MCN’s Annual Look At the Best And Brightest In The Business
By MCN Staff — Multichannel News, 3/29/2010 9:24:00 AM
The editors of Multichannel News have chosen 40 movers and shakers under the age of 40 who are helping their companies grow and succeed, while playing an important part in mapping the future of cable and telecommunications. These individuals represent a cross section of a multitude of disciplines: networks, operators, finance, technology, programming, marketing and customer service. But they all have one thing in common: They’ve come a long way in a relatively short time and continue to make invaluable contributions in their areas of expertise. By no means intended as a comprehensive list of young executives to watch, the “40 Under 40” is a sampling of some of the most innovative and influential people helping to shape tomorrow.
BEN WEINBERGER, 31
CEO AND CO-FOUNDER
DIGITALSMITHS
As CEO of Digitalsmiths, Ben Weinberger has developed technology that will help media companies remain profitable in the digital age and maximize the value of their library content. That technology is VideoSense, a studio-grade metadata framework that generates a frame-by-frame, second- by-second digital blueprint of films and television series. In December, Digitalsmiths announced www.ParamountClips.com in conjunction with Paramount Digital Entertainment. This first-of-its kind business-to-business clip-licensing portal connects major brands and other licensees with classic Paramount films like The Godfather and Top Gun. “2010 is going to be a big one. This is the year digital media companies will be able to bring true multiplatform distribution to consumers in a way that is both profitable and scalable,” Weinberger said. “TV Everywhere is a bold move in that direction, and a challenge to the industry at large … Entitlement rights management is central to TV Everywhere and profitability,” he said. “The media company that doesn’t merely survive this transition, but thrives, will be the one that best harnesses premium, time-based metadata.”