2023 Speakers

Aarti DABAS

Chief Media Officer

Aarti, mum to 8-year old Aariana, has been Formula E’s Chief Media Officer for the last three years and is a senior leader within the sports industry, with over 20 years of experience.
Having spent more than 12 years at the International Cricket Council (ICC) in increasing levels of responsibility up to Head of Media Rights & Digital, she has extensive experience and a deep understanding of developing audiences through media rights, content development and packaging, insights/data driven approach to brand and content partnerships, digital and fan engagement, building and sustaining stakeholder relationships and leading diverse teams.
Aarti grew up in India, and made her entry into sports broadcasting in 1999, at IMG TWI’s India office in Delhi. She now spends her time between London, Dubai and Formula E’s exciting race locations around the world.

• India: A Major Global Market For Sports Media & A Tech Driver In Our Industry

Alan BRUNO

Head of Business Development

With over 20 years’ experience in media and having started his career in sport at Formula 1, Alan then spent a number of years in entertainment on the platform side with Discovery and them Viacom - before moving back into sport with ATP Media. Alan’s commercial role oversees broadcast rights deals across all ATP Tour events, in addition to business development outside of broadcast including the distribution and monitisation of ATP Media’s direct to consumer OTT service Tennis TV.

• A FAST Track to FAST Channels

Alejandro SCANNAPIECO

CEO

Alejandro Scannapieco is CEO of LaLiga Tech, the company formed by the joint venture between Globant and LaLiga to reinvent sports and entertainment. Prior to this, he held roles including Chief Financial Officer of Globant and Co-Partner of Globant’s Business Hacking Studio. As CFO, he successfully led the Company to its IPO in July 2014, making Globant the first IT services company from Latin America to be listed on the NYSE.

Alejandro has a post-graduate degree in capital markets, a degree in public accounting and a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration from the Pontificia Universidad Católica Argentina. He has also completed a post-graduate degree in finance from Torcuato Di Tella University.

Alejandro Scannapieco is an avid sports fan and practitioner. He completed sports journalism studies at ESED school and enjoys playing football, rugby, tennis, snowboarding and scuba diving. He is also a great fan of reading in wide and diverse subjects.

• LaLiga Tech: Reinventing the Sports & Entertainment Industry

Alex KAPLAN

CEO

Alex Kaplan is the CEO of EverPass Media with 20+ years of experience fueling growth and innovation for companies at the intersection of sports, media & technology. Alex has worked at leading industry companies, including Discovery (President & GM of golf division), NBA (SVP, Global Media Distribution) and 10 years with DIRECTV/AT&T overseeing revenue and entertainment. As a respected leader and visionary, Alex received SBJ’s and Multichannel News’ "Forty Under 40" awards.

• Digital Evolutions for Content Delivery & Monetisation

Alfredo BERMEJO

Director of Digital Strategy

Born in February 1979. Director of Digital Strategy since April 2017.
He holds a degree in Law from the Autónoma University of Madrid and a Master's in Marketing and Commercial Management from ESIC, with over 10 years of experience in the sports industry.

Before joining LALIGA, he worked for Facebook from 2014 to 2017 as the head of strategic agreements for Spain and Portugal, serving as the main liaison with the media, sports, and entertainment industries in both countries.

Between 2007 and 2014, he worked as the Head of International Clients within the Sponsorship and Advertising Department of Real Madrid C.F., with his primary areas of focus being the management of international sponsors, player image rights, and international tours. From 2004 to 2007, he worked at the multinational agency Ogilvy Action as an Account Supervisor.

• Redefining Fan Engagement with AI

An DANG DUY

CIO

An Dang Duy is World Athletics as Chief Information Officer. World Athletics is the international governing body for the sport of athletics, covering track and field, cross country running, road running, racewalking, mountain running and ultrarunning. World Athletics is among the world’s largest sporting organisations, and with more members than the United Nations.
An’s vast international experience includes the management of large teams in the media research, advertising and Sport industries. An now leads in World Athletics a technology team responsible for the management of the competition results technology workflow, data management and software that provide access to the sport for millions of people around the world.

