SMPTE Announces Technical Conference Keynote Speakers

SMPTE has announced the three keynote speakers for its 2014 Annual Technical Conference & Exhibition (SMPTE 2014), October 21-23 at the Loews Hollywood Hotel in Hollywood, California.

Chris Fetner, director of global content partners operations at Netflix, will present the opening keynote. Ticketholders for the SMPTE Industry Luncheon will then later have the opportunity to hear a keynote presentation by Mark Aitken (pictured), vice president of advanced technology at Sinclair Broadcast Group. On Wednesday, Vubiquity CEO Darcy Antonellis will address SMPTE Fellows, including those newly inducted for 2014, at the SMPTE Fellows Luncheon.
"The keynotes presented by Chris, Mark, and Darcy will punctuate a strong conference program that advances the industry through shared knowledge and experience," said Wendy Aylsworth, SMPTE president and senior vice president of technology at Warner Bros. Technical Operations. "The real-world experiences of these industry leaders in leveraging advanced media delivery technologies will serve both to complement and enrich the diverse array of SMPTE 2014 technical sessions."
Mr Fetner began his career as an operations manager at a local Public Broadcasting Systems (PBS) affiliate in Washington, DC, and went on to serve as a producer for television programs including 'Frontiers of Medicine'. He later served as a postproduction and operations executive at Discovery Communications, guiding the company's migration to an all-digital workflow.
Mr Fetner was also VP of postproduction and technical services at BBC Worldwide in New York, where he oversaw all technical operations supporting both the cable network BBC America and its distribution to electronic sell-through (EST), video-on-demand (VOD), and subscription video-on-demand (SVOD) customers.
Mr Aitken is chairman of the Advanced Television System Committee (ATSC) TSG/S4 codec working group and a member of both the Mobile 500 Alliance executive committee and National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) TV Technology Committee.
Since 1987, he also has been involved in the Federal Communications Committee (FCC) Advisory Committee on Advanced Television Services. Previously, Mr Aitken held various positions with Comark Communications, where he was part of the team that brought Internet of Things (IoT) technology to the marketplace. He is currently a member of the Association of Federal Communications Consulting Engineers, the IEEE, and SMPTE.
Prior to becoming CEO at Vubiquity, Ms Antonellis served as president of technical operations and CTO at Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc., where she directed technology strategy and the company's use of media and entertainment-related product and service innovations.
During her tenure at CBS, Ms Antonellis held lead management roles with responsibility for the network's New York and Washington, DC, operations. She is also a three-time Emmy Award-winner for technical production and engineering and serves on numerous advisory boards.

www.smpte2014.org

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