News & Opinion

Leading career development program embraces virtual format Denver — We are excited to announce that The Cable Center has launched virtual IA for IA Class 8, which begins on June 23, 2020. Virtual IA enables and empowers participants to “Innovate from Anywhere” through interactive remote learning.   IA is one of the industry’s leading career development and educational programs. In this unique 8-week course, participants learn and apply the process of innovation while advancing a real-world project within their companies.   A central tenet of IA is that innovation thrives within constraints. In these times of uncertainty, it is more important than ever for workforces to possess the skills to quickly adapt to changing circumstances.   “IA itself is innovating and adapting to the changing business environment. For Class 8, and potentially future classes, we made the decision to move IA to a virtual-only format to enhance its accessibility while ensuring the safety of our participants,” said Janice Silver, VP of programs and marketing at The Cable Center. “We have extensive experience engaging our participants over Zoom and Slack during the remote portion of IA. We believe we can preserve the value of live instruction, peer-to-peer collaboration, and applied learning as we expand the virtual portions to include the kick-off and capstone.”   With virtual IA, participants from across the globe can experience this groundbreaking program together, even though physically apart. “We are proud to make this development opportunity fully accessible, streamlined, and safe by employing the innovation that IA embodies,” added Jana Henthorn, Cable Center CEO and president. “These are unprecedented times and we are all in(novating through) this together.”   To learn more about the Intrapreneurship Academy visit The Cable Center's website.

Charter Communications, Inc. (NASDAQ:CHTR) today announced that it has adopted OpenSync, the world’s fastest-growing open-source initiative enabling the curation, delivery and support of services, and management of devices throughout the smart home. Enhanced by Charter, OpenSync powers Spectrum’s Advanced In-Home WiFi service.   OpenSync is a highly versatile cloud technology that is portable across various leading router operating systems. OpenSync enables third-party smart home services to be rapidly and broadly deployed across consumer premise equipment from multiple vendors through a common software framework. Charter is porting OpenSync to its latest WiFi router platforms and is committed to continuous enhancement of the software to rapidly deploy and support leading third party applications – including whole home WiFi, intelligent AI driven security and advanced parental, guest controls and more – to provide a state-of-the-art service and enhanced customer experience.   “Advanced In-Home WiFi provides Spectrum Internet and WiFi customers with the ability to optimize their home networks, offering both detailed insights and providing greater control of their connected devices to deliver an unmatched home WiFi experience,” said Rich DiGeronimo, Charter’s Chief Product and Technology Officer. “Integrating our core advanced technology and leading WiFi router with the OpenSync cloud platform and software stack allows us to nimbly deliver best-of-breed features and services. Approximately 300 million devices are connected to our vast network, and we take seriously our responsibility to deliver fast, reliable service, while protecting and securing our customers’ online private information.”   “Leveraging OpenSync, Charter has taken a bold step by decoupling the curation and delivery of smart home services from the CPE hardware, gaining a massive time-to-market and scalability advantage,” said Fahri Diner Co-founder and CEO of Plume. “We are honored to see that one of the most innovative and forward thinking service providers in the world has chosen to build a one-of-a kind consumer experience management platform using OpenSync.”   Spectrum recently launched Advanced In-Home WiFi in Austin, TX providing new Spectrum Internet with WiFi customers’ greater control and visibility into their home WiFi networks, including the ability to see all connected devices and to pause internet access to any single device. Customers also benefit from a single SSID for both the 2.4 and 5 GHz bands, seamless steering between those bands to ensure optimal connectivity, and remote telemetry providing Charter service representatives heightened ability to identify and resolve issues to provide superior customer support. Additional features are expected to launch in the coming months including parental controls and additional functionality to provide greater security of in-home networks.   Advanced In-Home WiFi features are accessible through the My Spectrum App, the top-rated wireline support app in the country. Spectrum will launch Advanced In-Home WiFi in a number of additional markets this year, with broader roll-out planned in 2020.

