In this Master Class, produced by the MPEG Industry Forum (MPEGIF), Television service providers, network operators and content owners will exchange their views on the changes in technologies, business models and regulatory framework that are fundamentally changing the way digital multimedia is created, compressed, stored, delivered and monetized. IP (Internet Protocol) is clearly the enabling technology that is finally creating the converged information delivery infrastructure bringing compelling personalized viewing experiences to the viewers. However, numerous and fundamental questions surround the route of transition from the conventional services enjoyed today and the way in which operators and content owners can get the best return from their investment.

This Master Class of 2008 will provide information to help organizations from all sectors make important decisions with service operators that have been adopting new video technologies over recent years sharing their experiences to date. MPEGIF places great emphasis on this being an interactive Master Class in which lively debates are expected and audience participation is encouraged. Industry experts representing the most influential players in next generation television and video entertainment, multimedia and standards-based video delivery exchange their views on trends and technologies that are changing the way digital multimedia is consumed today and in the future. The use of Internet Protocol (IP) is, of course, at the heart of the unicast services of the web. As broadband data rates have become increasingly common both in terms of pricing and bandwidth, IP delivered video over these broadband services have grown increasingly popular offering a freedom of choice never before seen in the television domain. However, the link in the home between the internet connection and the TV remains elusive despite numerous attempts to bring internet video to the TV.

2008 is seeing some very real opportunities to see how the walled garden approach will withstand credible competition from “over the top TV”. Regardless of how they are delivered TV services need to be simple to the point of being truly plug and play. How will this barrier of technical simplicity be achieved? Another key factor addressed by this Master Class is the questions surrounding business models and the monetization of these new services. As more content is delivered asynchronously the potential revenue loss from ad skipping becomes massive. How can targeted advertising and revenues from other advanced services reverse this trend and what infrastructural, commercial or regulatory barriers still remain to achieving these?

The legal and regulatory world will have an enormous impact on the balance between the walled garden operators and broadband delivered content. Already certain cable broadband operators are experimenting with tariffs based on bandwidth use. How will a metered last mile affect this balance and will “net neutrality” ever become a reality? IP technology is the driving force behind the creation and emergence of a new ecosystem with new video and audio codecs, new middleware and content protection methods and completely new viewing experiences. Service operators adopting these new video technologies will share their experiences to date as they deploy these new services around the world.

This Master Class is the latest in a series of events focused on these topics and follows the hugely successful Master Classes staged by MPEGIF at NAB and IBC over the past 4 years.

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PROGRAM

10:00 – 10:10 a.m.

Introduction and Welcome

Sebastian Moeritz -- President, MPEGIF / CEO, dicas
David Price -- Vice President, MPEGIF/ Vice President, Harmonic

10:10 – 10:40 a.m.

Keynote 1:

Yun Chao Hu, Chairman, Open IPTV Form/Ericsson

10:40 – 11:30 a.m.

Roundtable Panel 1: How Tomorrow's TV might look ... Differences & Progress

There is a good understanding of the status quo of today’s Television experience and its immediate future. But does the path from today indeed lead to the powerful personalized video experience promised in a full unicast world? From whom, where and how will consumers receive their television services? Will a new breed of super operators emerge? How will over-the-top providers, telcos, cable operators and traditional broadcasters feature in this scenario of tomorrow? How will content be delivered to and be distributed within customer homes?

Moderator Sebastian Moeritz – Pesident, MPEGIF/CEO dicas
Speakers Yun Chao Hu, Chairman, Open IPTV Form Helmut Leopold, Director Platform and Technology Management, Telekom Austria Dr. Glenn Craib, CTO, NXVision (Presentation) Peter Guglielmino, CTO, Media & Entertainment Group, IBM Huw Price-Stephens, Director of Marketing and Strategic Business Development, Amino Communications (Presentation)

11:30 – 12:00 p.m.

Keynote 2:

Kay Johansson, CTO, MobiTV,

12:00 – 12:50 p.m.

