The Mobile World Congress in Barcelona is one of those events I'd thought Sheryl and I would make it to, but it just isn't in the cards this year. I'm sharing this release because it makes it clear just what a show this is going to be. The entertainment list is pretty impressive.

I'm hoping with the rising use of QIK on Nokia phones we'll see lots of live streaming video. It's surely an event not to miss.

ENTERTAINMENT INDUSTRY VISIONARY RALPH SIMON
TO MODERATE KEY PANEL AT MOBILE WORLD CONGRESS EVENT

‘Mobile Backstage’ a Joint Production by GSMA, Billboard and The Hollywood Reporter

BARCELONA, Spain, Feb. 7, 2008 – Renowned entertainment industry pundit Ralph Simon, who is widely regarded as one of the founders of the mobile entertainment and ringtone industry and who now consults worldwide on the business of entertainment, will chair the much-awaited discussion event at next week’s Mobile World Congress here.

Simon, founder and president of the Mobile Entertainment Forum of the Americas, will be one of the mobile leaders at “Mobile Backstage,” a joint production by the Global System for Mobile Communication Association (GSMA), Billboard and The Hollywood Reporter for the Mobile World Congress.

Featured speakers during “Mobile Backstage” include Robert Redford, actor and founder of the Sundance Foundation and Film Festival; actress Isabella Rossellini; Will.i.am, of The Black Eyed Peas, and serial entrepreneur Jonathan Medved, CEO of Vringo, Inc., the pioneer in video ringtone sharing. In an interesting juxtaposition, Redford, acclaimed for his association with one of the world’s highest-profile film festivals, will be appearing at the same forum with Medved, whose company is staging the “World’s Tiniest Film Festival” – movies playing on mobile handset screens – in a booth at Mobile World Congress.

Simon will be the interviewer on a panel discussion on innovations in mobile video content and sharing that features Medved; Ty Roberts, chief technical officer of Gracenote; and Rob Lewis, CEO and co-founder of Omnifone.

“Mobile Backstage,” from 8:45 a.m. to 8:45 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 13, will bring together leading figures from the entertainment and mobile industries who are defining where mobile entertainment is today and where it is heading.

Industry insiders from music, film, TV, video-gaming and technology will offer their perspectives on the evolution of mobile entertainment, addressing topics such as: Creating Content for Mobile; Value Chain Control and Compensation; Business Models: A La Carte vs. Subscription vs. Ad-Supported; Custom Mobile Entertainment Research; Innovative Case Studies; and Social Networking on Mobile.

Other speakers during “Mobile Backstage” include:

Bill Gajda, GSMA

Fred Goldring, Hertz & Lichtenstein

Eric Mika, Nielsen

Tamara Conniff, Billboard

Ken Hertz, Hertz & Lichtenstein

Craig Palmer, Gracenote

Rob Lewis, Omnifone

Jeffrey Merrihue, MoFilm

Andrew Wallenstein, The Hollywood Reporter

Jeff Herrmann, Nielsen

Mark Sutherland, Billboard

Jody Shapiro, Canadian filmmaker

Christopher Barry, Sundance Channel

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About Ralph Simon
Ralph Simon is regarded as one of the founders of the modern mobile entertainment industry. After a successful career in records and music publishing, co-founding Zomba & Jive Records, and Executive VP at Capitol & Blue Note Records, he was responsible for starting Yourmobile/ Moviso, the first ringtone company in the United States, United Kingdom, Europe, Africa and Australia, in 1999. He founded the Mobile Entertainment Forum Americas and was named one of the world’s Top 50 executives in mobile entertainment in 2005 and 2006 by Mobile Entertainment magazine. In July 2005, he produced the mobile layer of the Live 8 global concert, and is Executive Mobile Producer of the forthcoming Live Earth global environmental music event. He is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts in the U.K., and a member of the National Academy of Recorded Arts & Sciences in the U.S.