Amateur Hour Conference November 2, 2007

About:

From television (YouTube and Revver) to advertising (Craigslist and consumer-made TV ads), movies (Machinima), photography (Flickr and iStockPhoto), encyclopedias (Wikipedia and UrbanDictionary), and news (blogs and citizen journalism) technology is enabling amateurs to produce and distribute high-quality product that people want to
watch, read, consume, buy, and re-use. This type of media is sometimes labeled “user-generated”, “amateur”, or “peer-produced” content, and there has been a huge amount of discussion on why people produce it. Any number of commentators have suggested that this is a fundamental change in the way that media is produced, and have foretold a future full of people producing media for the love of it. For all the overblown rhetoric, it’s clear that many established assumptions in media are now being overturned.

What isn’t as clear is what happens to existing media businesses in the age of the amateur. What has been the response of these businesses in light of the rise of the amateur, and what should be their response? Media and entertainment businesses companies are faced with a range of business, legal and management issues that are both new and challenging. The time is ripe to ask what to do about this, and what happens next.

And so we convened this conference. It brings together many of the players in this new media environment to discuss the present and future of user generated content and existing media businesses. Among the questions that we will ask are:

* What are the innovative legal arrangements that can be deployed to channel amateur production and distribution for success and profit?

* What are the legal risks in giving your output to people who are not under your control?

* What new business models enable traditional businesses and amateur contributors to collaborate?

* How can new markets for participatory media be created capitalized upon?

* What are the latest tools, technologies and online platforms to enable user-generated creativity and successful business?

* What will the future of media look like, now that certain types of content are dominated by amateurs?

We hope that you enjoy this first Amateur Hour Conference. By bringing together attendees from law, business and technology, the event promises to be educational and entertaining.

Register for the Amateur Hour Conference at
http://www.regonline.com/amhr.

Costs
The cost of attendance is $50.

Interested in CLE Credits?

CLE credits are awarded 1.5 credits per panel, at an additional cost of $60 per panel. NYLS charges $40 per CLE credit to cover the associated administrative costs; thus, 1.5 CLE cost $60.

What are CLE Credits? What if I don't want CLE credits? What if I'm not an attorney?

CLE credits are only for lawyers who want continuing legal education credits. CLE credit is optional; lawyers and non-lawyers are encouraged to attend. If you are an attorney and you don't want the credits, simply refrain from purchasing them when registering. This conference is a very practical business & law conference, and will be fun, educational and worthwhile for anyone connected to the field of media and entertainment.

Schedule:
8:00 – 9:00am
Check-in
Coffee, pastries and fruit available from 8:30am

9:00 – 9:05
Welcome and Opening
Dan Hunter, Visiting Professor of Law, New York Law School

9:05– 10:00
Opening Keynote
Clay Shirky, Adjunct Professor, New York University Interactive Telecommunications Program
Commentator: Molly Beutz, Associate Professor of Law, New York Law School

10:00 – 10:30
Keynote: The Role-Maker's Dilemma, Making Sense of Rights in a Byte-Sized World Dominated by Big Players
Ian Fletcher, Chief Executive, UK Intellectual Property Office

10:30 – 10:45
Coffee Break
Refreshments provided.

Panel 1
10:45 – 12:15pm
Legal and Business Risks to the Media from User Generated Content
This panel will focus on a number of the risks media businesses face in adopting user-generated content. These issues include legal liability, exposure of trade secrets, problems with access and control, and so on. Panelists come from a wide range of media businesses, including press & journalism, network television, and internet distribution for music. [1.5 CLE]*

Panelists:
* Kai Falkenberg, Editorial Counsel, Forbes Magazine
* Heather Moosnick, Vice President of Business Development, CBS
* David Sternbach, Litigation & Intellectual Property Counsel, A&E Television Networks
* Cameron Stracher, Professor of Law, New York Law School (Moderator)
* Rob Weitzner, VP Business Development, Independent Online Distribution Alliance

Lunch Session
12:15 - 1:45

New Opportunities in Amateur Interactive Content

* Curtis Peele, Associate, Latham & Watkins
* Nathan Freitas, Co-creator, Cruxy.com
* Andrés Monroy-Hernández, Graduate Student, MIT Media Lab

Panel 2
1:45 - 3:15
Amateur Content and Television, Broadcast and Networks
Issues emerge for television entities and networks when they encourage the creation of user-generated content. This panel will focus on the legal problems that emerge from such endeavors, including instances where media businesses seek to enforce copyright protection in one part of their business while simultaneously attempting to engage users through interactive creativity elsewhere. [1.5 CLE]*

Panelists:

* Marni Pedorella, Vice President of Intellectual Property, NBC Universal
* Stanley Pierre-Louis, Vice President & Associate General Counsel, Viacom, Inc.
* Lisa Stancati, Assistant General Counsel, ESPN
* Ken Werner, President, Warner Bros. Domestic Television Distribution
* Lori Wentworth Odierno, Adjunct Professor of Law, New York Law School (Moderator)

3:15 – 3:30
Coffee Break
Refreshments provided.

Panel 3
3:30 – 5:00
Advertising, Marketing, Brands and Public Relations
Madison Avenue has been quick to adopt user-generated content in areas like user-produced advertising, viral marketing, and so on. But control over the message is something that marketing, advertising and branding executives/lawyers really care about. Can advertising, PR, marketing and branding cope with these different interests? [1.5 CLE]*

Panelists:
* Lane Buschel, Vice President, Morris-King
* Chris Brogan, Community Developer, Pulver Media
* Caroline McCarthy, Staff Writer, CNet News.com
* Brian Murphy, Partner, Frankfurt Kurnit Klein & Selz, PC; Adjunct Professor of Law, New York Law School (Moderator)
* Martin Schwimmer, Moses and Singer, The Trademark Blog

5:00 – 7:00

Cocktail Reception

Official Website: http://www.nyls.edu/pages/5851.asp