Future of media discussed

Digital and traditional media are complementing each other. “Digital transformation will never end, but it doesn’t need to be zero-sum disruption,” said Paul Lee, Partner and Global Head of Research for the technology, media, and telecommunications (TMT) industry at Deloitte, speaking at  the two-day media summit, which kicked off yesterday at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel, Doha.
The 'Future of Media – Leaders’ Summit' is organised by Al Jazeera Media Network (AJMN) under the patronage of H E Sheikh Hamad bin Thamer Al Thani, its Chairman,  with international broadcast industry leaders, CIOs, ICT professionals and media experts discussing how business and innovation are affecting the future of media.
In his keynote speech during the opening, Lee added that “it doesn’t have to be them versus us; it can be them and us”. The conference comes within the framework of AJMN's continuous keenness to keep abreast of the great developments witnessed by the media technologies, content publishing platforms and ways to reach the public, said Sheikh Hamad bin Thamer Al Thani in his opening remark.
The event represents an opportunity to learn about the latest technologies used in various fields of media and to discuss challenges facing media professionals and technicians to cope with the rapid technological development, Sheikh Thamir added, expressing hope that the event will be an opportunity for coming up with important recommendations and guidance that would pave for a better anticipation of the future of media and preparation for the expected changes in the nature of this field.
Shiekh Hamad bin Thamer Al-Thani praised the efforts being exerted by AJMN's partners in organizing the event, including Microsoft, Cisco, Avid, Commvault, Tech Mahindra, SIP, Smart Global and the Ministry of Transport and Communication and their support to transform the Conference from idea into reality.
The Summit is the first of its kind in the region, on the model of similar events held in the Netherlands and Las Vegas.
Lee’s speech was followed by a panel discussion on how media organisations are adapting to digital transformation.
How Al Jazeera has constantly adapted to changing technology over its 20-year history was a topic presented by Mohamed Abuagla, CIO/CTO of Al Jazeer Media Network. “Transformation has to be holistic, involving people, processes and technology,” he said pointing out that “to become more transformative, you need to become a service provider.”
Rainer Kellerhals, Industry Lead for Media and Cable EMEA at Microsoft, spoke on cloud and cognitive computing’s impact on newsrooms; and Jeff Rosica, President and CMO of Avid Technologies, discussed transforming and unifying workflows with a platform approach.
The discussion ended with a case study about Sinclair’s digital reinvention of contribution and distribution presented by Delbert Parks, CIO of Sinclair Media Group.
The summit concludes today with another full slate of thought leaders. Al Jazeera Executive Director Dr Yaser Bisher will open with a presentation about Al Jazeera’s digital strategy. Mohammed Nanabhai, Deputy CEO at Media Development Investment Fund, will deliver a keynote address on social media’s impact on media, content and audience.
Other speakers scheduled for the final day include Haroon Meer, founder of Thinkst Applied Research; Ken Morse, Media CIO at Cisco Systems; and Mohamed Abuagla, CIO/CTO of Al Jazeera Media Network.