"Showcase" Sessions to Highlight "National Show" Panel Line-Up

Washington, D.C. – Case studies highlighting some of the cable industry's most successful new product launches, collaborative marketing efforts, and operational best practices will be featured as part of four "Showcase Sessions," a new concept in panel presentations expected to attract considerable interest at The 2004 National Show, the 53rd Annual Convention & International Exposition of the National Cable & Telecommunications Association (NCTA), May 2-5, 2004, in New Orleans.
By addressing some of the most current and prominent issues that cable operators and networks confront, the four Showcase Sessions lead the lineup of more than 40 educational sessions available to those attending the Show. Eight session "tracks" have been designed to better equip delegates to chart a course through the sessions at the convention. Tracks include consumer technology, finance, management & operations, programming, marketing, public affairs, public policy, and technical papers.

"The strategy of our organizing committee this year was to reduce the number of sessions, and instead focus on putting together the best mix of timely subjects and speakers. From top to bottom, I believe we've accomplished this goal," said Barbara York, Senior Vice President, Industry Affairs and Chief Administrative Officer, NCTA. "The Showcase Sessions, in particular, will present 'best of the best' case studies, from which every company in the industry can learn."

The Showcase Sessions will be located in meeting rooms just off the main exhibition hall floor for easy access, and will be able to accommodate audiences of up to 500. The Showcase Sessions are as follows:

The Integrated Circuit: Marketing as Part of Every Function – Cable MSOs are integrating their marketing strategies across business functions and using collaborative work practices to analyze and define strategies that lead to getting customers, and keeping them.
Sunday, May 2, 4:30pm, Room E1.
Moderator: Anne Cowan, CTAM
Panelists: Mary Cotter, Time Warner Cable; Ellen East, Cox Communications; Pamela Euler Halling, Insight Communications; Suzanne Keenan, Comcast Corporation.

What Quarrels? Operator & Programmer Collaborative Marketing Programs – This session will feature programmers and operators that have developed marketing programs that have created more value for operators, helped increase ad sales and boosted community outreach.
Tuesday, May 4, 2:00pm, Room E1.
Moderator: Coleman Breland, Turner Network Sales
Panelists: James Heneghan, Charter Communications; Lori McFarling, Discovery Networks U.S.; Scot Safon, Turner Broadcasting; Stacy Gordon, Comcast Cable Communications; Andie Kallinger, Lifetime Entertainment Services; Anthony Surratt, Cox Communications.

High Definitely! – Best Ways to Market HDTV - Cable now delivers an HD package in the majority of markets across the country, but HDTV is a complex product to market. This session will feature success stories in marketing HDTV.
Tuesday, May 4, 3:45pm, Room E1.
Moderator: Charles Ellis, Time Warner Cable
Panelists: Clint Stinchcomb, Discovery HD Theater; Julie Simon, Time Warner Cable; Mark Cuban, HDNet; William Geppert, Cox Communications; Andy Addis, Comcast Cable Communications.

Seven Habits of Highly Successful Products – This session features the best case studies from MSOs that have successfully deployed new services in today's tough and competitive marketplace.
Wed., May 5, 10:30am, Room E1.
Moderator: Arthur Orduña, Advance/Newhouse Communications
Panelists: Eric Brown, Charter Communications; Gary McCollum, Cox Communications; Patricia Gottesman, Cablevision Systems; Tom Kinney, Time Warner Cable.

In addition to the Showcase Sessions, several other educational sessions designed to cover major topics, and expected to attract a sizeable audience, also will be located in the meeting rooms just off the main exhibition floor. These sessions include:

And the Actual Retail Price Is …! – Successful selling at the retail level is the new frontier for the cable industry. This session will focus on how to set up and maintain successful MSO/retailer partnerships at both the national and local levels.
Sunday, May 2, 4:30pm, Room E2.
Moderator: Jeff Siegel, ESPN
Panelists: Jim Doolittle, Time Warner Cable; Sheila Crosby, Cox Communications; Chris Moseley, Crown Media Holdings and Hallmark Channel.

Spend the Night … after Night … after Night: Embracing Customer Loyalty – This session will address why building strong customer relationships and understanding customer perceptions and attitudes are critical elements in customer retention.
Monday, May 3, 2:00pm, Room E2.
Moderator: Kelvin Westbrook, Millennium Digital Media.
Panelists: Rhonda Fraas, Time Warner Cable; Stacy Gordon, Comcast Cable Communications, Inc.; Warren Jones, Cox Communications; Charles Bartolotta, Mediacom Communications.

