HDNet's Mark Cuban and Other Industry Leaders to Speak at Kagan's TRENdS '05 Digital Media Convergence Summit

Business Wire, July 30, 2005

MONTEREY, Calif. -- Kagan Events has announced the roster of speakers for TRENdS '05 Digital Media Convergence, the premier digital media executive conference and showcase to be held September 12-13 at the Four Seasons, Las Vegas, Nevada. Keynotes include Mark Cuban of HDNet, Joshua Sapan of Rainbow Media, Evan Harrison of Clear Channel and Dr. Saul Berman of IBM.

Conference speakers include dozens of leading executives from across the media, communications, broadband and entertainment sectors, including AOL, Disney, EchoStar, Microsoft, Motorola, Napster, Sony, Yahoo! and many other leading-edge companies.

The following executives will make keynotes and special presentations:

--Mark Cuban, CEO of HDNet and owner of the Dallas Mavericks. Fueled by Mr. Cuban's business leadership and enthusiasm, HDNet has quickly emerged as the leading provider of quality HDTV news, entertainment and sports programming.

--Joshua Sapan, President and CEO of Rainbow Media Holdings. A premier innovator, Mr. Sapan has guided Rainbow's growth and success by creating innovative national networks: AMC, Fuse, IFC and WE: Women's Entertainment; film distribution and production with IFC Entertainment; leading VOD networks: Mag Rack, sportskool and IFC Films On Demand; and VOOM HD Originals, the largest suite of HD channels available anywhere, ranging from movies, music and museums, to sports, travel and fashion.

--Evan Harrison, EVP of Online Music and Radio at Clear Channel. As the leader in Internet Radio broadcasting, Mr. Harrison commands a pivotal post in the burgeoning digital music and talk market.

--Saul Berman, Partner, Media and Entertainment, IBM Business Consulting Services. Dr. Berman has more than 20 years of consulting experience in media and telecommunications and is a digital entertainment systems and strategic planning expert.

The three-part TRENdS '05 event features the Digital Media Summit for senior level executives exploring strategies and synergies; the Digital Management Forum for management executives looking for solutions and deployments; and the Digital Trends Showcase, a kiosk-based demonstration pavilion.

The two-day Kagan Digital Media Summit includes substantive discussions of digital media investments and strategies for monetizing and optimizing convergence opportunities related to growing market demands for secure and seamless content pipelines, devices and interactivity. Sessions include:

--Back to the Future Via Mega Mergers and Acquisitions: What does a new round of merger mania mean for digital competition?

--Dialing for Digital's Investment Dollars: Who's investing in digital media and where are they placing their digital bets?

--Games Go Hollywood, Enthusiasts Go Global: How will games impact broadband, mobile, and multiplayer strategies?

--Handheld Devices Rocket Music & Talk into the Black: How to achieve sustained profitability in the digital music and communications space.

--Digital Video's 39 Flavors: How to match the right business model with the right platform and the right audience - VOD, IPTV, PVR/DVR, HDTV and more.

--Market Share and Distribution Challenges for the Quadruple Play Arena: Who sells what to whom AND how?

--Advertising in an Interactive World: How will next gen interactive advertising target, reach and compete and in a non-linear PVR, on-demand digital world?

--Mixing Digital Media's Magic Potions: Can on-demand content, security, compression, e-commerce and fulfillment work together seamlessly?

On Monday only, the Digital Management Forum will offer solutions sessions for top management executives charged with managing and protecting high performance digital convergence investments. Topics will include building and maintaining digital infrastructure, copy protection, downloading and interactive solutions. These sessions are designed for content owners, operators, developers, technologists, service and solution providers and investors.

The concurrent Digital Trends Showcase will facilitate demos and provide an ideal setting for networking and exploring alliance opportunities.

BONUS: Kagan Research Presentations -- exclusive data on Asia-Pacific multichannel markets, video game convergence, wireless broadband, digital TV, subscriber trends, benchmarks, programming models and content ownership, including 5-year and 10-year projections.

Event Location:
    FOUR SEASONS Hotel, Las Vegas
    3960 Las Vegas Blvd. S., Las Vegas, NV 89119
    Call: (702) 632-5000; Fax: (702) 632-5195

Registration and more information:

For a complete up-to-date program and speaker roster and to register for this event, please visit the TRENdS '05 Web site at http://www.kaganevents.com or call (800) 307-2529.

Members of the press are invited to apply for attendance.

About Kagan Research, LLC.

Kagan Research consulting and publishing services offer exclusive financial data and analysis, relevant market advisories and proprietary 5- to 10-year projections on cable and DBS, broadcast television and radio, movies, entertainment and sports, digital, wireless and Internet technologies and media finance and law.