The Connected TV EU Conference

 

 

 

This was the official website for the 2012 Connected TV Conference, an important event for the European Community as it related to one of the most discussed topics at the moment. The aim of the meeting was to stimulate thought and action on Connected TV issues. The Conference was more than a simple gathering of delegates. It was an event from which attendees from across Europe and the Mediterranean Countries can gain professional knowledge and experience on connected TV issues. It was therefore provide an excellent opportunity for networking, lobbying, information, communication and capacity-building for all stakeholders involved: speakers, delegates, organisers and ultimately the sponsors.
The content below is from the site's 2012 archived pages.

 

 

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Dear friends,

It is a great honour for The Cyprus Radiotelevision Authority to co-organise with the European Commission and host the “Connected TV Conference” inasmuch as it signifies a momentous step of media convergence. As a matter of fact, the general response to the Conference surpassed our initial expectations, as it started off as a European and Mediterranean Conference and now spans a worldwide range, having attracted prominent personalities of the field from all over the world as well as big brands and companies in respect of both attendance and contribution.  

Clearly, itwill be a milestone in the on-going reflections around the challenges and opportunities brought forward by this new development. The Conference will provide a valuable input to the future policy actions at EU level since the various stakeholders will have the opportunity to provide their views and experience, thereby configuring the Policy Document on Connected TV that will be adopted by the European Commission the end of 2012.  

In light of the above, I am confident that your trip to Cyprus will offer you an enlightening as well as a constructive experience. Nevertheless, I could not but urge you to enjoy the ample beauties of Cyprus. Our island will enchant you; it is a melting pot where its abundant historical past and its contemporary present are smoothly blended together, whilst the manifest marks of its numerous former conquerors render it a unique crossroad of civilizations. Its exquisiteness culminates in its dazzling golden coasts where the multitude of colours is truly sublime. The rest, I leave to you to explore!

Andreas Petrides
Executive Chairman
Cyprus Radio Television Authority

 

Looking Back : Jerome Forte : My American startup sent me here to gain some background knowledge on development on the continent that might impact our new digital streaming services. Was a worthwhile experience given the amount of expertise here in the one large room. I met a rep from another US firm who shared with me a very interesting and disturbing story about their issues with Google's search results. They had been sued in Federal court over a claim by a competitor that their product was infringing on a number of copyrights owned by the competitor. The case was thrown out, but the news item still remained in Google's search results when searching for the company's name. At the top of page one on Google was a report that trumpeted the suit, but not the outcome, so it appeared there was still some uncertainty as to the credibility of the business. The source of the public relations nightmare was Google, who would not respond to requests for takedown. Their only recourse was to engage with the shady online reputation management firms to remove the problem search results. This was very expensive, and a bit unsavory for the principals. These services attempt to manipulate Google's results by optimizing innocuous webpages to outrank the harmful results, thereby hiding the problem off of page 1. Most were willing to act immediately for a monthly fee of over $3,000. One small concern, which touts an ethical approach to removals suggested that they not put resources into removal but into a campaign to correct the record in the trade papers, where the issue was most troubling. It was during this discussion that we touched upon the EU's "right to be forgotten" laws, which allow individuals to request the removal of outdated or irrelevant information about themselves from search engines. These laws strike a balance between privacy and free speech, recognizing the importance of allowing people to control their online reputation. In contrast, US laws tend to prioritize free speech, making it difficult for individuals and businesses to address harmful search results. As we pondered the situation, we couldn't help but think that when it comes to managing online reputation, the EU does it better. I don't know the outcome, but could tell from the emotion in my new acquaintance's demeanor that this was a very serious concern, perhaps an existential issue for them. Hope it turned out ok for them. They have a great product and deserve an unfettered search result.

 

Conference Audience
The conference is addressed to representatives of the European Commission, policy makers on audiovisual matters from all EU member states, the Council of the E.U., the Council of Europe, the EPRA, the MNRA, local authorities, representatives from the industry as well as International, European and Local media.

Why Attend
This Conference will provide to all participants:
• Excellent networking and lobbying opportunities with all parties involved
• Enhance your understanding on the new trends of Connected TV in the  changing economic and social environment
• Become updated on the new platforms
• Become familiar with the new players and gatekeepers.
• Active role in the contribution of policy making concerning connected TV

 

Presentations

Ceremonial Part- Welcome Addresses

• Mr. Andreas Petrides, Executive Chairman, The Cyprus Radio Television Authority (CRTA), Cyprus
• Mr. Andreas Assiotis, General Director, Ministry of Interior, Cyprus
• Mr. Stefanos Stefanou, Government Spokesperson, Cyprus
• Ms neelie Kroes, Vice President of Digital Agenda, The European Commission, Belgium
• Dr. Detler Eckert, Director DG-CNECT, The European Commission, Belgium

Session One: Opportunities offered by converged platforms-current situation and projected tendencie

