VIPs Share Prowess at Variety TV Summit

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Variety TV Summit 2014
On August 6th, 2014, at the InterContinental Los Angeles Century City hotel, Variety magazine hosted “Tune In: The TV Summit 2014,” a one-day event centered on the television industry.

According to the conference’s official description, “Networks, advertisers, showrunners, production companies, over-the-top channels and services will explore what it means to develop, market, monetize and distribute successful programming for today’s audiences and beyond.”

From 8 a.m. until shortly after 5:30 p.m., noted executives and famed personalities offered talks on a variety of topics shaping the TV landscape.

Here’s what went down for most of the day.

The program began with Marc Juris, President and General Manager for the WEtv network.

“Great stories make great shows, and great shows build great brands,” he explained.



Conan O’Brien, host of TBS’ “Conan,” was also a huge draw. He discussed how social media, and Twitter specifically, changed his life after the Team Coco movement arose in his support years ago.

“I now live in a world where some of my most ardent fans don’t own televisions,” he told the crowd. “At first I was upset by that, and then I realized I had this freedom to reach them in new ways.”




During the mid-morning, “Variety” Editor-in-Chief Cynthia Littleton moderated a panel titled “The Future of the TV Business,” a discussion on methods for success with several TV production leaders.


From Sarah Levy, Chief Operating Officer, Nickelodeon/MTVN Family and Kids Group




From Roma Khanna, President, Television Group and Digital, MGM


Next, a forum described as “The Advancing Frontier of Multi-Platform Pay TV,” was held, where participants discussed streaming, on-demand and OTT video delivery.

“Netflix can make it seem like they have a lot more content than they do,” stated Shelley Wright Brindle, EVP Domestic Network Distribution for HBO. “We somewhat have our hands tied behind our back. We can’t do that.”


From David Levy, Chief Operating Officer of true[X] media



From Steven L. Canepa, General Manager, Global Media & Entertainment Industry, IBM


In the early afternoon, the TV’s Reality Rainmakers panel took place. Executive producers and network head honchos talked about maintaining the genre, as well as concepts that are working in the U.S. and internationally.

From Susanne Daniels, President of Programming, MTV Networks


From Tara Long, SVP US Alternative Programming, eOne TV


The mid-afternoon timeslot was for the “It’s a Digital Jungle Out There: How We Are Driving and Measuring Audiences” conversation. Researchers and social media representatives covered online campaigns and viewership.

From Jared Goldsmith, VP Marketing, Digital, NBC Entertainment


From Tim Gray, President, Gray Media


From Roy Price, Director, Amazon Studios


From Kent Alterman, President, Content Development & Original Programming, Comedy Central


From Betsy Beers, Executive Producer, “Scandal,” “Grey’s Anatomy,” “How To Get Away With Murder”


Before the evening ended, two other seminars took place: one on advertising and channel branding, and another focused on creativity in various TV projects.

To see who else appeared, check out the Variety website.

Author: Brian Cameron


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