LA VOX January 8, 2002

Larta will premiere and discuss Hollywood Unstrung 2 at a very special launch event at The Robert Zemeckis Center for Digital Arts, USC. Attended by leaders of the technology and entertainment industry, this evening event will feature a panel session, Digital Cinema: Hollywood's Emerging Challenge, opened by Dean Elizabeth Daley of the USC School of Cinema and Television. Other speakers include:

Bob Dowling, Publisher, Hollywood Reporter
Robert Mayson, General Mgr., Kodak Digital Entertainment
Chris Cookson/Darcy Antonellis, Technology Operations, Warner Brothers
Mark Kapczynski, Principal Consultant, Microsoft Media-Entertainment Randy Starr, Vice President, Business Development, Cinesite

The event takes place Thursday, January 24, from 6:00-9:30 pm, at the Stanley Kubrick Stage at the Zemeckis Center, 3131 South Figueroa, across from the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles. The panel session takes place from 7-8 pm, followed by a digital screening and networking session afterwards. The cost of admission is $35, $6 for parking. Appetizers served, cash bar. Attendance is limited. For questions, call 310.402.8854
Click to register online

Larta University 2002
January 16 & 17
Attacking the Market:
Marketing and Selling Your Product

A business can fail or flourish depending on how well its product is marketed. Effective marketing is about establishing, building or protecting an organization's reputation through partnerships, the recruiting of talented professionals and effective strategies that make a product stand out. This workshop covers publicity and marketing strategies, from brand placement to consumer contact, to creative alliances. Featured speakers include: Farida Fotouhi (FA2 Alonso and Associates), Tracy Williams (Casey Sayre and Williams), and Grey DeFevere (Grubb and Ellis).
click here for more information on this workshop and other 2002 Larta University sessions

Why Should a Tech Company Care About Branding?
by Farida Fotouhi, CEO, FA2/Fotouhi Alonso, and speaker at the January 16 and 17 Larta University workshop, Attacking the Market: Marketing and Selling Your Product.
Isn't branding just for consumer marketers? Why care about branding when you have a kick-butt technology that speaks for itself? Well, people don't just buy products. They buy brands. Brand perception is one of the key factors that determines whether someone will purchase your technological product or not.
click here for the full article

Ram Gayakwad Remembered
Larta is sad to announce the untimely and tragic death of a friend, Ram Gayakwad, President of Mt. Sierra College in Monrovia, California.
click here to read the obituary

Other News Articles

Sponsored by:

Internet liberation theology
A generation ago, a communications scholar named Ithiel de Sola Pool wrote "Technologies of Freedom: On Free Speech in an Electronic Age." Pool's book, which quickly became required reading in graduate seminars, predicted a future of interconnected computers. Pool imagined a world where government would no longer license carriage, as it did with the telephone companies, or content, as it did with the broadcasters. The world of networked computers would become the platform for new forms of commerce and new types of publication. In "The Future of Ideas" Lawrence Lessig explains why ham-handed efforts to increase copyright protection are a threat to freedom and prosperity.
click here to read the full article from Salon.com

Pay-for-Performance Trade Promotions Can Ease Friction Between Manufacturers and Retailers
The former head of Procter & Gamble’s U.S. operations, Durk Jager, recently characterized the existing trade promotion system between manufacturers and retailers as "impossibly inefficient." He may well speak for many manufacturers, and retailers too. A common practice in the packaged goods sector, trade promotion involves manufacturers giving cash or a discount to retailers in hopes that the retailer will in turn discount or promote their product to consumers. The arrangement, also found in the apparel, shoe and electronics industries, is a major source of friction between the two parties.
click here to read the full article from Knowledge at Wharton

Recently released from Larta: Hollywood Unstrung 2
The Emerging Digital Challenge: D-Cinema and Beyond

"A worthwhile addition to the rather slim canon of digital cinema publications." -Screen Digest

Larta's new research report examines the future direction of digital cinema as well as other technologies influencing the entertainment industry, including interactive entertainment, online content, digital audio, and digital production. The report features interviews with key figures in the industry including:
click here for more information on this report
click here to download the executive summary for free

SCTVF 2002 Applications Now Open
Larta is accepting applications for the 2002 Southern California Technology Venture Forum (SCTVF) through February 1, 2002. SCTVF, now in its 8th year, is the longest running and most prominent Forum of its kind in California, having jumpstarted over $400 million in investment financing for companies. If you are selected to present, you will be assigned a seasoned mentor team to meet with weekly in order to refine your presentation and business plan and prepare you for your presentation at SCTVF 2002 on April 18.
click here for more information

Larta asks for your help! California Technology & Innovation Awards, 2002
Please send in your nominations for outstanding programs, organizations and individuals ASAP-- deadline extended to January 11. The Division of Science, Technology and Innovation of the State of California's Technology Trade and Commerce Agency has extended the date for nominations to be received for its special 2002 Technology & Innovation Awards. The Awards, expected to number approximately 20, will be announced in Sacramento later this month. They are intended to recognize outstanding organizations, programs, or individuals for the California Technology and Innovation Award.
To download the form, click here.