• AI's Impact on Sports Content Monetization

Andrea MARINI

CEO

Andrea has been Deltatre’s CEO and executive committee member since 2021.
Andrea has been part of Deltatre for more than 10 years and has held several other positions across the business, including Deputy CEO, Chief Commercial Officer, President (Americas) and Commercial Director.
Andrea featured in Sports Business Journal’s 2020 Forty under 40 Awards and Leaders in Sport’s 2021 Leaders Under 40 list.
In 2019, Andrea was a member of the Sport Advisory Board for Sports Tech Tokyo.

• A Country Focus: Italia

Anna LOCKWOOD

Head of EMEA/Americas

Anna Lockwood is an experienced media industry executive and is currently VP International for Telstra Broadcast Services, based in New York. She leads a team that works at the convergence of the traditional broadcast industry with leading-edge telecommunication and digital platforms, with a focus on bringing innovative solutions and services to the media and sports business. In addition to her role at Telstra, Anna represents Telstra on the Board of Directors of IABM, is an advisory board member and mentor at RISE - a group for women in broadcast, and is active in industry initiatives around sports, innovation and women in technology.

• A FAST Track to FAST Channels

Anna GUARNERIO

International Media Rights Director

Anna Guarnerio has over 25 years in sports business, first with Media Partners and then with Infront Sports & Media heading the media sales and operations department.
In December 2022 Anna joined Lega Serie A as Head of the International Media Rights department, to manage the sales process in-house from the 2023/2024 season onwards.
Anna's core expertise in commercial and strategic analysis, rights packaging, market assessment, international negotiations and contract management.

• A Country Focus: Italia

Ashwin LIMAYE

CPO

Ashwin Limaye is the Chief Product Officer at VideoVerse, where he is responsible for driving the development and adoption of the entire suite of intelligent, intuitive video products - Magnifi, the broadcaster-facing solution, which is fast establishing itself as a leader in the space, and a new consumer-facing product in the editing and streaming space. He is also responsible for productizing the company’s innovation agenda, with multiple video transformation and consumption experiments underway.
Prior to joining VideoVerse, Ashwin, an alumnus of McKinsey spent over a decade working with Alphabet, Waymo and Google, bringing cutting-edge technology to everyday user experience and working on advancing safe autonomous driving technology and applying the latest in AI/ML technology to solve hard, real-world problems. He has deep experience in business performance transformation, strategy development, building monetization platforms and has led very large-scale products such as Google News, and Brand Advertising at Youtube, AMP and Google Earth.

• Making the Most of Automated Production and AI

Aviv ARNON

Co-Founder & CBDO

Aviv Arnon, Co-Founder and CBDO at WSC Sports, has been instrumental in driving the company’s business strategy and overseeing all aspects of business development, partnerships, account management, and growth over the past decade.
Under his leadership, WSC Sports has established deep relationships with over 300+ of the leading global sports rights holders. Aviv’s commitment to innovation and customer satisfaction, combined with his love for sports and technology, have been key factors in WSC Sports’ rise as the world’s leading AI sports video technology company.

• Redefining Fan Engagement with AI

Callum MCCARTHY

Editor in Chief

Callum McCarthy is the Editor in Chief of SportBusiness, the world’s most trusted source of global sports media rights intelligence. Callum leads a team of journalists and analysts dedicated to providing market-leading insight on deals, developments and trends from around the world of sports broadcasting. Over the past 25 years, SportBusiness Media has collected commercially sensitive information on over 21,000 media rights deals - a total that continues to grow.

• Sport as Entertainment: Creating Content, Building Platforms

Claudiu PARASCHIV

CEO

After almost 20 years spent in the television industry in various operational and executive roles, Claudiu established in 2014 his own production company, Blitz Technology, that today is an international reference for the remote production of Tier 2 and Tier 3 international sports events. Strong in-house television expertise, combined with the love for sports and a desire for continuous business and technological development, empowered the Blitz team led by Claudiu to deliver more than 5000 hours of live content per year, from all continents and on multiple distribution platforms.

