by Carla Dórea Bartz
In August, for the second consecutive year, the NAB Show will be present at the SET Technology Congress, with talks and conferences not to be missed, which will be introduced to Brazil by the NAB Show Collaborative program.
“For NAB, this initiative is about sharing knowledge with special partners like SET”, Saleha Williams, public relations officer for the NAB Show explains in this interview.
SET – What is NAB Show Collaborative?
Sahela Williams – The NAB Show Collaborative is a series of international programs and partnerships with key partner associations like SET, in Brazil, as well as GSMA in Barcelona, and CABSAT in Dubai. The purpose is to really bring the best speakers and the best content on a global scale and collaborate with other partners locally in their region. We have a series of speakers down in Brazil to talk about what is happening in the industry and share their insights and knowledge between SET and NAB.
SET – How long has this partnership between NAB and SET existed?
SW – SET has had a relationship with NAB for many years. I think maybe 17 or 18 years already. So, last year, NAB Show launched the NAB Show Collaborative Program and the reason for that was to work closer with other associations and partnerships and to really share what they know, what was happening at NAB and what was happening in other partnerships. The collaborative series was launched in February, 2014, in Barcelona, then went to CABSAT and came down to Brazil to SET EXPO.
SET – Why is this program so important to NAB?
SW – It is important. We share what is happening across the globe and really make that work on a level that is much more engaging and innovative through conference contents, videos, interviews that are happening here in Las Vegas, Barcelona or in Brazil.
SET – There are many trade shows across the globe. Why choose SET EXPO?
SW – I think it is because SET and NAB have always had a special relationship and they respect each other in the industry. For NAB, this is really about sharing within the industry and they want to share with a special partner in Brazil, which is SET: people who value innovation, ideas and the sharing of information to really help grow the industry as the whole. Therefore, NAB is the first to do this. Other shows have had their own events, so they go to a country and they set up a new show or a new conference. However, NAB didn´t want to do that. They wanted to collaborate, in the region, with the best partner. In this case, it is SET.
SET – What are the main activities of the NAB Show Collaborative?
SW – We have a series of conference tracks that run as supplement to the main program that SET runs. So, we have keynote speakers. Our speakers have included Facebook, Twitter, Google as well as more traditional companies like Ericsson, ESPN and ChyronHego. We have a range of broadcasters, content providers, producers, and distributers and we bring them to talk, share and debate. We also have a dinner for those speakers so they get to meet their peers in Brazil and, in exchange, they agree to speak at the SET Conference. We then film all of the sessions and interview all the speakers when then goes on line at the NAB Show Collaborative website. We also share this material with SET. So, even if you cannot make it to the show, later on you are still able to see the videos and the interviews of what was presented and spoken.
SET – Can you give us a hint about what will be presented at SET Conference in 2015?
SW – So, we are widening the scope in terms of speakers. We are spanning the media, advertisement and entertainment industry as a whole, not just the broadcasting industry (I can´t say who, not yet, until we formally announce it). They can talk about how content and video content is changing the dynamics of advertising and television as well as video, IP, mobile, multiplatform content delivery, creation, and distribution.
SET – According to NAB Show statistics, the Brazilian delegation is the biggest foreign delegation to visit the show. In your opinion, why does this happen?
SW – Because, I think, Brazil is such a huge market and there is so much opportunity in the media industry and in the broadcasting industry. You have some of most amazing events, like the Olympics, the World Cup. Broadcasters, content providers, producers and even cell companies and mobile networks really want to know how they capture the market and provide the best content. In order to do that they come to the NAB Show to see the latest cameras, equipment, solutions, vendors and providers and to hear from other speakers and leaders in the media and entertainment industry who speak here at the NAB Show in Las Vegas.
SET – How was the show this year?
SW – The show this year was phenomenal. We have had over 100,000 people, from all over the globe. They come from everywhere, not only from the States. I don´t know the exact number represented, but I think it is around 32 countries, maybe more, international delegations just like yourself and others from Europe, Asia, India. The conferences have been amazing. We had film producers, filmmakers, broadcasters, news people, media people, advertising, mobile and telecommunications. NAB Show has really grown to become a truly convergent show in terms of knowledge, products, opportunity and networking. So people come here and meet the best professionals in the industry as well as seeing the best products and hearing the latest innovation news, business and commercial models taking place in this market.
SET – It seems also that content has become the center of the show. In your opinion, why is this happening?
SW – I think this is because we all know that the content is king. People crave content. This is the theme of our show this year at NAB Show. Crave content. You want to be able to see your content on a mobile phone, on a tablet, on a television, on a computer, on an Apple watch maybe, so people want great content and content is at the center of our industry. Being able to produce the best content with the highest quality and be creative in doing that and put that across multiple platforms are key to the industry and it is where the industry is going. So, I think it isn´t just a trend in terms of content being at the center of that. It is critical that content is at the center of a show such as NAB as well as showing the technologies that enable that content to be made or distributed or managed in whatever way it needs to be used.
SET – The word SET is the acronym for the Brazilian Society of Television Engineering and NAB stands for the National Association of Broadcasters. However, these names seems to limit the range of activities they engage in nowadays. Should they use only the acronyms?
SW – There is so much brand equity in the name SET or NAB that I think a lot of people these days have shortened them to NAB or SET in terms of what they cover. So, I think that, for younger people, using the acronym doesn´t matter to them because they know NAB is the best place to be. It is the biggest showcase in the world. The NAB themselves lobby and work across all areas, not just broadcasting. So, I think it is a good question and I think it is a question of what works for the markets and maybe shortening it is just easier and quicker, since it is much more than broadcasting.
SET – Finally, why go to SET EXPO e see the NAB Show Collaborative conferences?
SW – The NAB Show Collaborative is bringing the best speakers on media and entertainment around the world to Brazil. So, if you are not there, you won´t be able to see, hear, touch, feel, and really understand the very latest and very best of what is happening across the world in media. If you are not at the SET Expo, you will be missing out big time.
More about NAB Show Collaborative: http://collaborative.nabshow.com/about