SPRING 2021
The Entertainment Technology Center at USC produced its second series of virtual “executive coffee discussions” during the Spring 2021 semester. These one-hour discussions provide an opportunity for students and ETC member company executives to connect and discuss topics of mutual interest during this period of remote learning and social distancing. For each session an executive posed one question or topic, students from across USC submitted brief statements of interest, and the ETC invited between 6 and 12 students to participate in the Zoom meeting. Each session was recorded and a 6 – to 10 -minute highlight video was produced. The sessions were:
- Verizon – “Expectations for entertainment and UX/UI” (March 15)
- Verizon – “What comes after Zoom and entertainment apps” (March 24)
- Warner Bros. – “AI and ethics” (March 30)
- Disney – “The future of immersive media storytelling” (April 7)
- Warner Bros. – “The post-pandemic future of virtual production” (April 21)
VERIZON
Serhad Doken, Executive, Innovation and Product Realization, Verizon Consumer Group
Discussion topic: Expectations for the Future of Entertainment and UI/UX Design (9 minutes)
ETCentric article: ETC Executive Coffee: Verizon on the Future of Entertainment
VERIZON
Sanyogita Shamsunder, VP Product Strategy, Innovation, and Operations
Andrew Herson, Head of Multi-Access Edge Computing
Zachary Drossman, Head of Concept Development, 5G Labs
Discussion topic: What comes after “Zoom” and Entertainment Apps? (6.5 min)
ETCentric article: ETC Executive Coffee: Verizon Execs Discuss Life After Zoom
WARNER BROS.
Renard Jenkins, VP Content Transmission and Production, WarnerMedia
Michael Zink, VP Emerging and Creative Technologies, WarnerMedia
Discussion topic: AI and Ethics (10 min)
ETCentric article: ETC Executive Coffee: Warner Executives Discuss AI, Ethics
DISNEY
Mark Mine, Director of the Technology Innovation Group at The Walt Disney Studios
Daniel Baker, Sr. Producer of Technology Innovation – Interactive Experiences, The Walt Disney Studios
Discussion topic: The Future of Immersive Media Storytelling (9 min)
ETCentric article: ETC Executive Coffee: Disney on Immersive Media Storytelling
WARNER BROS.
Ryan Beagan, VP of Virtual Production at WarnerMedia
Discussion topic: The Post-Pandemic Future of Virtual Production (8 min)
ETCentric article: ETC Executive Coffee: Warner on Future of Virtual Production
FALL 2020
The Entertainment Technology Center at USC produced a series of virtual “executive coffee discussions” during the Fall 2020 semester. These one-hour discussions provide an opportunity for students and ETC member company executives to connect and discuss topics of mutual interest during this period of remote learning and social distancing.
For each session an executive posed one question or topic, students from across USC submitted brief statements of interest, and the ETC invited between 5 and 16 students to participate in the Zoom meeting. Each session was recorded and an 8- to 13-minute highlight video was produced.
The sessions were hosted by Verizon (September 23), Universal Pictures (September 29 and October 9), Fox Corporation (October 14), Equinix (October 22), ETC execs (October 29), Vubiquity (November 4) and Dolby Labs (November 12).
Albert Lao, Executive Director of Solutions Architecture for the Americas, Verizon Business Group
Discussion topic: How will advances in network technology over the next 36 months impact the way we watch movies, play videogames, and create and produce immersive and engaging experiences? (~8 minutes)
ETCentric article: ETC Executive Coffee: A Discussion with Verizon’s Albert Lao
Michael Wise, SVP and CTO Greg Reed, VP Technology Partnerships Lindsey Townley, Media Technology Manager
Discussion topic: What’s the future of entertainment — in your hands, on a wall, and in the world around you? (~8 minutes)
ETCentric article: ETC Executive Coffee: Universal Execs on Consumer Behavior
Annie Chang, VP of Creative Technology Lindsey Townley, Media Technology Manager
Discussion topic: What kind of engaging entertainment experiences do you want to create, and how do you expect them to be created? (~11 minutes)
ETCentric article: ETC Executive Coffee: Universal Execs Talk Content Creation
Michael Park, VP, FOX Digital Marketing – Analytics, Planning, Research and Social Refinery
Discussion topic: What is the future of streaming entertainment, TV consumption, interactivity, engagement, advertising, marketing, and e-commerce? (~13 minutes)
ETCentric article: ETC Executive Coffee: A Discussion with Michael Park of Fox
Kaladhar Voruganti, Vice President, Technology Innovation and Senior Fellow Doron Hendel, Global Business Development, Ecosystem Development, Partnerships and Alliances
Discussion topic: AI development and Ethics: what are the intended and unintended consequences of the rollout? (~11 minutes)
ETCentric article: ETC Executive Coffee: Equinix Ponders Consequences of AI
Phil Lelyveld, Director, Immersive Media Experience
Discussion topic: Production in the cloud for M&E: content creation, distribution, and analytics (~10 minutes)
ETCentric article: ETC Executive Coffee: Students, Execs Talk Cloud Resources
Darcy Antonellis, CEO
Discussion topic: The state of higher education and how the educational experience could be improved (~12 minutes)
ETCentric article: ETC Executive Coffee: A Talk with Vubiquity’s Darcy Antonellis
Richard Doherty, Senior Director, Technology Strategy, Office of the CTO
Discussion topics: VR and AR, and cloud processing: what are they good for and what concerns you about them? Privacy, security, and controlling your own data. (~10 minutes)
ETCentric article: ETC Executive Coffee: USC Students Meet with Dolby Execs