Mark R. Fratrik, Ph.D. is a Vice President of BIA Financial Network. In that role, he supervises the maintaining of the many BIAfn databases and conducts primary research on various trends as they affect the broadcasting and related communications industries. He is also involved in conducting research and analysis for clients on matters related to the broadcasting and related communications industries.

Prior to joining BIAfn, Mark was with the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) for nearly 16 years as Vice President/Economist. While there, he conducted primary research and wrote several books about the broadcasting and related industries. Before joining NAB in 1985, Mark worked for the Federal Trade Commission in the Bureau of Economics where he spent five years conducting analyses of industry practices to evaluate overall economic impact. Throughout his career, Mark has researched and spoken at numerous conferences on the impact of the economy on the broadcasting industries, proposed and enacted regulatory changes, and new media technologies, including DTV datacasting. Mark is often quoted in the media and is a leading spokesperson concerning trends and forecasts for the media industry including analyzing competitiveness of media and related industries. He is the author of BIAfn’s acclaimed State of the Radio and Television Industry studies produced periodically.

Mark received his B.A. in mathematics and economics from State University of New York at Binghamton and his master’s and doctoral degrees in economics from Texas A&M in College Station, Texas. He currently serves as an adjunct professor of economics at John Hopkins University.

Jim Turner
VP, Product Management
Synacor

Jim Turner has been Synacor’s VP of Product Management since June 2007. Prior to joining Synacor, Turner was VP, Digital Media at A&E Television Networks. Prior to A&E, Turner was Co-founder and President of AvitageMedia. Turner began his career at CBS, and since then has held executive positions at Women.com, Astronet.com, Digital Media Studios (part of Digital Equipment Corporation), and Kurzweil Music Systems. Turner has an M.B.A. in Marketing, University of Connecticut, and Masters and Bachelors degrees in Electrical Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology and North Carolina State University. He holds two patents in the use of computers in music. He is active in the NY Chapter of the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences, and also is a National Trustee.

Moderator:
Mike Grebb
Executive Editor
CableFAX Daily

Michael has written extensively about the cable industry, telecommunications, the internet, and general information technology and business issues for more than a dozen years. His writing has appeared in Wired, Wired News, Business 2.0, Silicon Alley Reporter, Upside, Forbes, Variety, Billboard, Bank Technology News, U.S. Banker, Wireless Week, CableVision magazine and Multichannel News, among others. His expertise includes consumer electronics, the media, the music industry, e-commerce, B2B/e-business, interactive television, online marketing, broadband/telecom infrastructure, and regulatory and legislative issues. Also a musician and songwriter, Mike’s first solo record, Resolution, was released in February 2005.