Summit Addresses Distribution on the Small Screen

Anyone interested in either creating or distributing TV content to mobile devices such as cell phones or PDAs will be interested in attending the day-long Mobile TV & Video Summit at the NAB Show on April 15.

With advertising directed toward mobile delivery rapidly becoming mainstream, this conference will focus on the tremendous potential of branded entertainment and product placement that is crafted specifically for small, portable screens.

“A lot of media companies are starting to understand there is now a third platform they need to take into serious consideration,” said Ethan Dreilinger, news director for CBS Mobile News, one of the session’s panelists. “They have their broadcasting model working smoothly and their Web products under control, but now this new option of mobile TV delivery is providing an additional outlet for them. Mobile TV is not a Web experience any more than it is just a small TV experience. Mobile TV provides a new option that will provide viewers with a watching experience that is unique from any other.”

The Mobile TV & Video Summit will delve into the ways multinational organizations can promote their campaigns by transcending geographic limitations to reach audiences they could never attract before. In addition to discussing new architectures for free distribution services along with subscription models, the session will also look into the benefits of competing standards such as MediaFLO and DVB-H when it comes to repurposing content to serve this rapidly emerging format.

“People need to understand that in order to maximize mobile TV’s new kind of user experience, the programming it provides has to be tailored to its standalone requirements,” Dreilinger said. “This involves different creative approaches and technical parameters than those used by broadcasters.”

As the all-day session will demonstrate by reviewing data about the consumer adoption of mobile TV both in the U. S. and abroad, part of the attraction of mobile TV content creation and delivery is that it will allow both media and consumer brands to extend themselves into new markets with a combination of programming indigenous to mobile TV while also synchronizing their campaigns with broadcast and broadband outlets. The field is evolving so rapidly that only a session such as the Mobile TV & Video Summit can provide the most current late-breaking ideas driving its success.

“Although this market is still in its infancy, the popularity of downloading TV programming to iPhones has already proved that mobile TV has the potential to become a highly viable income stream,” said Michael Stroud, chairman of the session and CEO of iHollywood Forum, which is co-producing this event with NAB. “This Mobile TV & Video Summit is geared toward anyone who is creating or distributing digital video content and is interested in the way they can benefit from the new technologies that can move it onto new mobile platforms.”