards, The ADDYs, the CASIE and the WPP Atticus Award.
Mat graduated from Cornell and started as a copywriter at Foote Cone & Belding.