• Moderator: Ms Lorena Boix Alonso, Head of Unit, DG Communications Networks, Content & Technology, Unit Converging Media & Content, the European Commission, Belgium
• Mr. Ross Biggam – Director General,  Association of Commercial Television in Europe (ACT), Belgium
• Dr. Rudolf Eyberg – Director, Panasonic AVC Langen Development Centre, Panasonic Europe Ltd, Germany www.panasonic.eu
• Mr. Bo Olofsson – Director of Product Research Group, British Sky Broadcasting, United Kingdom
• Mr. Baptiste Fosséprez – Commercial Department, Product & Services Portfolio Management, SES, Luxembourg www.ses.com

Session two: Access and competition issues: New market players & gatekeepers-competition & how it will affect access

• Mr. Andris Mellakauls, Chair of the Council of Europe Steering Committee on Media and Information Society (CDMSI) & Head of Information Space Integration Section, Ministry of Culture, Latvia
• Dr. Hans-Martin Schmidt - Head of International Relations of ARD & Chairman of EBU, Germany
• Mr. Augusto Preta – CEO, IT Media Consulting, Italy
• Mr. Chris Hutchins - VP European Policy, Liberty Global B.V., Belgium
• Mr. Damir Filipovic -  EU Technology and Regulation Policy Manager, Samsung Electronics, Belgium

WG1- Connected TV & Commercial Communications

• Coordinator/ Rapporteur: Mr. David Mahoney - Director of Content Policy, Office for Communications (OFCOM), United Kingdom 
• Dr. Michael R. Kogler, Deputy Director Department for Media Law, Federal Chancellery, Austria
• Ms. Christiana Paschalides – Director, Cyprus Advertising Regulation Organisation, Cyprus
  www.fed.org.cy
• Mr. Conor Murray - Head of Regulatory and Public Affairs, Association of Television and Radio Sales Houses (EGTA), Belgium
  www.egta.com/
  www.egta.com/2011_2012_activity_report/index.html
• Mr. Vincent Porter - Adviser on European Media Policy, The European Alliance of Listeners' and Viewers' Associations (EURALVA)

WG2: Issues for digital single market fragmentation (regionalization of device, protection of minors, accessibility requirements, copyrights)

• WG Coordinator/ Rapporteur: Dr. Jose Alberto Azeredo Lopes - Doutorado em Direito, Ciências Jurídico-Políticas (Direito Internacional), UCP, 2002.Professor of Law, Catholic University of Porto, Portugal
• Mr. Peter Olaf Looms – Chairman, ITU-T Focus Group on Audiovisual Media Accessibility, Looms Consulting, Denmark
• Mr. Kostas Rossoglou -  Senior Legal Officer, Leader of BEUC Digital Team, The European Consumer Organisation (BEUC), Belgium (no powerpoint)
• Mr. Frank Kamperman – Group Leader, TP Vision  The Netherlands
• Mr. Heiko Zysk – VP Governmental Relations & Head of European Affairs, ProSiebenSat.1 Media AG, Germany
• Mr. Yiannis Souroullas – Senior Manager – Marketing (CMO), Cyprus Telecommunications Authority (CYTA), Cyprus

Session three: Connected Tv-how it will affect viewership habits-new viewer experiences

• Moderator: Mr. Pierre Cassar, Chief Executive, Broadcasting Authority Malta, Malta www.ba-malta.org
• Ms. Petra Kammerevert – MEP, S&D Co-ordinator in the CULT Committee, The European Parliament, Belgium
• Mr. Sofocles Markides -  General Manager, Nielsen Audience Measurement (Cyprus) Ltd, Cyprus
• Mr. Thomas Spiller – VP Global Public Policy, Europe, Middle East & Africa, The Walt Disney Company, Belgium
• Mr. Rene Summer – Director Government and Industry Relations, Ericsson Group, Sweden
• Mr. Andreas Spechtler, Rigional VP EMEA, Dolby Laboratories, United Kingdom

Session four: Content Creation and Financing

• Moderator: Dr. Gyorgy Ocsko – International Legal Adviser, the National Media and Infocommunications Authority of Hungary (NMHH), Hungary
• Dr. Yoo Yang – President/CEO, Korea Communications Agency, Korea
• Dr. André Lange – Head of the Department for Information on Markets and Financing, European Audiovisual Observatory (EAO), France
  1. http://ec.europa.eu/avpolicy/reg/tvwf/implementation/promotion/index_en.htm)
• Mr. Emmanuel Gabla – Commissioner, Conseil Supérieur de l’Audiovisuel (CSA), France
• Ms. Sylvie Forbin – Senior Vice President Public and European Affairs, Vivendi, France
• Mr. Malte Lohan – Director of Public Affairs, World Federation of Advertisers (WFA)

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Conference Details

About the Conference
Connected TV and connected devices have been high on the agenda of the European Community for the last year as they represent a significant step of media convergence. The Conference will be a milestone in the on-going reflections around the challenges and opportunities brought forward by this new development. High level panelists will provide their insight and experience from their unique perspective around specific topics identified. The Conference will provide valuable input to the future policy actions at EU level.

We welcome all types of appropriate sponsors. Please contact us if you are interested. Interestingly, there have been inquiries from US companies looking to network. One such US based company who is a sponsor is a vape distributor and sells wholesale vapor products, accessories, mods, and starter kits. They are planning on networking at the conference. They offer services that include helping retailers with products they need sourced, as well as distributing vape products.

