Top executives will come together Thursday, 10:30 a.m., to discuss the digital media explosion and its effect on radio. They will take a look at everything from podcasting to Internet radio and more, while letting you in on the secret of how to make new initiatives work to your financial gain.
The “New Media Executives Super Session” will feature Steve Goldstein, executive vice president of Saga Communi-cations and chair of The NAB Radio Show Steering Committee, as moderator of the panel discussion.
“I think the most important topic at the NAB Show this year is new media. We have 15 sessions that are oriented toward new media and this is the key session where we will pull everything together,” Goldstein said. “We will be discussing everything from Internet sites to texting. Whatever it is that qualifies as new media will be on the table.”
Attendees will have the opportunity to hear success stories from media professionals, as well as get a better idea of what some of the top companies and vendors are doing in the industry.
NEW MEDIA GURUS
Goldstein, who oversees the Saga Communications’ 88 radio stations, nine TV stations, two farm radio networks and three state radio networks, said that the companies at the super session represent some of the most interesting initiatives.
“CBS has gone farther with Internet streaming than just about any other company. ESPN is the master of podcasting and their Internet initiative is quite breathtaking,” Goldstein said. “Mike Agovino’s company, Triton Media is assembling a supermarket of interesting Web platforms and initiatives. Emmis has some of the best-looking Web sites in the radio business and we have a lot to learn from them as well.”
Deborah L. Esayian, co-president at Emmis Interactive, strives to integrate new and traditional media to produce innovative, profitable business models.
“New media is requiring us to rethink our business model, our structure, and our role in media today,” Esayian said
Esayian said she will be “discussing the tremendous opportunity interactive gives our industry — to be able to compete effectively and efficiently in a world of many media options and shifting expectations.”
A former product manager, Esayian has worked with several consumer goods manufacturers in the U.S. and abroad. Her previous work experience also includes serving as the director of jobcityusa.com, an Emmis-owned minority recruitment Web site.
Marc Horine, vice president of digital partnerships and sales development for ESPN Digital Media, said there are a lot of approaches out there that are working well for radio stations and radio companies.
“We’ve seen a lot of growth both from our ratings and on the revenue side. I think it’s important to share those successes, so that people can understand and realize there is a lot of good going on in the radio marketplace,” Horine said.
Horine is responsible for the digital content strategy, distribution, production and engineering for the ESPN Radio division. He said at the session he’ll be giving an overview of everything ESPN Radio is doing digitally, which spans live audio, live radio, local business, traditional Web and podcasts.
One of ESPN’s success stories is its PodCenter, which launched in April 2006. Dramatic numbers led to a relaunch in August 2007, and since then, the numbers have doubled. Horine said a year later they are averaging 8 million downloads a month.
The upgraded hub also featured enhanced audio and video, as well as an iPhone-compatible player.
Horine said he would also address additional platforms and extensions you can consume and listen to ESPN on.
Also participating in the super session are David Goodman, president of digital media and integrated marketing at CBS Radio; and Mike Agovino, chief operating officer of Triton Media Group.
Goodman works with CBS’s 140-plus major-market stations, overseeing digital, integrated ad-sales and marketing strategy. Additionally, he established and runs The Altitude Group, CBS’s integrated ad-sales organization that has been responsible for providing ground-breaking campaigns to a variety of Fortune 500 advertisers.
Agovino said he will tap into his experience with Triton and give attendees an awareness of the services, applications and content that comprise the Triton Platform.
Triton’s platform includes streaming audio and video, multichannel streams, mobile streaming, database and loyalty marketing, content delivery, music discovery, mobile messaging, content management, ad serving and ad insertion, on-demand and podcasting, games, music downloads, local search and more.
The session is sponsored by Comic Wonder.
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