Features - Enterprise Data Insights:

Pre-CES STORAGE VISIONS 2003 CONF SET FOR LAS VEGAS, NV

The executive board of the Storage Visions Conference announced the topic and agenda for their third annual pre-Consumer Electronics Show (CES), set at the Stardust Hotel in Las Vegas, Nevada for January 7 & 8, 2003. Storage Visions 2003 is set to address data storage requirements for "content creation, content distribution, content reception" -- key water-shed issues for the expansion of the consumer electronics industries.

Tom Coughlin, president of Coughlin Associates and chair of the Storage Visions 2003 conference described the current state and importance of data storage. "Data storage now serves the role once held by the printing press. It makes vast amounts of information, entertainment and communication available to the bulk of mankind. Like the books of old, the networked data storage world is the repository of our modern civilization. There are energetic activities underway to make multimedia content more accessible. One example is the Movielink service recently announced by IBM's Digital Media Group to deliver motion pictures for the major Hollywood studios via the Internet."

Coughlin went on to catalog similarly important industry actions that include enhanced content creation capabilities using advanced network storage systems offered by Avid and DataDirect networks as well as new capabilities in content delivery and storage systems by start-ups Isilon and Envivio. In addition, Disk Drive companies such as Seagate, Maxtor, and Western Digital are also playing a large role in developing data storage for the content world, including consumer electronic devices for accessing content in the home.

This new two-day conference will focus on storage and technology that services the creation of human content, its distribution, and reception in our modern networked world. The conference features Keynote talks by IBM Digital Media Group, Envivio, Qualcomm, Seagate Technology, and Sony. Talks and panels by many other players in this growing industry are listed on the information sheet published by the Storage Visions 2003 steering committee.

Major sponsors of the show include Seagate Technology, Storagesearch.com, DataStoreX, the Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers (SMPTE), The Fibre Channel Industry Association (FCIA), Multimedia Research Group Inc and MPEG-4 Forum.

There are also plans to include a content oriented Interoperability Lab during the conference exhibits, featuring demonstrations of content creation, content distribution and content reception systems. Exhibits and receptions are scheduled the evening of both days.

Coughlin concluded his remarks, "Our intention is to bring together people, organizations, and companies that are important parts of this data content food chain."

Topics and products to be addressed are:

• Content creation and distribution requirements and products
• Content protection, DRM, and archiving
• Set-top boxes and personal video recorders
• Home media centers
• Portable storage systems
• Mobile device market and requirements
• Storage system products and components
• Storage system roadmaps for various markets
• New optical data storage products and markets
• Data storage alternatives
• High speed data interfaces
• Data storage and multimedia market and technology analysis
• Commercial Entertainment Storage Systems
• Video Game Systems

The conference also provides a unique environment for networking with a diverse and important group of corporate officers, analysts, and professionals who will be shaping the future of human content and the distribution of contemporary civilization.

For a complete list of sponsors and other information on participation, sponsorships, exhibiting, and attendance please contact Tom Coughlin at 408-978-8184 or Dennis Piatt at 805-898-3845. You can also send an email to info@storagevisions.com. More information on the conference and registration can be found on the conference Website at www.storagevisions.com.

Contact: Coughlin Associates, Tom Coughlin, 408-978-8184.