• Save On Costs, Not On Quality - Sports Video Production Made Efficient

Craig HEITING

Head of Corporate Strategy

Craig Heiting is Head of Corporate Strategy at Wurl - the leader in data-driven solutions for CTV. Craig is responsible for leading Wurl’s global efforts in creating and driving growth for the world’s top content publishers. With over 30 years of experience in the entertainment space, Craig brings enormous expertise to Wurl, including managing marketing, programming, sales, operations, M&A, and customer care segments for major media companies

• Addressing Discoverability: Key Trends & Challenges in Today's Streaming Market

David CANDLER

Senior Director, Customer Solutions

A senior-level member of Veritone’s global commercial team responsible for EMEA channel business development plus the coordination, design, development and hand-off of media technology service solutions. David has an impressive 26+ year track record of successfully implementing and developing both commercial and operational relationships with major blue-chip customers across the media and entertainment sector.

• AI's Impact on Sports Content Monetization

Fabio GALLO

General Manager Europe & Asia

Fabio is a seasoned professional who brings over two decades of streaming and OTT technology industry expertise and has led significant digital transformation projects for FC Barcelona and Dorna Sports (MotoGP). Recently, at LaLiga Tech, Gallo led the global development and implementation of new initiatives, solutions, partnerships and innovations.

• VIEWLIFT Presentation

Gaurav MEHTA

Co-Founder

Educated as a mechanical engineer, and ex-race car driver with Volkswagen Motorsport, Gaurav co-founded Quidich in 2015. He deeply believes in the power that sport as a medium possesses to unite people across boundaries. Today, Quidich empowers various federations, leagues, rights holders and broadcasters across sports, with advanced technology solutions that visually enhance fans' viewing experiences, thereby elevating live broadcasts globally.

• India: A Major Global Market For Sports Media & A Tech Driver In Our Industry

Giovanni AQUILANTI

Sales Agent

With more than 15 years of international experience in Marketing, Sales and Procurement at Procter & Gamble and Philip Morris International, across Consumer Goods, Sports and Technology, Giovanni Aquilanti is now fully dedicated to the sports industry, with multiple engagements which started in Motorsport and brought him to SPORTEL Sales and Business Development. A fast learner, Giovanni is eager to engage in innovative action plans as well as connecting people and organisations with a view to promoting meaningful and high value added commercial interactions.

• A Country Focus: Italia

Greg BURNS

Head Of Media Products

At Arqiva Greg is responsible for the media and broadcast product portfolio. Greg has driven the adoption of cloud technology and been a key strategic influence in the development of online and non-linear product offerings during his time at Arqiva. Through several roles in the company including Technical Service Management and Solutions Architecture, Greg has provided sports broadcast services for ESPN, Turner Sports, Eurosport and BT Sport, among others.

• Digital Evolutions for Content Delivery & Monetisation

Ian WRAY

Senior Partnerships Sales Director

Ian has spent the past couple of decades helping global sports organizations and their rights holders to benefit from leveraging leading-edge technologies to enhance their content and better engage with fans. In his role within Spiideo, he is working with the latest advances in AI-powered video production automation and data collection capabilities to enable all tiers of sport to deliver top-quality live or on-demand content in a highly cost-effective manner, creating commercial models never before possible.

• Making Sense of AI: Limits and Possibilities
• The Multiverse of Content Monetization

Imran YUSUF

Editor, SportBusiness Media

Imran Yusuf is Editor for SportBusiness Media, the world's most trusted source of media rights deal data, analysis and intelligence.

• India: A Major Global Market For Sports Media & A Tech Driver In Our Industry

Javier TEBAS

President

Javier Tebas Medrano (San Jose, Costa Rica, 1962), of Spanish nationality, holds a degree in Law from the University of Zaragoza. He has been a practising lawyer since 1987 and founded his own legal firm, specialising in Company Law and, subsequently, in sports and bankruptcy law.

Tebas's direct involvement in football began in 1993, when he was named president of Sociedad Deportiva Huesca, a position he held until 1998 (a period during which the club competed in Spain’s Tercera Division and Segunda Division B). He later served as a board member at C.D. Badajoz S.A.D. and C.D. Toledo S.A.D. before being elected vice-president of LaLiga in 2001. In 2003 he headed up the G-30, a group representing 30 small LaLiga clubs that was set up to collectively negotiate their audiovisual rights. He has been LaLiga president since 2013 and was re-elected in 2016 and again for a further four-year term in 2019.
Tebas's tenure as LaLiga president has revolved around three core areas; the introduction of a financial controls system which has enabled the clubs to restructure their finances; the collective sale of audiovisual rights which boosts the clubs' revenue in a balanced way, and the league's internationalisation strategy, which has seen LaLiga and its member clubs establish themselves as a benchmark reference on the global stage, not just on the field but in the entertainment industry as a whole

• Javier Tebas Keynote Presentation

Keith BEDFORD

General Manager, EMEA

Keith Bedford is General Manager, EMEA at Wurl - the leader in data-driven solutions for CTV. In his role, Keith oversees Wurl’s operations and key partnerships in EMEA, working closely with his team to drive growth for the region’s top content publishers and streamers. Keith brings more than 20 years of broadcast experience and a strong technology background to Wurl, having led teams to design, create, and deliver technology to numerous broadcast clients in his previous roles.