You're Gonna Like the Way You Look: CAB's Viewer Survey – The Cabletelevision Advertising Bureau (CAB) will unveil CAB's new consumer study of how viewers are using the medium of television today. Early reports indicate the study may shatter some myths of television viewing habits.
Monday, May 3, 2:00pm, Room E3.
Moderator: Bill Burke, The Weather Channel Companies
Panelists: Maura Clancey, Knowledge Networks – Statistical Research; Sean Cunningham, Cabletelevision Advertising Bureau.

Dr. Know – Measuring Your Customer's Vital Signs – It's no longer a "one size fits all" marketplace. Consumers are highly individual with specific criteria on what they buy and how they use it. Enter database marketing, the science of identifying market segments, marketing to a niche, and keeping those customers satisfied. In addition to a speaker from outside the cable industry, this session will feature cable operators who have used database marketing for effective results.
Monday, May 3, 3:45pm, Room E1.
Moderator: Joseph Rooney, Cox Communications.
Panelists: Mimi Thigpen, Cox Communications; Paul Iaffaldano, The Weather Channel; Jane Griffin, BearingPoint, Inc.

Inside the Broadband Marketplace – Quickening the Pace – This session will examine how the industry's high-speed Internet business will evolve over the next 12 months, with an in-depth look at market projections and the competitive landscape.
Monday, May 3, 3:45pm, Room E2.
Moderator: Bruce Leichtman, Leichtman Research Group
Panelists: Kate Wilson, Microsoft Corporation; David Juliano, Comcast High Speed Internet; George Kliavkoff, MLB Advanced Media LP; Louis Borrelli, AOL; Michael Lee, Rogers Cable.

V-O-D: Key 2 M-O-N-E-Y – This session will examine success stories and challenges presented by on-demand services. Topics will include making on-demand service work for customers; effectively marketing VOD to frequent users; improving distribution windows and offerings; and making the on-demand experience more intuitive and flexible.
Monday, May 3, 3:45pm, Room E3.
Moderator: Dallas Clement, Cox Communications
Panelists: Eric Kessler, HBO; Kip Simonson, Charter Communications; Mark Greenberg, Showtime; Susan Packard, Scripps Networks.

Cable in the Cashroom: Cable CFOs – Chief Financial Officers of prominent cable operators will discuss their efforts to build business plans and drive long-term growth, profitability and shareholder value. They'll offer their take on the potential of the many new services made possible today by cable's broadband pipe.
Tuesday, May 4, 11:00am, Room E1.
Moderator: KC Neel, CableWorld Magazine
Panelists: Landel Hobbs, Time Warner Cable; Jimmy Hayes, Cox Communications; John Abbot, Insight Communications; John Alchin, Comcast Corporation.
Now Featuring ARPU the Wonder Puppy: Financial Analysts on Cable – The nation's best financial analysts present their insightful assessments of the cable and telecommunications industry.
Tuesday, May 4, 2:00pm, Room E2.
Moderator: Dinni Jain, Insight Communications
Panelists: Douglas Shapiro, Bank of America Securities LLC; Raymond Lee Katz, Bear, Stearns & Co., Inc.; Richard Bilotti, Morgan Stanley Dean Witter; Aryeh Bourkoff, UBS Securities.

2004 – This is Cable's Interactive Year! – Cable operators and programmers will take an in-depth look at the state of interactive television today by sharing their ITV successes, challenges and what they've learned along the way. Demonstrations of actual iTV deployments also will be presented.
Tuesday, May 4, 2:00pm, Room E3.
Moderator: John Roberts, GSN
Panelists: Matthew Murphy, ESPN; Patricia Armstrong, Time Warner Cable; Patrick Donoghue, Cablevision Systems Corp.; Steve Heeb, Comcast Cable Communications; Todd Walker, Gemstar TV Guide; Tyrone Lam, Buzztime Entertainment.

Bit 'o Money: VoIP, Cable's Sweetest New Fiber-Rich Offering – Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) is arguably cable's hottest new service. This session will focus on what's required to get into the voice business directly or through partnerships; how to structure voice service offerings; how to market the service; and how to manage customer expectations.
Tuesday, May 4, 3:45pm, Room E2.
Moderator: Matt Stump, Multichannel News
Panelists: Thomas Cullen, Charter Communications; David Pugliese, Cox Communications; Gerald Campbell, Time Warner Cable.

Additional, up-to-the-minute information for The National Show is available on its official web site (www.thenationalshow.com) or from the NCTA Department of Industry Affairs (202/775-3669).

 

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