Intel, Rovi, Best Buy, and other industry leaders participating at executive summit at CES 2011

Parks Associates announced the sessions and preliminary list of speakers for its upcoming CONNECTIONS™ Summit at CES, January 6 at 2011 International CES in Las Vegas. This event provides consumer data and analysis of business and marketing strategies for operators, CE manufacturers, utilities, and communications companies delivering connected devices and advanced services and applications to consumers.

At CONNECTIONS™ Summit at CES, we will look beyond the headlines and announcements to see what consumers will be doing with these devices and how they will change their video, entertainment, and communication habits.”

Parks Associates will host CONNECTIONS™ Summit in the South Hall Convention Center, Rooms S206-207, during the first day of CES. Preliminary list of speakers:

Sean Besser, VP, Business Development, Rovi Corp.
Tom Bottorff, Sr. VP-Regulatory Affairs, PG&E
Kris Bowring, Senior Director, Platform Lead, Best Buy
Matt Carinio, Senior Business Analyst, LEVEL Studios
Chris Deutschen, Senior Manager, Direct Energy
Wynn Grubbs, VP, Sales and Marketing, PlumChoice
Dave Habiger, President and CEO, Sonic Solutions
Brian David Johnson, Futurist and Director, Future Casting and Experience Research, Intel Corporation
Shashidhar K, Global Practice Director, HCL Technologies
Chris King, Chief Regulatory Officer, eMeter Corporation
Woo Seung Lee, Team Manager, Media Business Planning Department, Korea Telecom
Scott Levine, VP, General Manager – Mobile, Blockbuster, Inc.
Joel Marshall, EVP, Steelhead Advertising
Steve McKay, CEO, Entone
Andy Melder, VP Business Development, Gigle Networks
Sean Miller, President, iTOK
Steve Oetegenn, Chief Sales and Marketing Officer, Verimatrix
Lawrence M. Oliva, Director of Tariffs, Programs, and Services, Southern California Edison
Rick Schwartz, Senior Product Manager, Consumer Software, PacketVideo (PV)
Edgar Villalpando, SVP, Marketing, ActiveVideo Networks

For information about CONNECTIONS™ Conferences, visit www.connectionsconference.com.

CONNECTIONS EU, Value-added services session features IBM, Cisco, Accedo Broadband, Cloudberry Associates

The integration of interactive services and two-way communications with TV services has become a key part of service provider strategies worldwide. Parks Associates is hosting CONNECTIONS™ Europe on November 15-16, 2010, at the Mövenpick Hotel in Amsterdam, and the agenda includes the session “Value-added Services & the Video Ecosystem.”

This session will examine strategies behind advanced video service options, including online video on the TV, TV Everywhere, and hybrid set-top boxes that offer broadcast and broadband/IPTV options.

Session Participants:

Rob van den Dam, Global Telecom Sector Leader IBV, IBM

Jean-Michel Demoulin, Cable, Digital Media & IPTV Strategy - European Markets, Cisco

Michael Lantz, CEO, Accedo Broadband

Trond Neergaard, Founder and Managing Partner, Cloudberry Associates

Moderator: Stuart Sikes, President, Parks Associates

For more information about the CONNECTIONS Europe Summit, click here.

Technicolor's 3D Services Enable the Launch of DIRECTV's First 3D VOD Service

Technicolor announced the signing of a three year contract extension to provide a wide range of SD and HD set-top boxes to DIRECTV.

Since the beginning of this relationship, Technicolor has provided more than 48 million set-top-boxes to DIRECTV. The contract extension will allow the two companies to further develop their collaboration in new areas such as 3D. DIRECTV is the first video service provider to offer a suite of three dedicated 3D channels including n3D On Demand.

Technicolor, widely recognised as one of the leading suppliers of set-top boxes worldwide, reached the milestone of delivering 100 million digital set-top boxes at the end of past year.

CONNECTIONS Summit at CES Agenda

CES is about making business connections, and CONNECTIONS Summit is the ideal place to start. This information-packed networking event features presentations of the latest consumer and industry research, forecasts, and panel discussions moderated by Parks Associates. You’ll hear commentary, insight, and debate from industry executives and analysts on connected CE, video services and advertising, energy management, mobile convergence, and more. Then unwind at the evening reception, where you can network with existing and prospective partners.

View Agenda
- Consumer Electronics Purchases: Are Consumers Back in the Buying Mood?
- The Connected TV – Displays and Beyond
- Service Provider Strategies for the Connected Home
- The Mobile Aspect of Unified Infotainment: Opportunities and Challenges
- Advances in Television Advertising
- Bringing the Smart Grid to the Smart Home
- 3D: Adding New Dimensions to Entertainment

Over 100 million households worldwide to have telco IPTV services by 2013

Microsoft keynote to address Customer Service and IPTV at CONNECTIONS™ Europe Summit--

Parks Associates today welcomed Roger Pitton, Program Director, TV, Video & Music Business, Microsoft Corporation, as the Keynote speaker for CONNECTIONS™ Europe Summit, taking place March 31, in Nice, France.

The worldwide market for telco IPTV services will exceed 100 million households by 2013, a CAGR of approximately 38%, according to international research firm Parks Associates. Mr. Pitton’s keynote “IPTV and the keys to keeping customers” will address the best business strategies to gain and retain customers in the highly competitive European market for these services.

CONNECTIONS™ Europe Summit, hosted by Parks Associates, will take place at the Hotel Palais de La Mediterranee. It has a full agenda featuring consumer data and expert analysis on advanced video solutions, digital media solutions, and connected consumer electronics.

