Press releases
Brussels-based media innovation think tank Future Media Lab. is pleased to announce the first speakers of its annual conference, titled “Technology and Media: Shaping the Future of Audience Engagement”. The conference will take place on 26 January 2016 in Brussels and features a keynote address by Tom Standage, Deputy Editor and chief digital strategist at The Economist.
“We’re very excited to host again this exclusive event at the interface of media innovation and public policy,” said Max von Abendroth, founder of the Future Media Lab. and Executive Director of the European Magazine Media Association, host of the think-tank. “Technology is driving changes in the media sector like never before: besides going to websites of media brands, citizens access journalistic content through social media, on mobile devices, through aggregators or blogs. Media companies have to work hard to keep up with the speed of technology innovations and get ahead of disruptions when it comes to engaging with the audiences of their content. Regulation can hinder or help these innovations. That is why it is so crucial that we gather media executives, start-ups, academics, journalists and policymakers, in order to create a dialogue that will help develop a policy framework that will allow Europe’s media to continue serving Europe’s citizens with independent, diverse and high-quality, journalistic content.”
The 6th Future Media Lab. Annual Conference on 26 January 2016 will therefore look at:
technology innovations and how they impact and sometimes even disrupt existing markets for media content and advertising;
the ability of media companies to embrace big data and data analytics to stay ahead of innovation and disruption;
changing consumer behaviour when it comes to accessing and consuming media content
a regulatory environment appropriate for sustainable business models for media companies in Europe.
The Future Media Lab. conference is highly interactive and a great networking and learning opportunity. Confirmed speakers include:
Karen Boers, Co-founder and Managing Director, Startups.be (BE)
MEP Dita Charanzová, ALDE, European Parliament (CZ)
Prof. Dr. Christoph Fiedler, Managing Director for European Affairs and Media Policy, VDZ (DE)
MEP Vicky Ford, ECR, European Parliament (UK)
Matthew Kaminsky, Executive Editor of Politico’s European Edition (BE)
Paul Lee, Founder Ecuiti (US and UK)
Christophe Leclercq, Founder, EurActiv (BE)
Roberto Viola, Director General, DG Connect, European Commission
The start-ups involved in the event include:
Eversify – Mobile publishing service that automates the delivery of content to tablets and smartphones and provides a smooth and tailored integration with existing publishing systems and web CMS solutions. (BE)
Enreach - Enreach is trusted by many of the world's most innovative publishers to earn premium revenues from deep audience understanding and high quality content. (FI)
Flockler – Platform that enables brands and publishers to create engaging editorial content and collect social content created by the organisation, employees and their audience. (FI)
Laterpay – Easy micropayments for your favourite content. Use now, pay later. (DE)
Wibbitz – Cleverly re-packages textual content into rich and informative video summaries that can be watched conveniently on mobile screens, at home or on-the-go. (USA)
The event is sponsored by Agfa Graphics with media partners Euractiv and New Business.
The Future Media Lab. was founded in 2012 and aims to build a bridge between the fast-paced innovations in the media sector with long-lasting legislative procedures. In this sense, it is a unique meeting point of media innovation and public policy, regularly bringing together media entrepreneurs, technology start-ups, journalists, academics, European policy makers, and other key stakeholders to debate the future media landscape in Europe. More information about the Future Media Lab. can be found here.
To learn more about the Future Media Lab. Annual Conference 2016, click here.
Update 10/12/2015: Unfortunately, Tom Standage is no longer able to give the keynote address at this event. The Economist is currently working with us to find a replacement speaker.
For further information contact:
Karin Fleming
EMMA Communications Officer
karin.fleming@magazinemedia.eu
+32 2 536 0607
The European Magazine Media Association, is the unique and complete representation of Europe’s magazine media, which is today enjoyed by millions of consumers on various platforms, encompassing both paper and digital formats.
