Major European Online Video Event Adds Further Strings to Its Bow

OXFORD, U.K.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The newly-expanded Streaming Media Europe (London, 14 & 15 October) publishes its full event programme this week with an impressive line-up of events and speakers representing organisations at the forefront of the European online video scene.

“Content-wise we face the same challenges TV has faced with the growth of reality TV. The cost of production is falling so what is high quality content actually worth? Why can't everything be UGC? How do content producers add value?”

Speakers from Adobe, Akamai, Amazon, BBC, BT, Football Association, GlaxoSmithKline, Microsoft, Project Canvas and more take part in a range of parallel events, including 3 major conferences, 5 Master Class workshops, and a free-entry Expo, ensuring that Streaming Media Europe provides something for everyone either using, producing or evaluating online video for their business today.

Keynotes across the events include:

Anthony Rose, CTO, Project Canvas
Steve Plunkett, Director of Customer Innovation, Red Bee Media
David Mendels, President & COO, Brightcove
Beat Knecht, CEO, Zattoo
Sian Baldwin, Director of Broadband & Content Services, BT

During a busy summer, Streaming Media Europe - Europe’s only event to focus 100% on the business and technology of online video – caught up with some of the European industry’s well-known players to find out what’s hot and what’s overhyped in online video right now.

Phil Haggar, Director, Twofour Digital:

What's hot? “From my perspective, I'd push HTML5 right up to the top. We are getting a lot of interest and a lot of confusion around it. With Apple's 'downer' on Flash, HTML5 is really stirring things up.”

What's overhyped? “The death of TV: it isn't dead or dying. It is just changing.”

What's next? “I'm optimistic that, with the increase in broadband speeds, the business of streaming to consumers will become more profitable as content becomes more watchable and a viable alternative to TV. As peer to peer becomes even more prevalent, broadcasters and content producers will explore different business models, for example 'crowd patronage', where viewers can donate towards their favourite shows. The technology of streaming will become less and less interesting and relevant and more and more of a commodity.”

John O'Donovan, Chief Technical Architect, BBC Future Media & Technology:

“HTML5 is a hot topic, but it is also the most overhyped topic. The standard isn't even set yet and I have no plans to move off Flash at the moment though I am delivering iPad and iPhone compatible content as well as Flash.

“DRM continues to be a hot topic and so is IPTV - another contender for most over-hyped, but with the approval of CANVAS which will set a standard for IPTV likely to go global, it's time is coming.”

Dom Robinson, Principal, D2 Consulting:

What's hot? “I think VP8/HTML5 look set to be the most important developments in streaming media in the next five years.”

What’s overhyped? “'http' streaming: it's often NOT http, it just shares the same port, and it doesn't scale any better than any other unicast. I also think Flash has had its day. So has Silverlight. The browsers will 'go native' with video in the next 18 months and the back end systems serving these will be standard 'web' servers.”

Jake Ward, BroadView:

What lies ahead? “Content-wise we face the same challenges TV has faced with the growth of reality TV. The cost of production is falling so what is high quality content actually worth? Why can't everything be UGC? How do content producers add value?

“The most overhyped topic right now, for me, is Apple vs. Flash. Despite all the punditry it is the consumer who will decide, despite what a lot of online columnists would like to think!”

The full event programme for Streaming Media Europe - and its brand new featured events, Content Delivery Summit and Online Video Strategies – is available now at www.streamingmediaglobal.com/europe along with details of generous discounts for colleagues and early bird registrants.

Editor’s Notes

Press passes for all Streaming Media Europe’s 2010 events are limited. To be considered for a press pass, apply early at: www.streamingmediaglobal.com/conference/2010/PressZone.aspx

Streaming Media Europe 2010 – Conference & Expo
14 & 15 October (workshops 13 October)

Online Video Strategies Conference
14 & 15 October

Content Delivery Summit
13 October

Novotel London West, London, UK
www.streamingmediaglobal.com/europe

Press enquiries to:

E [e-mail] T [phone]

• Taking place annually in London, last year’s Streaming Media Europe welcomed 1,015 attendees from 41 countries, an increase of 32% on 2008.
• Streaming Media Europe is produced by Information Today, a global publishing and conference house, and providers of:

  www.streamingmedia.com and www.streamingmediaglobal.com, world-class news and resources used by over 150,000 global digital media professionals each month, and providing daily and weekly desktop-delivered news, through Dan Rayburn and Eric Schumacher-Rasmussen’s industry blogs, as well as a range of free-subscription enewsletters.
  
  Streaming Media magazine – European edition is published four times a year, the magazine provides news, analysis, case studies and reviews for some 10,000 readers each issue. The Autumn 2010 issue is now available on free subscription to qualified readers at: www.streamingmediaglobal.com/Subscribe/