Interactive Ontario

iLunch 8.03

Starts: February 26, 2010 - Ends: February 26, 2010

Bootstrapping. Venture dollars. Tax credits. Public funding. What are companies within the Interactive Digital Media sector utilizing, and what is their approach to developing their companies and properties?

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Featured speakers included:

Jennifer Blitz Director Tax Credits and Financing - OMDC	Jennifer Blitz has served as the Director of Tax Credits at the Ontario Media Development Corporation since October 2006. She began her tenure with the OMDC as a Team Leader in the Tax Credits Department in 2004 managing a team of analysts. Before joining the OMDC, Jennifer was a policy advisor for the former Minister of Culture, David Tsubouchi, conducting consultations with stakeholders and briefing the Minister on policy proposals. Jennifer is a lawyer by training, having worked at the law firm of McCarthy T�trault. She received her LL.B. from Osgoode Hall Law School.
John Cho Director Transaction Services, Toronto KPMG	As a Director in our Transaction Services practice, John is responsible for the execution and coordination of our transaction services offerings to both domestic and international clients. Prior to KPMG, John spent five years as the Director of Finance & Corporate Development of a Canadian videogame software publisher. In this role, he assisted the company on acquisition activities such as identifying and assessing acquisition opportunities, performing due diligence and executing on post- acquisition integration. John was an integral part of the company�s IPO process in addition to several private capital financing transactions. John also had oversight of the Company�s finance function in this role (both the Toronto and Paris, France offices). John has also worked in the mergers & acquisitions group of a corporate finance dealer, advising companies on acquisition and divestiture mandates, in addition to IPO advisory projects. John�s clients at KPMG have included Research In Motion, Rogers Communications, Cinram International, Teachers� Private Capital, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board, Tricor Capital, ONCAP, Birch Hill Equity Partners, and Macquarie.
Nathon Gunn CEO Social Game Universe	Nathon co-founded Bitcasters, Citytv Interactive and Miramax New Media. Has a degree in film and new media from Ryerson University. Innovations: 1994 backstage Grammys Webcast, first e-CDs for BMG, first major-label secure digital music format for Universal and early user-generated content initiative Bitcast.com. He�s won awards for games played 300+ million times, films and music videos and has spoken at Harvard, the BBC Labs and the Banff Centre. He ran �Net strategy for the former Canadian Prime Minister and is a fellow at Queen�s University�s Centre for the Study of Democracy and a Director of the Ontario Media Development Corporation. His latest venture, Social Game Universe (backed by visionaries like Michael Cohl and Moses Znaimer) is launching some of the most innovative ways to play with friends on social networks.
Ted Werth Business Consultant, Injenius Projects	Ted Werth is a business consultant specializing in the creation of business plans, financial projections, and growth strategies for start-ups and early-stage companies. Ted is currently a partner in and advisor to Original Sin Hard Cider, a premium alcoholic beverage currently distributed throughout the East Coast, and g-NET, an independent production company specializing in videogame-related programming for television, DVD, VOD, and the Internet. Other current or recent injenius projects include: VAS Entertainment (Action Sports Film Distributor), Snow Beverages (Sparkling Mint Beverage), Hoebel Fitness (Fitness Classes, TV, and DVDs), Openhouse (Real Estate Sales and Marketing). Ted is a graduate of the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School of Business.