JPA presents its views on the future of consumer
entertainment devices - what features will they have and how
will users interact with them?
9:00 - 10:30
Panel One - Boxes Galore: What Qualifies as a Digital
Entertainment Box?
In an era where just about anything in a box is called
entertainment hardware, how do companies assess what really
is a Digital Entertainment Box? Can and should a box do
everything? Does the market really want all-purpose hardware?
Should companies focus on one feature or task or should they
build everything boxes? Do consumers really want to interact
with their entertainment or should boxes simply be delivery
devices?
Paul McCormick, Product Marketing Manager, National Semiconductor
10:30 - 10:50
Morning Networking Break
10:50 - 12:20
Panel Two - Deep Inside the Box: What Features and Functions
are Required?
At the heart of Digital Entertainment Boxes we find a
wonderful mix of innovative technologies, but do consumers
really want all those features? Will they play games on a
set-top box? Does gaming functionality on a DVD player really
entice users to pay more? Do people really want to check
their email on TV? How quickly will the costs of additional
features decline, allowing greater functionality and
multi-purpose devices?
Bo Wu, President & CEO, EnReach Technologies, Inc.
Panel 3 - Next Generation Boxes: What's in Store for Future
Devices? - Part I
These days we see PVR technology in cable and satellite
set-top boxes, game processors in DVD players and STBs, and
DVD playback in game consoles. What will they think of next?
What new functionality will come to the STB? Will PC features
continue the drive into the living room or is there a limit
to what people want? What TV functionality will be integrated
into Entertainment PCs? When will media rich entertainment go
wireless?
Neil Trevett, Senior Vice President Business
Development, 3DLabs
Dan Vivoli, Senior Vice President, Marketing, Nvidia
Andrew Wallace, Senior VP, WW Marketing, Pace Micro
Technology
Tom Carhart, Senior VP of Corporate Strategy, ReplayTV
Panel 4 - Next Generation Boxes: What's in Store for Future
Devices? - Part II
A continuation of our look into the future of the Digital
Entertainment Box, addressing some of the same questions as
Part I, but extending that discussion as well. These days we
see PVR technology in cable and satellite set-top boxes, game
processors in DVD players and STBs, and DVD playback in game
consoles. What will they think of next? What new
functionality will come to the STB? Will PC features continue
the drive into the living room or is there a limit to what
people want? What TV functionality will be integrated into
Entertainment PCs? When will media rich entertainment go
wireless?
Phil Eisler, Vice President, Convergence Products Group, ATI Technologies,
Inc.
Mark Samuel, Marketing Director Digital Video, Interactive, Philips
Keith Jack, Director of Product Marketing, Sigma Designs
Presentation: Kathleen Maher - The path to convergence and the forces of entropy -- there are no slam dunks
JPA will present its views about some of the trends we've been seeing over the past year as various companies take their own approach to convergence. Each product and new idea takes us closer to a vague ideal of digital entertainment, but a real market with real revenues remains elusive.
9:00 - 10:30
Panel One - Let the Games Begin: Can Game Consoles Survive in
the Everything Box Era?
The game console industry has introduced generations of
consumers to the idea that entertainment can and should be
and interactive pursuit. With the onslaught of devices that
contain media processors and competition from many different
game-playing devices, how will the game console survive? Does
the console hardware upgrade cycle have to compress to
compete? How are game developers coping with the plethora of
devices today and on the horizon?
David Lau-Kee, CEO, Criterion
David Collier, Creative Director, Applications & Services Division, PacketVideo
Jay Jaisimha, Director, Consumer Appliances Division, RealNetworks, Inc.
Alex McGregor, Vice President Marketing & Sales, Synovial
10:30 - 10:50
Morning Networking Break
10:50 - 12:20
Panel Two - Broadband Everywhere: Boxes are Nowhere Without
The Network
High-end Digital Entertainment Boxes require ample bandwidth
to make their magic work. We've all seen the staggering
progress made in the last decade in the construction of
broadband networks but what is the current status of
broadband access? How much of the country and the world is
wired and how many consumers actually have access? How many
use broadband to its fullest potential and what's required to
make this happen?
Rob Glidden, Market Development Manager, Broadband and Digital Media, Sun Microsystems
Yaron Simler, President, Convergent Systems, Harmonic, Inc.
Lisa Farris, Senior Vice President, Market Development, Universal Music Group-eLabs
Jim Clardy, Strategic Alliances Manager, Multimedia Systems Division,
Motorola SPS
12:20 - 2:00
Luncheon
2:00 - 3:30
Panel 3 - Cable Defends its Turf: How is the Industry
Leveraging Technology to Compete?
Cable, which has enjoyed years of success as the delivery
mechanism for video entertainment, is in the midst of a broad
rollout of two-way services - but can it maintain its
dominance in a changing marketplace or will cable be rolled
over by another category altogether? How does technology in
the box help cable stay on top of its game? Will retail boxes
relegate cable to pipeline status? Will boxes really ever go
retail? What is the status of the retail box push?
John Lynch, VP Sales - Digital TV, SCM Microsystems, Inc.
Panel 4 - Satellite Moves In: Will Rapid Upgrades Make
Satellite the Technology Leader?
Satellite operators added interactive advertising and
personal video recording capabilities in a blink of an eye
compared to other networks. Is this a competitive advantage
or will the theoretical retail cable box business nullify the
benefits? How quickly do satellite customers really install
these new features?
Conference Program
Box Forum
