Do Your Bit, Vote for the Brits in the SXSW 2011 Panelpicker

Ian's book "Juggle" changed the way I think about business.  I found his treasure at South by Southwest 2009.  What a gift it was to be at his Interactive conversation panel and meet him the following year at SXSW 2010.

Hi,

Here's a few more too!

White Noise or White Stripes,Vanessa McDonald, Ballou PR, 

The music industry is facing a bleak future according due to its lack of acceptance of the online world and its failure to deal with piracy effectively. Instead of embracing new technologies, many music firms have turned to working with Governments to threaten persistent downloaders. Is this the right approach, or should record companies be looking at companies such as Spotify, You Tube and Hype Machine to learn about reaching the digital natives and recreate the glory days of the past? The panel would also explore the rise in social media as a pool for talent and whether the rise in shows such as X Factor and Pop Idol have led to an increase in would be musicians sharing their work online, or whether the demise of My Space has also led to the death of social musicians. Has this made it harder for music companies to find talent or simply given them a wider pool to chose from? Do record companies take this talent seriously or just see it as white noise?
 
Evolution in the Film Industry: Fact or Fiction?, Vanessa McDonald, Ballou PR

Unlike many other industries, such as music, fashion and media the film industry is evolving at a much slower pace. It has no real plans in place to deal with online piracy and sharing, instead focusing on new technologies such as 3D to reignite peoples passion for the cinema. Is this enough? Many downloaders’ would argue that they aren’t concerned about 3D or other visual aspects and are happy to watch a less than perfect copy instead, as it saves them both time and money. What should the industry be doing to recognise this? Whilst companies like Lovefilm have exploited this new online world to create a successful business offering, many others are falling behind the trend and aren’t taking the issue seriously. Assuming that big budget movies will entice people back to the big screen. But will it? And what are the areas film makers and productions houses should be looking at instead?

 Communication and Innovation: Does Culture Still matter?, Max Niederhofer, White Bear Yard

An in-depth exploration from panellists on how innovation and communication differs from country to country. Panellists will discuss and provide insight into the barriers currently affecting innovation and communication in countries across the world and how we can learn from one another as we continue to move forward and evolve in these capacities at the global level. The panel will also discuss how the rise of the internet and related technologies have facilitated the ease of bridging any barriers affecting multicultural innovation and communication and how they have ultimately created a new set of rules for doing business.

The Privacy Pirates, Colette Ballou, Ballou PR

You wouldn’t give a stranger your purse or your passport, so why are we sharing just as much online now? From the recent example of a woman who shared her miscarriage on Twitter to the controversy surrounding Facebook privacy settings, people are beginning to be very aware of the news they share online and what they want to remain. Yet, despite this, there’s a lack of ownership that is astounding. Many feel Facebook has created a service which is slowly taking their privacy away, but continue to share personal information over email, on Twitter, and in many cases now, on blogs. So who are responsible internet companies or consumers?

The Rise of the Digital Native, LJ Rich, Perfect Pitch

As the digital native matures, all forms of traditional media have fallen. From newspapers to the music industry, there is a fight to embrace the online world and remain in business which many have failed. This panel will look at the repercussions of the expectations of the young digital generation on business models, and the failure of the current working generations, many of whom are digital natives to embrace this sphere and change the way we work. Why have we found it so hard to adapt to this way of life, despite growing in a world led by ever changing technology? Or is too early to see change? Will this come with the next wave of leaders who grew up with iPhones and Twitter, using them as both business and leisure tools? It will examine which sectors have actually succeeded with this and how, and discuss how those struggling with the new social landscape can get back on track and embrace the online world with a successful business model. Finally it will debate whether it is really the digital native who has caused this evolution or is the generation who created this technology but failed to utilise it properly?

Has Journalism hit a paywall?, Mike Butcher, Tech Crunch Europe

An in-depth look at the emerging use of paywalls on the internet whether it is viable or not, and whether it will help or hinder the traditional media industry, which is still finding its feet in this new online world. Paywalls have been a controversial topic in the UK this year, with the introduction of a pay wall by one of the UK's national papers, The Times’ website being condemned by others (such as The Guardian in the UK) as unviable and an option that will only lead readers to use other ‘free’ sites. The Times on the other hand argues that those who pay can look forward to more coverage, and more in depth pieces, something which they didn’t have the resources to do before hand, due to the cost of running a site which wasn’t making any money. There have been successes and failures in the US too with Newsday failing at its attempt to initiate a paywall, but the Wall Street Journal being very successful in its attempt. However there is more at stake than just the disagreements between titles; with the rise in free data now readily available on the internet in easy to read formats, a bigger question remains: Has journalism become totally open to all and will the rise in social media commentators and bloggers render journalism extinct.

The Fall of the Mall, Iain Wilson, Shopping.com UK

Shopping companies such as ASOS, who have successfully tapped in to the digital native, bringing the experience and thrill of the department store or mall to the online world. But while companies such as Net-a-porter and Outnet.com have embraced this new model, many retailers have failed to take the opportunity arguing that offline will always exist. Are these companies failing to understand the continuing rise in this sector and how their lack of a satisfactory online service is perceived by their young audience? Hand in hand with this is the change in the industry as a whole. A notoriously hard industry to succeed in it has always been closed to the public, but again, the internet has forced a change. Companies like Just Proud are giving everyone the opportunity to be a part of this world, giving the online community the chance to vote for their favourite designs which go on to be created. The online world has also given independent designers to gain a loyal, global audience – giving them a platform from which they can sell and show their work for little or no cost. Yet the question remains: Have traditional outlets changed? And if they don’t will they soon be usurped by their ever rising online counterparts.

Innovation: The United Kingdom's Best Kept Secret, Stefan Glaenzer, White Bear Yard

This presentation will begin by exploring what exactly innovation is and how is it defined in different sectors/markets around the world. It will also discuss and provide insight into the current myth surrounding whether or not innovation is dead in Europe, where this myth began and why it continues to be perpetuated at the global level. What innovative industries have been most affected by this myth and is it truer for some industries than others. Or, is there no myth at all – has Europe just been better at keeping its talent ‘in-house’.

Hope these help!

 

Hi Sam, you forgot the 3 Made by Many panels:

Good News: Apps, Paywalls, Publishers and Content

News organizations and publishers are walking backwards into the future carrying the cultural and business baggage of 200 years of mass media. Most will die; new models will arise. In the next half decade we expect a wholesale change in the way news is produced and consumed and by the end of this period we’ll know the answer to the question: “If we had never had mass media, what would journalism look like today?” A panel of individuals involved in news innovation looks at the issue from all sides and plots a path from old to new models of sharing what we need to know.

Daddy, You Should Tweet That: Parenting Goes Digital

The parenting web is on fire, with more parents tweeting and more family sites and services launching every month. Social media is fast becoming a huge part of modern parenting, but to what end? Is it here to wreck or revolutionize family time? Is there money to be made in this market, or are savvy parents marketing-proof? A panel of agencies and service designers will explore a series of projects to identify mistakes made, lessons learned, and future directions for the parenting web.

The Last of the Launch-and-Leave ‘Ems

Negotiating the new handover. Agencies are building fewer static campaign-oriented sites and more platforms, communities and services. Cutting the apron strings between agency and digital product immediately after launch doesn’t make practical sense, but maintaining the relationship indefinitely is costly for the client and creatively stifling for the agency. This panel will explore solutions that are most likely to be beneficial to both parties as well as the members of the service they are trying to build: a new plan for launch, propagation and perpetuation.

Thanks!

Thanks very much for taking the time to put this together, Sam! Looks like some really great panels from British companies this year. Best of luck to everyone :-)