Finding our Heart in San Francisco

Considering cable’s demonstration during the past decade of its famous entrepreneurial spirit—the investment of billons of dollars of private risk capital and the launch of a wonderful array of new consumer-friendly services—it’s only appropriate that we are hosting the 2005 National Show in the cradle of America’s technology heartbeat. We’re excited about bringing the National Show back to San Francisco for the first time since 1993. And we’ve set up 64 hours of non-stop action for the thousands of attendees who will be joining us. Our goal: to offer full-scale immersion into the quality programming, consumer-friendly services, and powerful technology that make our industry unique. We want attendees to understand what the slogan "Cable Puts You in Control" truly means. The three most important aspects of any show are already in place—strong sessions, great exhibits and a unifying mission. This year’s program schedule will be the best ever. Thanks to the vision, energy and guidance of industry leaders like Comcast COO Steve Burke, chair of the National Show committee, and Time Warner EVP Lynn Yaeger, who headed our content subcommittee, our General Sessions are stacked with an unprecedented line-up of visionaries and leaders from the broadband, technology and entertainment industries. It’s worth noting that most of this year’s General Session participants come from outside our industry, which should make for some frank and interesting discussion about our relationships with them and the companies. Our Educational Sessions, featuring the industry’s leading experts, will cover the most critical issues facing cable. Plus, we are launching a new program that will allow participants to begin working towards a "Business of Cable" certificate by attending educational sessions at the National Show as well as the upcoming CTPAA and CTAM national conferences. While the sessions will provide an important laboratory of learning, the show floor demonstrates how cable makes it all happen. This cornucopia of displays, at more than 190,000 square feet, is a nexus of business, public policy and consumer trends as exhibitors display the products, services and equipment that enable the cable industry to serve more than 70 million consumers. Whether it’s your favorite current or prospective programming service, home broadband application or soon-to-be launched technology, you are bound to find it on the show floor. CableNET from CableLabs, our first-ever GameNET pavilion, and the exciting Best Buy "Fun Zone"—showing us how cable and retail now go hand-in-hand—are likely to be the highlights of this year’s exhibit floor at Moscone Center. Exhibitors at the National Show deserve our gratitude for their continued investment and effort at a time when many other trade shows have suffered. Yet energetic sessions and a vibrant exhibit floor don’t work unless there’s a unifying mission to bring it all together. That mission is one of the National Show’s most unique aspects, especially when compared to other industry shows. Why? Because the National Show is not about raising money for NCTA. Rather, the show is our best opportunity to provide a national platform for communicating cable’s key accomplishments, activities and messages to an audience that includes policymakers and regulators, media, financial analysts and executives from other industries. It showcases the best of the industry and why we’re truly competitive. It magnifies another unique characteristic of the industry—the synergy and eagerness of companies to work cooperatively with each other, to share lessons learned and to build the better mousetrap. In a cluttered world, the National Show allows us to frame and articulate an industry message for the future. And the heart of that message—Cable Puts You in Control—will beat steadily in San Francisco. Barbara York is the Chief Administrative Officer and SVP, Industry Affairs for NCTA.