Click on the Video Below and Sample a Session from a previous Digital Hollywood event. For Additional Video Sessions, Click Here Digital Hollywood Monday, October 29th 1:00 PM - 2:15 PM Track III: User Generated Media & Social Networks UGM, Social Networks and Traditional Media: Strategies in Content, Communications and Commerce, Part I In the past year, the YouTube - MySpace - Facebook experience has revolutionized the world of entertainment, information and communications. The world of social communities, once thought to be a thing of the past has exploded and is once again on the front pages of our newspapers and magazines. There are web pages and web experiences for every human nuance and niche. Every family communicates through photo sharing and movie sharing websites. The blogging and social networking worlds have become the new "major media networks." In this session we will explore user generated media as a phenomenon, as a business and as a communications and entertainment medium. Ty Ahmad-Taylor, Vice President, Product Development, MTV Networks and Logo Matt Farber, President, Wilderness Media & Entertainment & founder, LOGO, Viacom Todd Herman, General Manager, Global Media Strategy, MSN Media Network Jason Meil, SVP of Original Programming & Acquisitions, Current TV Stephen Smyth, Senior Vice President & General Manager, Americas, Reuters Media Howard Tiersky, Vice President, Media & Entertainment, Capgemini Andrew Wallenstein, Digital Media and Television Features Editor, The Hollywood Reporter, Moderator Todd Herman, Director of Media Strategy, is responsible for the strategy, implementation and communication of advertising sales for MSN Video. Mr. Herman began working in streaming media in 1996, shortly after its inception, while working at the forefront of the Hot Talk Radio movement. In 1998, he co-founded and served as CEO of theDial, (now Loudeye Radio), a seminal Internet Radio Pioneer. theDial provided private labeled audio and Internet radio technology to offline music service providers and top 100 web properties; theDial was the first company to welcome multiple Fortune 500 companies to Internet Radio advertising. As President of Mediagasm, LLC, he consulted media and technology companies on crossing online and broadcast advertising models, his clients included Microsoft, Windows Media, MSNBC.com and Ads.com -an early pioneer in serving Television advertising online- where he conceived his three C's of streaming media for consumers: control, condense & combine. He sits on the board of the International Webcasters Association and is a contributing author to The Streaming Media Bible by Steve Mack (2002, Wiley & Sons). Before co-founding theDial, Mr. Herman worked in most every facet of radio including several years as a nationally known radio talk show host. Todd Herman is an exciting, provocative speaker on media, advertising, pop culture and the Internet as the entertainment delivery device of the future -- and the present. Ty Ahmad-Taylor, Vice President, Product Development, MTV Networks and Logo: Ty Ahmad-Taylor, Senior Director, Interactive Products, Comcast Cable: Ty Ahmad-Taylor began his career at the New York Times in their graphics department, working in National and International news. While there, he covered the Waco, TX standoff, the Los Angeles riots, the Gulf War, the Oklahoma City bombing and other large news events from a visual perspective, using schematics, databases and cartography. In 1995, his last year at the paper, he wrote articles on the emerging Internet, special effects in cinema, and the video game industry. From the Times he moved West to join the @Home Network. Ty became the Creative Director of @Home in 1997, and led their efforts to create next-generation portals for broadband and interactive television. After a year sabbatical in 2000, where he took cooking and French lessons, he returned to technology, working as the Chief Creative Architect for MetaTV, an iTV concern based in Mill Valley, CA, just north of San Francisco. While there, Ty generated user interface patents, and led the design of interactive television portals for Comcast, Cox, Echostar and other MSO and satellite operators. After working at Comcast Cable Corporation as the Director of Strategic Planning in their broadband group, where his mandate included devising and executing Comcast’s wireless (GPRS, UMTS and WiFi) strategy, and interactive content and applications. He was the Senior Director for Cross-platform applications at the company. His job duties encompassed applications that straddle distribution channels, such as search, games and music. He is currently the Vice President for Product Development at MTV Networks in New York City, working on their music websites as well as the infusion of online community throughout their properties. Ty has over 11 years of experience in designing for broadband, 10 years in interactive television, and 17 years in information design. He has lectured at Digital Hollywood, CES, Milia, AIGA conferences, HOW Design Conferences, Seybold Seminars, as well as the Poynter Institute for Journalism in St. Petersberg, Fla. Ty lives in New York City, though he is originally from the San Francisco Bay Area. Matt Farber, President of Wilderness Media and Entertainment, is Founder of MTV Networks’ new gay and lesbian