By the end of 2012, the European Commission will deliver a Policy Document on Connected TV. This Conference will provide a unique opportunity for the various stakeholders to contribute to EU policy making by providing their views and experience.

The Conference Objectives
•To share opinions on Connected TV
•To discuss ways of regulating this new environment within the EU
•To identify the technical and regulatory issues of connected TV as well as other related aspects
•To identify ways to move the discussion forward and prepare a strategy on Connected TV.

The Connected TV Conference – “Looking beyond the AVMS directive: the challenge of Connected TV” conference co-organised by the Cyprus Radiotelevision Authority and the European Commission will bring together representatives of the European Commission, policy makers on audiovisual matters from all EU member states, the Council of the E.U., the Council of Europe, the EPRA, the MNRA, local authorities, representatives from the industry as well as International, European and local media.

The conference will take place at Le Meridien Limassol Spa & Resort, Cyprus on the 25th and 26th October 2012.

Dates
Thursday & Friday | 25 & 26 October 2012

Conference Venue
Le Meridien Limassol Spa & Resort | Cyprus

Conference Language
The conference plenary sessions languages are English, French and German. Simultaneous interpretation will be provided. The workgroups will be conducted in English.

Conference Fee
No participation fee for the conference (Free).

Registration
Pre-registration is required to guarantee your participation at the conference. Limited space available.

 

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More Background on the Connected TV EU Conference

The Connected TV EU Conference, held in 2012, was a significant event aimed at addressing the rise of connected television (CTV) and the challenges and opportunities it presented for the media landscape across Europe. This event, organized by the Cyprus Radiotelevision Authority in collaboration with the European Commission, was a platform for discussing the intersection of traditional television broadcasting and emerging internet-based content delivery systems.

Purpose and Importance

The conference was designed to address the regulatory, technical, and business challenges associated with the rapid growth of connected TV. With CTV gaining momentum, the convergence of digital technologies with traditional broadcasting was creating new ways of consuming media, raising concerns around competition, intellectual property rights, and consumer data protection. The event sought to provide a comprehensive dialogue between stakeholders from various sectors, including policymakers, broadcasters, and technology companies.

Key Themes and Sessions

1. Regulatory Frameworks: One of the primary focuses of the conference was how to develop appropriate regulatory measures to govern the connected TV landscape. Participants discussed how to protect intellectual property, maintain fair competition, and address digital rights management. This was particularly crucial as connected TV platforms, such as Netflix and YouTube, were beginning to challenge traditional media companies.

2. Market Dynamics: The discussions highlighted the shifting power dynamics in the media industry due to the rise of digital platforms. With major technology companies like Samsung and Panasonic entering the CTV space, traditional broadcasters faced new competition. The conference explored how these emerging platforms were impacting content creation, distribution, and consumption across Europe.

3. Consumer Rights and Data Privacy: As connected TV integrates more internet-based functions, data collection became a significant concern. Discussions at the conference centered around how to protect consumer privacy, especially with regard to minors, and how European laws like the "right to be forgotten" could be applied in this new media environment.

4. Content Creation and Distribution: Connected TV offered both opportunities and challenges for content creators and distributors. The interactive nature of CTV allowed for more personalized content delivery, but it also raised concerns about how traditional content producers would adapt to the shift from broadcast to digital-first distribution models.

Cultural and Social Significance

The Connected TV EU Conference was more than just a technical or regulatory discussion; it also had broader cultural implications. As television became more interactive, with consumers gaining the ability to engage with content on multiple platforms, the very nature of media consumption was changing. This event provided a forum for addressing the societal impacts of this shift, including how media could remain inclusive and accessible in the digital age. Additionally, the conference touched on the importance of protecting vulnerable audiences, particularly minors, in an environment where data collection and targeted advertising were becoming more pervasive.

Media Coverage and Reception

The conference was covered extensively in European media, particularly in outlets focused on technology and digital policy. Journalists praised the event for its forward-looking discussions and for bringing together a wide range of stakeholders to tackle the challenges posed by CTV. Media reports emphasized the conference’s role in shaping future EU policies around digital media and consumer protection.

The focus on data privacy, particularly in relation to European regulations, was a major point of interest. Many outlets highlighted the discussions around the "right to be forgotten" and how European laws were adapting to the challenges posed by connected devices that collected personal data.

Long-Term Impact

The legacy of the Connected TV EU Conference can still be felt in the policies that govern digital media today. The discussions that took place helped inform the development of regulations around data privacy, content distribution, and market competition in the digital era. Moreover, the conference laid the groundwork for future discussions on how to balance innovation with consumer protection in a rapidly evolving media landscape.

Conclusion

The 2012 Connected TV EU Conference played a crucial role in shaping the trajectory of connected television in Europe. By addressing the regulatory, technical, and social challenges of CTV, the event provided a platform for industry leaders and policymakers to collaborate on building a more inclusive and competitive media environment. Its influence can still be seen in the policies and practices that govern digital broadcasting and internet-based media today. The conference not only advanced the understanding of connected TV but also helped shape the future of media consumption in the digital age.