Roundtable Panel 2: The Status of Enabling Technology ... Status Report

While a lot of the world is already receiving unicast information in the form of email and internet, the vast majority of the world is still viewing television based on a system substantially unchanged from 50 years ago. What are the key parts of the puzzle that are needed to create the new television experience and where are those pieces of technology -- are they still in PowerPoint or already in mass production? What challenges are preventing existing next generation technologies to be coherently implemented into new services offering or into the migration of these services? What needs to be done in order to ensure a smooth integration of these key parts to take maximum advantage of, and capitalize on, current enabling technologies? Are open international standards still the recipe for success as seen with MPEG-4 AVC/H.264 now being virtually ubiquitous as the next generation video compression technology?

Moderator David Price – Vice Pesident, MPEGIF/Vice President, Harmonic Inc
Speakers Kay Johansson, CTO, MobiTV Marco Fumagalli, Lead IPTV Video System Engineering Group, Fastweb Labs (Presentation) Clyde Smith, SVP Global Broadcast Trechnology & Standards, Turner Broadcasting Systems Bob Wilson, Vice President, Motorola (Presentation) Marty Picco, VP Systems and Technology, Harmonic Inc

12:50 – 1:30 p.m.

Lunch

1:30 – 2:00 p.m.

Welcome Back, MPEGIF Awards/News and Prize Drawing

David Price -- Vice President, MPEGIF/ Vice President, Harmonic
Sebastian Moeritz -- President, MPEGIF / CEO, dicas

11:30 – 12:00 p.m.

Keynote 2:

Thomas Staneker, Executive VP, T-COM

2:30 – 3:20 p.m.

Roundtable Panel 3: Show Me the Money ... Business Models & ROI

Whether it is Mobile TV television (in its various forms), Web/Internet TV, SD and HD Television delivered as IPTV over (x)DSL or cable, the jury is still out on how to actually run a profitable business based on these various forms of next generation Television. Is, for example, the transition to a click through type of advertising model going to pave the way for this transition or will subscribers actually pay more for a richer experience? What impact will the financing of the capital expenditure required have - especially when it comes to the acquisition and deployment of next generation customer premises equipment or the migration to it? Which are the business models most likely to deliver acceptable ROIs ensuring recurring revenues and customer retention? Which are the main drivers for consumers? Is it the attractiveness of a richer consumption experience or the convenience of bundled services - or is it all down to price?

Moderator Sebastian Moeritz – Pesident, MPEGIF/CEO dicas
Speakers Thomas Staneker, Executive VP, T-Com Alvaro Gazzolo, President & CEO, IPTV America Tiaan Schutte, General Manager - Software Service Platform, Thomson (Presentation) Robin Wilson, VP Business Development, Nagravision Gary Schultz, President/Principal Analyst, Multimedia Research Group Inc. (Presentation)

3:20 – 3:50 p.m.

Keynote 4:

Satish Menon, Chief Architect, Yahoo Media Group (Presentation)

3:50 – 4:40 p.m.

Roundtable Panel 4: The Role of the Internet Television

According to wwiTV.com there are 2683 television channels available on line from over 140 countries. Internet Television is booming and many younger viewers are showing a marked preference for taking their television entertainment on their laptops from online sources including social sites and from sites like YouTube. In addition, the programmers are welcoming the opportunity to re-establish the relationship directly with the viewer rather than having an affiliate intermediary own that relationship. This represents a change of seismic proportions in the traditional television distribution model. How will the various interests re-combine? Will over the top (OTT) internet television be squeezed out by last mile operators or will a collaborative revenue sharing business model emerge?

Moderator David Price – Vice Pesident, MPEGIF/Vice President, Harmonic In
Speakers Dr. Satish Menon, Chief Architect, Yahoo Media Group William Cooper, Founder & Principal Consultant, informitv Andy Mathieson, Director, Latens (Presentation) Rick Sizemore, Chief Strategy & Business Development, MultiMedia Intelligence (Presentation) Dr. Robert Strebkowski, Professsor, Technical University of Applied Sciences Berlin