channel LOGO. His creation of Wilderness in 2001 facilitated the development of LOGO. Through Wilderness, Farber is currently Executive Consultant for MTV Networks, where he spearheaded LOGO’s development leading up to its launch in 2005. Recently, Farber expanded Wilderness beyond television to publishing, radio, the Internet, and talent management. Before creating Wilderness and LOGO, Farber served as President and CEO of Tonos Entertainment, an Internet-based music company founded by industry luminaries Carole Bayer Sager, David Foster and Kenneth “Babyface” Edmonds, where he handled financing, strategic development and operations and was credited with raising over $17 million in funding during 2000. From 1991-99, Farber served in a variety of executive roles at MTV Networks. Most recently, he served as Executive Vice President for MTV and VH1 Programming Enterprises as well as General Manager for MTV2/The Digital Suite. As Senior Vice President for MTV and VH1 Programming Enterprises, Farber developed and launched a series of initiatives including MTV2, MTV.com and VH1.com, MTV Radio Network and the MTV/VH1 audio business. Farber also oversaw all MTV interactive initiatives including CD-ROMS, videogames and interactive television. Farber began his MTV Networks career as MTV’s Vice President of Music Programming where he helmed development of all music-based programming for MTV. Prior to his time at MTV Networks, Farber was the Director of Planning and Special Projects at Arista, where he reported directly to Clive Davis and was involved with key Arista initiatives/artists including Arista’s 15th Anniversary, Whitney Houston and Aretha Franklin. He began his career in radio, working at a variety of East-coast radio outlets such as D.C.’s WAVA-FM, Atlanta’s WAPW-FM and Philadelphia’s WWSH-FM. Farber graduated Summa Cum Laude from the Wharton School of Business with a B.S. in Economics, and is active in many LGBT organizations including GLAAD, PFLAG, and HRC. Howard Tiersky, Vice President, Media & Entertainment, Capgemini. Howard has led digital media strategy and implementation initiatives for a range of broadcasting/media clients such as NBC-Universal, Time Warner and Sprint. He has also spearheaded customer-facing eCommerce efforts for many other leading brands including Office Depot, Merrill Lynch, General Motors, GE and Cisco. Howard is on the faculty of the NYU Film School where he teaches courses on the intersection of television industry and the Internet. He also produces and distributes animated webisodes under the brand Snide.TV. STEPHEN SMYTH, Senior Vice President & General Manager, Americas, Reuters Media: Stephen Smyth is responsible for the Reuters Media business in the Americas, driving revenue and audience for the online, mobile, interactive TV, signage and digital syndication services in the region. He oversees advertising sales, advertising operations, business development, programming and signage operations. Prior to his current role, Stephen led Reuters’ mobile, video, and digital signage products globally. He was responsible for maximizing revenues and brand value from the company’s presence in these emerging media and oversaw relationships with key technology providers and distribution affiliates across the globe. In addition, he launched and managed Reuters Labs, a public showcase of the latest consumer product innovations from Reuters. Previously, Stephen was responsible for media strategy and business development for Reuters. Before joining the company in January 2003, he was a Director of Business Development for Bertelsmann, the media group. At Bertelsmann, Stephen worked for a number of divisions including the RTL Group, Bookspan and the firm’s E-Commerce Group, and worked on a number of properties and partnerships, including American Idol and Napster. He received his B.A. and B.A.I. from Trinity College, University of Dublin and his M.S. from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Jason Meil, SVP of Original Programming & Acquisitions, Current TV: Jason Meil is the Senior Vice President, Original Programming and Acquisitions, for Current TV. Jason heads Current’s VC2 production department, which oversees all user generated content activities for the network. He also manages licensing and acquisition of content for the company, and is responsible for developing and overseeing production of all of Current’s original series. Jason reports to David Neuman, President of Programming, and is based in the company’s San Francisco headquarters. Before Current, Jason served as Vice President of Program Development and Sales at National Geographic Television & Film, where he was responsible for expanding the unit’s television activities into new formats. Jason also previously held positions at CBS and DreamWorks. Jason holds a BA from Harvard College and an MBA from Stanford University. Andrew Wallenstein is the digital media and television features editor at The Hollywood Reporter, based in Los Angeles. In addition, he is co-host of “Square Off,” a weekly primetime TV Guide Channel series about the TV industry, as well as TV critic for the National Public Radio syndicated program “Day to Day.” In addition, he has contributed to The New York Times, Boston Globe and Business Week. He has a master’s degree in journalism from Columbia University.