• Addressing Discoverability: Key Trends & Challenges in Today's Streaming Market

Ken KERSCHBAUMER

Editorial Director

Ken Kerschbaumer is co-executive director of editorial services for the Sports Video Group and SVG Europe. He has been writing about how sports networks and leagues use video and audio technology to deliver a quality TV experience since 1991. In 2000, he joined Broadcasting & Cable magazine as senior editor of technology where he covered technology for the broadcast industry. He helped launch SVG and SVG Europe in 2006 and today the company holds events for sports production professionals around the world.

• A FAST Track to FAST Channels
• Making the Most of Automated Production and AI
• Making Sense of AI: Limits and Possibilities

Lee ZOHLMAN

US Sales Agent

Lee Zohlman is Founder and Managing Director of Universal Multisport and a dedicated US sales agent for SPORTEL Monaco who is based in Miami, Florida. He has over twenty years experience in the business of sports ranging from marketing, business development, sponsorship and formerly was the Commercial Director for SportBusiness Group Americas. Lee has advised, guided and represented cutting edge sports technology companies, Formula 1 and INDYCAR teams as well as Olympians and world champion athletes. He also has been an international television broadcaster featured on beIN, ESPN International and Comcast Sports.

• Digital Evolutions for Content Delivery & Monetisation

Meg YODFAT

Head Of Revenue Infront Lab

Currently Head of the Revenue Team at Infront Lab, the technology and innovation division of Infront Sports & Media.
Has been in SportsTech for the past decade, as Director of Business Operations at PlaySight, a sports technology startup acquired by Slinger. A former competitive runner, division 1 scholarship athlete, Nike sponsored professional athlete.

• Sport as Entertainment: Creating Content, Building Platforms

Meghna KRISHNA

Chief Revenue Officer

Meghna Krishna is the Chief Revenue Officer at Videoverse. As part of her job she is responsible for revenue maximization along with facilitating strategic partnerships and innovative marketing solutions for the overall growth of the company. Her unique leadership shines through her ability to build passionate teams focused on delivering the best quality services to their clients.
Meghna has a proven track record of over two decades of running successful businesses while building and developing teams from scratch.
Prior to joining hands with the passionate team at Videoverse, Meghna has worked across 3 continents in industries including retail, e-commerce, travel, and SaaS, giving her an extensive understanding of global and national market trends. Given the vast experience, she is able to effectively manage investor and stakeholder relations to supercharge business growth.
Meghna is an MBA holder from INSEAD and currently lives in Delhi with her family. She enjoys traveling and learning about other cultures.

• Making Sense of AI: Limits and Possibilities

Melissa LAWTON

Chief Content Officer

Melissa Lawton is the Chief Content Officer at SailGP, responsible for all moving image content from the Live Broadcast to Social Channel strategy. Melissa arrived at SailGP via Meta in New York where she was the Head of Live Sports Production, before that Head of Live at Red Bull Media House in Salzburg. She has been a senior host broadcast employee at two Olympics, one World Cup and a Commonwealth Games. She got her real start as Producer at Network Ten Australia which was then the Home of Motorsport.

• Sport as Entertainment: Creating Content, Building Platforms

Nick CAW

CEO

Nick’s 25 years of commercial experience in tech means he’s seen it all, from start-ups to Microsoft, and has held leadership positions across hosting, professional services and software companies. Nick has been Capture’s Chief Executive Officer since 2019 and is intent on Capture continuing to provide world-class solutions to world-class clients.

• Visual Media in Sport - Turning Cost into Contribution

Niklas BERGDAHL

Product Marketing Director

Passion for sports, technology, and engaging people. Storytelling and creating value through technological innovation is my calling. Vast experience in the sports technology industry from leading companies; driving innovative product development, customer education, marketing strategies, and content creation.

