REPORT FROM THE FIELD
Searching and Streaming in New York
By Dick Kaser
Industry analyst John Blossom called it "a huge hit, well-attended and stocked
with expertise and insights from today's leading suppliers and implementers." He
was speaking about Information Today, Inc.'s new Enterprise Search Summit,
which premiered May 11 in New York. But he could have also been speaking about
either of the other two conferences ITI was conducting on the same dates.
Collocated with Enterprise Search Summit were the popular traveling workshop
WebSearch University (WSU) and Streaming Media East, ITI's other new conference
and trade show. All three events took place at the New York Hilton, a venue
that would traditionally have been the scene for ITI's InfoToday conference,
which is on hiatus this year.
Enterprise Search Summit
ITI's first Enterprise Search Summit attracted both the interest and imagination
of information users and technology experts alike. The intensive 2-day program
garnered more than 20 search engine companies as official sponsors and drew
several hundred information and IT professionals to the program sessions, which
at many points were standing room only.
In conjunction with the summit, ITI worked with search engine companies to
develop Enterprise Search Center (http://www.enterprisesearchcenter.com), a
site where the companies are demonstrating how their engines work on ITI's
content. It allows users to test-drive search technologies from Copernic, ISYS,
Mondosoft, Northern Light, and Synomia. More companies are on the way. Registration
is free.
The Enterprise Search Summit covered the building blocks of search, such
as selection and deployment strategies, taxonomy, metadata, and information
architecture. Speakers included Joseph Busch, Avi Rappoport, Martin White,
Sue Feldman, Eric Woods, Tony Byrne, Peter Morville, and Steve Arnold. In addition,
technical specialists from FAST, Endeca, Northern Light, Convera, Inxight,
Google, Open Text, and Verity also provided tutorials on the use of their products.
WSU, Streaming Media East
Now in its fifth year, WebSearch University's New York event continued the
tradition of providing intermediate and advanced Internet searchers and Web
researchers with tools, tips, and techniques for updating and sharpening their
skills in a rapidly evolving search environment.
Streaming Media, acquired by ITI in late 2002, drew more than 2,400 business
executives and streaming media professionals. It showcased the latest in streaming
and digital media technologies, including Webcasting applications, MPEG-4 appliances,
content management systems, IPTV, video-on-demand delivery services, enterprise
software applications, and related technologies.
The Streaming Media East conference sessions, which featured 125 speakers,
have been archived and are available for free, on-demand viewing at http://www.streamingmedia.com/east.
The streaming audio/video library at this site covers all of the meeting sessions,
including keynotes "How to Thrive and Profit in the Digital Media World," by
Amy Lipton, director of marketing at IBM Digital Media, and "Digital Home:
Emerging Opportunities in IPTV," by Chris Wimmer, IPTV product marketing manager
at Microsoft's TV division. Visitors to the site will also have access to the
PowerPoint slides from Steve Mack's pre-conference workshop on best practices
in producing and distributing technology.
The Streaming Media East trade show featured technology demonstrations from
approximately 30 companies. The event's gold sponsor was Mediasite, a company
that offers turnkey solutions for digital production facilities.
What's on Tap
The next Streaming Media conference, Streaming Media West 2004, will be held
Oct. 26—28 in Santa Clara, Calif.
The next WebSearch University will be held Sept. 27—28 in Washington,
D.C.
The next Enterprise Search Summit will be held in New York in May 2005.
And stand by for word about the return of a new Information Today, Inc. event
to be the official successor of the InfoToday conference.
Dick Kaser is Information Today, Inc.'s vice president of
content. His e-mail address is kaser@infotoday.com.
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