(March 8, 2013) SXSW starts today and as the folks from NewTek and other broadcasters begin streaming live using TriCasters to document the activities of 200,000 music, interactive and film junkies converging on Austin, Texas, we can't help but pause for a moment to think about where this all started.
At a recent taping of "What's Trending," at the NewTek studios in Hollywood. The small audience of fan-geeks and insiders were treated to a live taping with @ThatKevinSmith, @LisaKudrow and Red vs Blue @BernieBurns, hosted by @ShiraLazar. The topic for the show was "The Future of Television."
The star of the night, however, was not any of the above. It was, Tim Jenison, founder of NewTek, who walked in for a rare appearance.
Tech-history buffs will recall that it is Jenison, the inventor of Video Toaster, who is largely credited with predicting the democratization of video as far back as 1990 when he said, "In the next twenty years, your favorite television show will be made by you or someone you know. There won't be any boundaries that prevent people from touching the hearts and minds of tomorrow's digitally driven audience."
He was right. We have come a long way since that first television studio-in-a-box. You can hear our exclusive interview with Tim Jenison here.
(Photo credit: Cirina Catania)
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