• The Multiverse of Content Monetization

Ophir ZARDOK

Head of Sport

A graduate of the prestigious FIFA Master Course, Ophir has been involved in sports at different levels for over 20 years. Since 2009, he has served as UEFA Venue Director and previously launched a sports tech accelerator to bring innovation to the sports space with Microsoft ScaleUp, Deloitte Sports and HYPE Sports Innovation. At LiveU, Ophir’s role is to lead the sports strategy and business development in EMEA/APAC, working with sports organizations, production companies, broadcasters and media companies.

• Save On Costs, Not On Quality - Sports Video Production Made Efficient

Paul VALK

Founder & Director

Paul has more than 20 years Experience in complex sales & business development processes within several verticals (Retail, IT, Sports & Media and Telecom). He coaches Innovators, Consultants and Account Managers in complex sales & business development processes to reach a higher profitability. Paul is experienced in engaging and building partnerships within the international Sports & Media Industry, eCommerce and Telecommunications. Paul is specialized in Strategy, Marketing, Sales, AI, Computer Vision and (Mobile) Video Applications.

• STUDIO AUTOMATED Presentation

Paul DEPRE

Managing Director

Seasoned manager with an international profile, Paul Depré is leading Globant business development and expansion in France and Switzerland. Throughout his professional journey, he acquired a very deep understanding of the Media & Entertainment ecosystem (including Sports and Gaming) not only to support the reinvention of this industry but to also infuse M&E innovations in other organizations!

• GLOBANT Presentation

Peter BELLAMY

Chief Commercial Officer

Peter Bellamy is Chief Commercial Officer at Endeavor Streaming. In his role, Peter oversees the global commercial business, working with prospects and partners to drive OTT initiatives. He is also responsible for managing the company’s portfolio of clients, helping to define and deliver their go-to-market and post-launch strategies. Peter joined Endeavor Streaming as part of the acquisition of NeuLion in 2018. Prior to NeuLion, Peter was Commercial Director at Saffron Digital, an OTT start-up he helped develop into a market leader in movie and TV-focused OTT. This led to the successful sale of Saffron Digital into NeuLion. Previously, Peter also held commercial positions at BSkyB working on sports and entertainment media rights deals. He is a graduate of Sheffield Hallam University in South Yorkshire, England.

• Sport as Entertainment: Creating Content, Building Platforms

Peter MURRAY

CEO

Peter Murray is the Chief Executive Officer and a Board Member of the Professional Fighters League (PFL). Murray oversees all business strategy and operations, fighter roster, event management, production, content, and marketing for the mixed martial arts league.

Previously, Murray served as VP Global Brand and Sports Marketing at Under Armour. where he was responsible for category management of football, baseball, basketball, soccer, combat, and Olympic Sports. Prior to Under Armour, he was Co-Founder and CEO of Insignia Sports Agency and EVP Marketing & New Business at William Morris Endeavor. Peter was also a senior executive at the National Football League, including roles as SVP of Business & Content Development, SVP of Global Brand Partnerships.

• PFL's Global Growth and Creating the Champions League of MMA

Peter SHACKLETON

Commercial Director

Peter joined Capture in 2022 having spent the last two decades working in commercial roles within the media and tech space, from startups, VC backed scale ups, to HTC and Vodafone. Now, as Capture’s Commercial Director, Peter leads Capture’s Sales and Marketing team, ensuring Capture continues to grow as industry leaders in visual media management.

• Pitch Perfect Session
• Digital Evolutions for Content Delivery & Monetisation

Sandrine DURAND

VP Channels Distribution

Sandrine Durand is the Co-Founder of SoFAST, working with television channels, contents and rights owners, and helping them to be part of the FAST channels business.
With more than 30 years of experience in Telecommunications Business, Television Broadcast, Business Development and Direction Management, she held positions in France, Israel and United States.

• A FAST Track to FAST Channels

Sunil MANOHARAN

Vice President - Media Rights

Sunil Manoharan looks after media rights for the International Cricket Council(ICC) and is based out of the governing body’s Dubai headquarters. Sunil’s focus at the ICC has been to formulate and implement the direct to licensee media rights strategy for the rights cycle beginning from 2024 and onwards. This also includes curating ICC’s digital media rights strategy while striving to strike a balance between revenue and engagement. Leading the media rights department, Sunil also oversees all ongoing relationships and operations of the governing body’s various media rights agreements.