PRSA Los Angeles’ Board Selects Bob Gold to be Honored at the 2019 PRism Awards in Los Angeles Bob Gold, President and CEO of Bob Gold & Associates, a Southern California boutique public relations and marketing agency, has been voted by the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) Los Angeles Board of Directors to be honored as the 2019 Communications Professional of the Year to be presented at the Los Angeles PRism Awards celebration on October 15 at the Taglyan Complex in Hollywood.   Bob Gold was selected for the program’s most distinguished individual accolade, Communications Professional of the Year, for his outstanding leadership and management skills, innovation and creativity, and unparalleled impact and outcomes for clients, as well as his commitment to important causes, charities and mentorship of young professionals. His award will be presented by longtime friend, KTLA-TV News anchor, Glen Walker. “To be recognized by peers is the ultimate compliment for every professional,” said Gold. “This honor is entirely unexpected, and deeply appreciated.” With over 30 years of experience in public relations and marketing, Gold’s impact on the industry and results for his clients are internationally recognized. The firm has recently been on a tear, adding new clients, staff and partners around the world. In the past year, the company has been recognized as the #2 Boutique PR Firm by Clutch, #13 PR firm in Los Angeles by O'Dwyer's, #2 B2B Advertising and Marketing Firm in Los Angeles by Clutch, and one of the Most Innovative and Attractive Work Environments by Cablefax. Bob Gold founded and manages Bob Gold & Associates, one of the premier independent integrated communications public relations agencies in the country.  The agency’s specialty is being experts at the nexus where video content meets technology and distribution. He has also helped raise millions of dollars for charities, taught hundreds of students and helped further strategic business plans for numerous businesses and associations. Throughout his career, Gold has helped launch dozens of companies, re-branded many others and created countless successful campaigns for companies ranging from start-ups to Fortune 500 companies. Gold is also the Co-Founder & Managing Partner of Hemisphere Technologies Inc., a Nevada corporation, which is dedicated to investing in publicly traded and privately held technology companies. Gold has extensive experience in small and large-scale transactions and works as a key member engaged in all aspects including sourcing, evaluating, structuring, monitoring, and, where applicable, harvesting investments. Gold is also a published author of a popular children’s picture book, The Shiny Penny. Gold holds many honors including being inducted into the Cable TV Pioneers along with Comcast’s Brian Roberts, CNN’s Ted Turner and other notables. He holds a Master’s degree in Communications Management from the Annenberg School of Communications at the University of Southern California, where he also sits on the Alumni Board of Directors. When he’s not helping others, Gold can usually be found more than 60 feet underwater on a scuba diving “mancation” with his three sons. PRSA is the world’s largest and most reputable association for public relations professionals. For 55 years, PRSA-LA has been hosting the PRism Awards — the Los Angeles region’s premier awards program recognizing excellence in public relations strategic campaigns and tactical programs. The Los Angeles Chapter of the Public Relations Society of America is comprised of nearly 600 agency, in-house and independent public relations professionals representing LA-area corporations, academic institutions, government agencies and nonprofit organizations.

By Lagwana Tyler, Mediacom Communications As the director of the field support center for Mediacom Communications, the fifth-largest cable operator in the U.S., I was approached by my boss to participate in a leadership training program with a colleague. I immediately jumped onto my computer to learn more about The Cable Center's Intrapreneurship Academy — also known as “IA” — to see what I was getting myself into. Read her full story published in Multichannel News here.

More than 80 video programming company executives will headline the industry’s largest conference in next gen video streaming distributionThe Pay TV Show, the industry’s largest conference dedicated to the next generation of video distribution, has engaged Bob Gold & Associates as its PR Agency. The event brings together nearly 1,000 leading video executives from around the globe.This year’s event will take place May 13 to 15 at The Westin Westminster Hotel, in greater Denver. With a brand new and expanded education program, the conference featuring the leading technology companies and major sponsors, will give attendees the opportunity to take a deep dive io the innovative technologies, strategies and business models that telecom, tech and media companies are using to compete in what has become a marketplace of mayhem. “Bob Gold & Associates is recognized throughout the pay TV industry as one of the leading agencies entirely focused on our space, ” said Kevin Gray, Event Director of The Pay TV Show. “This is the only event in the industry that brings together the entire video distribution ecosystem. It’s an exciting place to be, as cable, wireless, tech and media companies are all converging on a similar path, and we’re looking forward to another sold out show.”Partnered with some of the industry’s leading visionaries, FierceVideo, the official publication and producer of The Pay TV Show, has developed a world-class conference program featuring keynotes, fireside chats, plenary panels, and breakout sessions focusing on Advertising & Data, Content Strategies & Business Models, and UX & Technology. Speakers include industry executives from Comcast, Hulu, Sinclair, Liberty Global, Turner, Charter, Pluto, Xumo, Fox, Sling, Verizon, Sky, T-Mobile, Sony and others. “In just one year, The Pay TV Show has established itself as a true newsmaker event revealing first time insights, trends and opinions that face the industry,” said Bob Gold, president and CEO of Bob Gold & Associates.The Pay TV Show is produced and managed by Questex LLC, owners of FierceVideo and FierceMarkets. Learn more at questex.com.

Content owners, distributors and creators gathered for an important thought leadership breakfast on Tuesday, April 25th at NAB to discuss the rapidly evolving media and broadcast landscapes. The breakfast addressed many of the complex questions facing content owners and end users in the evolving digital media ecosystem for delivering interactive, anyscreen experiences.Cisco and its technology partners, including Intel, Grass Valley and Presidio, were joined by the chair of the Producers Guild of America New Media Council, for a panel discussion “IP, OTT, OMG!” which featured many of the innovative challenges which must be addressed by the industry in the next five to 10 years, including: Tipping the scale: How do you easily scale digital distribution of live and premium content?IP for Anyscreen TV: Broadcast video functions and processes are shifting to IP and cloud/virtualization; What does the optimized future supply chain across the ecosystem (production to distribution) look like? How does it open up more revenue sources?Managing Expectations: How do media companies manage expectations for next gen technologies including Ultra HD and Virtual Reality? Watch the video below to see and hear what they had to say. Also available on FierceVideo here - https://www.fiercevideo.com/sponsored/ip-ott-omg-cisco-partners-nab-thought-leadership-breakfast