RAIN Summit West: Knowledge, networking, and fun

RAIN Summit West is this Sunday in Las Vegas, and there is still time to register before the price goes up. The leading knowledge and networking event of the streaming audio industry, RSW (as we call it in-house) is conveniently co-located with the NAB Show. Many attendees go to both. Our event is at the Westgate Hotel, which is attached to the Las Vegas Convention Center.

This year’s event is a fast-paced series of thought leadership sessions onstage, complementing the industry’s best networking offstage. We build in networking breaks for meeting and greeting. Plus lunch. Plus cocktails by the pool. Plus a raffle drawing by Triton Digital! (Not a virtual drawing; you have to BE THERE.)

The day starts with a keynote address by Ginny Morris, CEO of Hubbard Radio, who brings a formal presentation followed by discussion with Jacobs Media VP Paul Jacobs. And the morning ends with the annual State of the Industry keynote from Kurt Hanson.

In between, a power panel explores data and audience measurement in streaming, key topics for the entire audio ecosystem. Called The Data  Measurement Marketplace, and moderated by AudioHQ CEO Matt Cutair, the discussion will feature:

• John Rosso (President, market Development, Triton Digital)
• Tony Hereau (Vice President of Audience Insights, Nielsen)
• Alexis van de Wyer (CEO, AdsWizz)
• Mike Dougherty (CEO, Jelli)

Westwood One radio prodigy Zach Sang takes the stage for a conversation with Justin Case of Benztown. The Zach Sang Show is a remarkable demonstration of how terrestrial radio can capture the youth demo … but how? What can other shows learn about how to leverage social?

Presslaff Interactive Revenue partnered with RAIN for a survey about audience engagement called Dialing In: How Do You Find The Data Signal? Ruth Presslaff will show the never-seen-before results.

Owen Grover is SVP of iHeartMedia and GM of iHeartRadio. He’ll take the stage for questions from Ted Cohen — raconteur, music industry veteran,  and head of Tag Strategic — in what promises to be a lively, possibly rambunctious conversation.

Then — the famous RAIN legal panel, led by RAIN Summit veteran David Oxenford, a preeminent broadcast law attorney. He and his panelists will demystify the recent CRB ruling, and explain how things are in 2016 and beyond for every streaming entity that plays music. Panelists:

• Curtis LeGeyt (Executive Vice President, Government Regulation, NAB)
• David Levin (Vice President, Digital Licensing – Broadcast Music, Inc. BMI)
• Brad Prendergast (Senior Counsel, Licensing & Enforcement, SoundExchange)
• Kevin Goldberg (Member, Fletcher, Heald, and Hildreth)

After lunch, you’ll want to grab your seat for Larry Rosin, President of Edison Research, who comes packing a lot of fresh research. Larry’s presentation will be Share of Ear in the Car. There is hardly a more pressing topic for radio, and Internet audio services, than how Americans listen to audio while driving.

A new Summit feature called The RAIN Reveal features first announcements from companies in the space. Daniel Anstandig of Futuri Media commands the inaugural RAIN Reveal to announce … well, no spoilers here.

What are the new digital opportunities for radio in 2016? The next session, moderated by RAIN’s Michael Fischer, will explore that question with digital leaders from four radio groups:

• Tom Ricks (Vice President ESPN Audio Digital Strategy and Marketing)
• Ted Gurley (Vice President Digital Sales, Univision)
• Jeremy Sinon (Corporate Digital Director, Hubbard Radio)
• Stefan Brock (VP, Interactive, Alpha Media)

The irrepressible Norm Pattiz, Founder and CEO of PodcastOne, will leap to the stage next, for a conversation with RAIN President Brad Hill. Soon after starting PodcastOne, Norm Pattiz told RAIN News, “Since there is no industry, I’m doing it myself.” Two and a half years later, how does the industry look from the Pattiz perch, and what are its key challenges?

More podcasting after a coffee/snack/networking break, as industry consultant and dynamic thought-leader Vickie Nauman hosts a panel of leading podcast publishers around the theme, Podcasting at a Pivot Point. Her expert panelists:

• Adam Sachs (CEO, Midroll Media)
• Peter Weingard (Chief Marketing Officer, New York Public Radio)
• Jack Hobbs (President, reVOLVER Podcasts)
• Francesco Baschieri (Founder & CEO, Spreaker)

Can’t get enough research and metrics? We hear you. So does Russ Crupnick, Managing Partner of MusicWatch, who will grab the podium and deliver information about disruptive forces that evolve the audio marketplace.

Speaking of disrupting, speaking of evolving — a trio of streaming startups is coming to Vegas for a showcase hosted by consultant Karen Allen, who is deeply involved in the startup space. Regular readers of RAIN News will recognize them:

• John Reardon (C0-Founder, Musx)
• Thomas Ford (Chief Marketing Officer, Soundrop)
• Thomas Vitale (Founder, Geekin Radio)

The day wraps up with, well, a wrap-up from hosts Kurt Hanson, Brad Hill, and James Cridland. They will focus on brevity, to accommodate crowd sentiment — after all, the next event is rooftop drinks by the Westgate Hotel pool. Hard to compete with the industry’s best cocktail party, at which everyone will get a pair of sunglasses. Not that you aren’t cool already.

Still time to register! Don’t put it off any longer.