Prior to this, Sunil spent two decades with leading global sports broadcaster Star Sports and ESPN Star Sports where he looked after the global media rights sales for ICC, Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), Indian Premier League (IPL), Kabaddi, Asia Cup and the International Hockey Federation (FIH). Also on his portfolio were Asian media rights sales for Cricket Australia (CA), the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB), sub-continental media rights sales for the Premier League, Wimbledon and more. Sunil hails from a production background and spent his first few years at ESPN Star Sports producing live cricket and leading the editorial content for all it’s India channels.

• India: A Major Global Market For Sports Media & A Tech Driver In Our Industry

Thierry BOUDARD

Co-Founder & Executive President

Thierry Boudard has over 25 years of experience in the telecom industry, half of which has been in the media and entertainment sector, where he has held roles as Product Director, R&D Director and Business Manager.
He has developed an expertise in media solutions for many service providers, always with a customer focus. His expertise covers the entire field of video, from television production to end-user services and devices and more generally to E2E integration.
He also has senior experience in managing product lines, business and R&D teams in complex environments. He has participated in the growth or restructuring of several business units and companies, using his entrepreneurial skills.

• Unlocking Sports Content Monetization: A Paradigm Shift

Thomas DECIEUX

Head of Sport, EMEA & APAC

As Head of Sport, EMEA & APAC, Thomas focuses on accelerating Harmonic’s success in Sports. Throughout his career, Thomas has established a strong record of leading ambitious strategies, initiatives and teams. Thomas lives in Lausanne, Switzerland, and holds a MSc in telecom from CentraleSupélec.

• Drive Fan Engagement and Monetization with AI-based video innovations

Tiago MARANHÃO

Country Manager

Tiago Maranhão holds the position of Country Manager at Stages, orchestrating B2B and B2C communication with a global team.
With over two decades of experience in journalism and new media, Tiago has hosted Brazil's most-watched football TV show on Sportv,
having participated in 4 World Cups, 4 Olympic Games editions, and numerous world championships across diverse categories.
Tiago also pioneered the launch of Amazon Alexa in Brazil, led Amazon Music's podcast division, and authored 8 books. His Harvard
certification in organizational leadership underscores his role in driving Stages' innovation and expansion enhancing customer and partner
experiences.

• Pitch Perfect Session
• Digital Evolutions for Content Delivery & Monetisation

TK GORE

Head Of Sports Business Development

With over 25 years of experience in sports, media, and technology, T.K. specializes in developing audience engagement solutions in cloud production and live streaming at Kiswe. His previous roles include CRO at Phenix Real Time Solutions and leadership positions at Comcast, NBC Sports Group, Comscore, Universal Sports, AOL and HTS. T.K. also served as an adjunct professor at Northwestern University and the University of Chicago. In 2021, he earned recognition as one of John Wall Street's Top-50 Sports Business Follows.

• Making the Most of Automated Production and AI

Tom READ

Chief Commercial Officer

Tom has over 15 years experience at the intersection of sports, media and technology with a background in content partnerships, rights acquisition/distribution, programming and content creation for broadcast and digital media organizations including Disney, Fox Sports Australia, Foxtel and DAZN Group. He is currently the Chief Commercial Officer at Spalk, a sports production technology company that localizes content through providing remote commentary production and distribution solutions for sports broadcasters and rights holders all over the world.

• Broadcasters Using The Cloud To Produce World Feed & Multilingual Commentary

Wim SWELDENS

Co-founder & CMO

Wim Sweldens is the Co-Founder and CMO of Kiswe, an interactive streaming technology pioneer. Kiswe works with top brands in sports (NBA, ESPN), music (BTS, Rolling Stones), and creators (Mythical, Try Guys). Previously he was President of the Alcatel-Lucent Mobile Division and led their Ventures Group. Wim has a Ph.D. in Applied Mathematics, contributed to the JPEG2000 and MPEG4 standards, is an IEEE fellow, and a member of the Belgian Royal Academy of Sciences.

• Own Your Audience: How Sports Leagues Are Going Direct-to-Consumer