Caltech Executive Education: Project Management Certificate Program
Project management requires special management techniques and tools for better control and use of time and scarce resources. Caltech's Project Management Certificate Program is designed to help you and your staff develop the insight and skills necessary for effective project management. The Project Management Certificate Program is a progressive sequence of five, two-day courses offered on alternate Saturdays at the Caltech Industrial Relations Center in Pasadena, California. The skills developed in this program apply to large or small projects, product design and development efforts, construction projects, software development, and every kind of effort with firm performance, time, and funding targets. Classes begin January 2002.
click here for more information

Marina Del Rey Commercial Property Available
This offering consists of three buildings, each unique, which may be leased separately, or combined in several ways to accommodate a wide variety of uses. The entire exterior of this campus has just been completely renovatedThe property is located 2 miles west of the 405 Freeway and 1 mile from the Marina Freeway, and is within minutes of LAX and blocks of the Pacific Ocean.
click here for more information

Research Economist/Policy Associate position open at Larta

As our Research Economist / Policy Associate, you will:
* Possess a current and strong knowledge of the technology economy, and a working knowledge of the overall economy, and associated and relevant public policy issues,
* Maintain the collection of data, and develop relevant analysis;
* Oversee, plan, research, and prepare Larta’s reports on the technology economy, including updates of past reports
* Communicate information and knowledge to key influencers (media, investors/sponsors, public officials) and a lay audience
click here for more information on this job opportunity

Other Job Openings:

Riviera Partners is seeking a Part-Time/Intern Intelligence Operative
Riviera Partners, a leader in building senior management teams for emerging growth technology companies, is currently searching for an Intelligence Operative to join our growing team. In this exciting role, you will provide the principals with comprehensive research on the industry sectors that we are targeting. You will create and maintain a digital map of the top companies in targeted industry sectors. You will act as a talent scout employing our proprietary information systems and Internet search tools. You will leverage our extensive network of industry contacts and the telephone to identify the top management talent for our ongoing search assignments.
Submit your resume to jim@rivierapartners.net

This events calendar is provided as a service by Larta about events vetted and endorsed by Larta.

January 15: Caltech/MIT Enterprise Forum Presents Software Venture Strategies: The Peril of Platform Technology
In this session, the Caltech/MIT Enterprise Forum takes a deep look at the peril of platform technology and provides entrepreneurs with perspective for choosing between platform and application-focused strategies.
click here for more information

January 16 & 17: Larta University: Marketing and Selling your Product
A business can fail or flourish depending on how well its product is marketed. Effective marketing is about establishing, building or protecting an organization's reputation through partnerships, the recruiting of talented professionals and effective strategies that make a product stand out. This workshop covers publicity and marketing strategies, from brand placement to consumer contact, to creative alliances.
click here for more information

January 18: Larta Lunchtime Book Talk: The Next Deal: The Future of Public Life in the Information Age
Co-sponsored with the Harvard Club of Southern California, this book talk will feature Andrei Cherny discussing his book The Next Deal: The Future of Public Like in the Information Age. Released in 2001, it became one of the top-selling political books in the nation. The Next Deal lays out a vision for the role of government in the 21st century that meets the demands of the new economy and reflects the outlook of today’s citizens. The Los Angeles Times praised the book as “almost visionary in scope.”
click here for more information

January 22: PDMA SoCal presents Drivers of New Product Development Success: Best Practices from PDMA Research
Firms who implement the best New Product Development (NPD) practices achieve significantly better outcomes than other firms. Over 80% of projects achieve commercial success and achieve sales from new products at a rate that is more than twice that of the rest of the firms. The Best do not succeed by using just one NPD practice, but by effectively using a number of them simultaneously. Come hear directly from University of Illinois Professor Abbie Griffin, editor of PDMA's NPD Best Practices research about current NPD trends and practices. Learn which techniques other firms are using to positively impact NPD success. Compare your firm's practices and determine your strengths and areas of improvement opportunity. 6-9 pm, University Club, University of California at Irvine.
click here for more information

January 24: Larta premiere and discussion of Hollywood Unstrung 2 at The Robert Zemeckis Center For Digital Arts, USC
Attended by leaders of the technology and entertainment industry, this evening event will feature a panel session, Digital Cinema: Hollywood's Emerging Challenge, opened by Dean Elizabeth Daley of the USC School of Cinema and Television. Other speakers include: Bob Dowling (Publisher of The Hollywood Reporter), Robery Mayson (General Mgr. of Kodak Digital Entertainment), Mark Kapczynski (Principal Consultant of Microsoft Entertainment and Media), Darcy Antonellis/Chris Cookson (Technology Operations at Warner Brothers), and Randy Starr (Vice President, Business Development at Cinesite). More speakers TBA.
Click for more information

Save the Date: April 18th, 2002, Southern California Technology Venture Forum Knowledge and Investment Conference (Application deadline: February 1, 2002)
We expect 2002 to be a watershed year. As we move to more substantial interest in foundation-level technologies, the 2002 conference carries the theme, "Veda: Knowledge at technology's edge." This illustrates our commitment to imparting and sharing well-grounded knowledge in fields of technology that are likely to be revolutionary in our time. The format of SCTVF has changed to address new opportunities, and to meet the need for information and knowledge about technology trends and market realities. We have selected three defining sectors to spotlight in 2002: Life Sciences, Nanotechnology and Security Technologies. In addition to presenting companies who define technical excellence in these sectors, world-class experts in each of these areas will address the state of the science and share their knowledge about meaningful investment opportunities. 7:30 am-2:30 pm, Regent Beverly Wilshire, Beverly Hills, California.

Copyright © 2001 larta. All rights reserved. Please feel free to forward this newsletter to those who may be interested. Permission to quote any proprietary part of this material is granted given proper credit. Distribution is allowed provided that no modifications are made to the original content.