Despite all the talk about the inevitability of convergence, a panel of media and technology experts largely agreed the other day that, when it comes to content and technology, the two will remain
distinct. "These industries are independent but very separate. It's very tough for technology companies to become media companies, even though they aspire to become so," Michael Wolf, president
and CEO of MTV Networks, told an audience of execs from both industries. "They are at two ends of the spectrum -- they are coming together on one side, but are still very separate." Geoffrey
Dodge, publisher of
Business Week, who also appeared on the panel with Wolf, added, "Content is content--whether it is music, a TV show, business news or information. We are a content
provider and have to rely on technology to distribute content. Today we rely on the Internet, television waves, the BlackBerry." Recent signs that media outfits and technology-related companies
are merging--witness the purchase of Pixar Animation by Disney and MySpace.com by News Corp.--do not signal a wholesale shift in the way these businesses operate, agreed the panelists. It simply
suggests that, in some selected areas, there are perceived advantages in having both beneath a common roof.
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