The Interactive TV Show Europe takes place in Rome this year. The conference, now in its seventh year, is a key event in the interactive television calendar and is expected to attract several hundred participants from across Europe and around the world.
The two-day conference will be opened by Tom Mockridge, the chief executive of Sky Italia, and the opening address will be from Ian Shepherd, managing director of Sky Interactive in the UK.
Eric Shanks, of DIRECTV will provide an update on developments in the US. Tom Williams, creative director for interactive television at the BBC will discuss what makes good enhanced television. Noel Leslie of the chellomedia division of Liberty Global will examine the role of interactive in driving digital adoption, with particular respect to cable television in Europe.
Siemens is among the sponsors of the event and Stefan Jenzowsky of Siemens Communications will provide a telco perspective on interactive television.
IPTV, or internet protocol television, has been once of the emerging themes of the last year, with a number of initiatives from telecommunications companies and broadband service providers promising to stimulate interest in interactive video services.
Among the other topics to be discussed in parallel streams are design and navigation issues, delivery to television, mobile, web and broadband platforms, on demand services, personal video recorders and interactive advertising.
Confirmed delegates include representatives from broadcasters across Europe and the opportunity to network will be enabled by an afternoon of pre-scheduled speed-dating meetings between delegates.
Among the exhibitors at the event, interactive television software company Ensequence will be formally launching MHP and OCAP support for its on-Q Create authoring tool.
Emuse will also be presenting their competing solution, which also offers support for MHP and OCAP.
MHP, the Multimedia Home Platform standard, has gained considerable support in Italy, partly as a result of state subsidies for compatible set-top boxes.
One of the reasons that the organisers are choosing to host the Interactive TV Show in Rome this year is as a result of recent developments in interactivity in the Italian television market.
Once again, as an official media partner, informitv will be reporting back from the conference.
The 7th Annual TV Show Europe takes place in Rome, 24-25 October 2005.