Mr. Pitton has several years of firsthand experience in marketing and selling IPTV services. In his keynote, he will specify the keys to differentiation, including unique content, an unmatched user experience, and the convergence of technology and content, required for sustaining success.

“Europe will have over 38 million households with telco IPTV services by 2013, but the market will be characterized not by its homogeneity but by differences in programming, interactive applications, and value-added features,” said Kurt Scherf, vice president, principal analyst, Parks Associates. “Microsoft’s global reach and its expertise in software make it a key player in delivering next-generation television services, and we are pleased to have Roger at CONNECTIONS™ Europe.”

CONNECTIONS™ Europe Summit Sessions:

European Consumer Trends
Broadband and Value-added Services
Video Services
Digital Media Content & Delivery
Connected CE
Digital Home Tech Support

Event sponsors include Affinegy, Enure Networks, and HomeGrid Forum. Global Sponsors include ActiveVideo Networks, Affinegy, Cloakware, DSC, HD-PLC Alliance, Icron, Macrovision, MoCA, ProVision Communications, Radialpoint, Telcordia, and Zilog.

Video Usage: Europe versus U.S.

CONNECTIONS™ Europe will feature several sessions – including All Eyes on Video Service Evolution – examining the strategies of the providers driving European-led efforts for online video – and how they differ from the U.S.

These companies include broadband and television providers looking to differentiate and add value to their existing access services as well as content owners such as the BBC, Canal, BSkyB, and broadcasters. Already the European market is shaping up differently than the U.S. market. For one, the European model will likely be more integrated with existing services and less “over-the-top” than is typical in the U.S. While U.S. service providers are all scrambling to provide online video services to complement their existing access services, the Europeans will have more success by integrating so-called over-the-top content with their services and their customer premise equipment.

Such integration of content and services could help counter a worrisome trend in online video for Western Europe. Parks Associates’ Entertainment 2.0 in Europe found a relatively high percentage of broadband households, including almost one-third in Spain, watch videos online only because they are free. If given the choice (i.e., if they have to pay for it), the vast majority of broadband households in Western Europe prefer more traditional means of watching video, either at the cinema or on DVD.

Panelists at CONNECTIONS™ Europe will focus on the implications of this finding as well as ways to counter it or work within to meet customers’ needs while still maintaining a viable business model.

CONN @ CES panel, Advanced Video Services: The Next Big Thing?

What role will advanced television and broadband video services play in defining the next generation of entertainment applications? On January 8th, 2009, Jayant Dasari, Research Analyst at Parks Associates will moderate the "Advanced Video Services: The Next Big Thing?" panel at the upcoming CONNECTIONS Summit at CES.

This presentation and panel discussion examines the worldwide pay television market, providing context for the competitive environment in major worldwide geographies and countries. It also focuses on consumer adoption of broadband video services, examining the use cases for “go-to-TV” services and products. This session includes consumer data from Parks Associates’ TV 2.0: The Consumer Perspective study, showing customer affinity and willingness to pay for advanced television features.

Confirmed speakers for this panel include: Charles Cerino, President, MoCA; Ed Forman, EVP, Products and Services, ActiveVideo Networks; Jean-Marc Harion, Vice President, Business Development, North America, Orange – France Telecom NA; John Reister, Chief IPTV Architect, BigBand Networks; and Marty Roberts, VP Marketing, thePlatform.

CONNECTIONS™ Summit at CES to examine business strategies, opportunities for advanced digital solutions

Speaker submissions accepted through September 12

Parks Associates and CEA® announced the session topics for the upcoming CONNECTIONS™ Summit at CES, which will focus on business strategies, opportunities, and challenges for advanced technology, new media, and new access services.

CONNECTIONS™ Summit at CES will address the new business and product opportunities inherent in the increasing connectivity of today’s market.

Session topics include the following:

• Consumer Purchase Habits
• Advanced Video Services
• Digital Home Customer Support
• Social Media
• The GPS Market
• Connected Consumer Electronics
• Digital Photo Frames
• Connected Gaming and Game Consoles
• Digital TV and Set-Top Boxes
• Home Systems and Controls

Parks Associates is currently accepting speaker submissions for CONNECTIONS™ Summit at CES at http://www.parksassociates.com/events/connections/summit/2009/agenda/index.htm . The deadline is September 12, 2008.

In addition, Parks Associates will feature its latest consumer research projects in Booth #25556, South Hall 2 during the CES International event.

The full press release is available at: http://www.parksassociates.com/events/connections/summit/2009/media/pr5.htm

Consumers to spend billions on Internet Video Services by 2013

TV-based Internet video receivers and connected consumer electronics platforms will drive transactional revenues for premium Internet video services past $6 billion --

U.S. consumers will spend over $6 billion for Internet video services by 2013, with direct-to-TV videos accounting for 75% of that revenue, according to Parks Associates’ Internet Video: Direct-to-Consumer Services (Second Edition).

This new report finds that greater ownership of connected game consoles, networked TVs, and alternative video-on-demand set-top receivers is generating significant growth in user-paid revenues.Future areas to watch include ad-supported movie streams, new targeted advertising approaches, and Hollywood’s efforts to offer more electronically distributed content through download-to-burn kiosks and other manufacturing-on-demand outlets.

Internet Video: Direct-to-Consumer Services (Second Edition) examines the business of premium Internet video delivery and includes the latest primary consumer research on Internet video consumption and interest in new Internet video services and products.

Parks Associates will present on Internet video and other digital-lifestyle topics at CONNECTIONS™ Europe Summit, August 29, in Berlin.