iLunch 7.03 - Mobile Content: What will 2009 hold for Content Creators and Carriers alike?

If you dream of creating the next “killer app” for mobile phones consider this: the iPhone app fund rejects 99.8% of applicants. In a six-month period over 2,700 plans were received. Out of that group, only five companies were funded.

According to a recent Jupiterresearch/Forrester research report, mobile TV adoption is now at just 1%, and interest in all types of mobile TV is just over half what it was in 2006.

And Yahoo tech reported that a wave of economic gloom is set to hit mobile phone buyers (in 2009), with a growing number of analysts expecting the once-buoyant market to shrink for the first time since the 2001 crash.

But against this backdrop of doom and gloom, content creators gain ground as mobile technology continues to flourish, while carriers and other traditional gatekeepers of mobile content give way to new distribution opportunities.

Drawing on the experience of each of our panelists, iLunch 7.03 will explore:

- the types of mobile content that have been most successful to-date
- the best businesses to be in: mobile content creation, platforms or distribution
- distribution methods, partnerships and monetization strategies that have been most successful in this space
- the role of private investors or venture capitalists

Panelists for this session include:

•    Simon Foster, Vice President, Business Development, GlassBOX Television Inc
•    David Bazak, Sr. Relationship Manager, Media & Entertainment, RBC Royal Bank of Canada
•    Mark Hyland, VP, Marketing, QuickPlay Media
•    McLean Mashingaidze-Greaves, CEO/Founder, The Nimble Company

 Moderated by: Thomas Purves, Tech Strategist and Entrepreneur

> Members $40 + GST ($50 at the door)
> Non-Members $50 + GST ($75 at the door)

GST # 87997 5613 RT0001 

The Gladstone Hotel, Main Ballroom. 1214 Queen Street West, Toronto, Ontario.

Schedule:

11:30 Registration
11:45 Lunch
12:15 Introductory remarks
12:20 Panel discussion
13:30 Q & A session
13:55 Final remarks
14:00 Post-event networking

Simon Foster, Vice President, Business Development, GlassBOX Television Inc.
Simon leads the digital property development and digital content distribution strategy at GlassBOX Television. As Vice President of Strategic Development at Snap Media, Canada’s leading interactive entertainment agency, Simon led the development of digital business strategies for clients such as CHUM, CBC, and CTV. As Director, Business Development at QuickPlay Media, Simon developed content revenue streams and strategies on mobile devices for key clients such as Research in Motion (RIM), and XM Radio USA. Simon is a graduate of the London School of Economics.

David Bazak, Sr. Relationship Manager, Media & Entertainment, RBC Royal Bank of Canada
David Bazak is a Senior Manager with Royal Bank's Media and Entertainment team. David's role includes structuring the following senior credit facilities for clients: operating loans, term loans, tax credit financings, lease financings, acquisition financings, and letters of guarantee. David joined Royal Bank after completing an MBA with the Richard Ivey School of Business in London, Ontario. David was previously an economist with the federal Department of Finance in Ottawa.

Mark Hyland, VP, Marketing, QuickPlay Media
Mark Hyland is vice president of marketing at QuickPlay Media, where he
oversees product, communications and channel/partner marketing programs.
A successful entrepreneur and media industry expert, Hyland serves on
the dotMobi Advisory Group (MAG) Steering Committee where he is co-vice
chair of the MAG Mobile Multimedia Content taskforce, and is a frequent
speaker at mobile industry events.

McLean Mashingaidze-Greaves, CEO/Founder, The Nimble Company
The NIMBLE Company signals McLean's return into new media entrepreneurialism, after producing 300+ episodes of music, variety & interactive public broadcasting. Prior to his recent foray in television, MMG was an internet content pioneer in New York City where he founded the urban dotcom company VMI.

Thomas Purves, Tech Strategist and Entrepreneur
Thomas Purves is a tech strategist and entrepreneur living in Toronto. Tom has nearly a decade of experience as a designer of leading products for Canada's online banking, e-commerce, and m-commerce industries. Tom is also a widely read blogger on the topics of wireless and web technology, business strategy and policy. 

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