Ed DeNicola and John Morse are two research veterans who have joined forces and formed a partnership designed to inform companies on set top box data. Their introductory presentation, called Set Top Box 101, has been showcased at many networks and agencies. This interview delves into their introductory presentation as well as some topline findings about set top box data.

Two events have catapulted 3D technology into the forefront of media professional and consumer imagination in 2010: the arrival of the theatrical box office champion of all time, "Avatar," with over $2.2 billion in worldwide sales, in which over 70% of its screen revenue was garnered from 3D ticket sales, and this year's Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas with 2,000+ exhibitors, football fields of floor space, and legions of journalists and industry types scurrying around to celebrate the emergence of 3D television - and to a much, much lesser extent e-readers.

This week we interview George Shababb, President of Kantar Media (formerly known as TNS Media Research NA), one of the largest audience measurement companies in the world and one of the pioneers in the measurement of set-top-box data. George shares his insights into the global and national aspects of Kantar Media Research and the future of local media. He also offers an extensive analysis of the methodology, the application, the current challenges and the overall future of set-top-box data.

On March 15th in New York City at The Helen Mills Theater, MPG, MediaContacts and Havas siblings, will stage its quarterly forum, The Collaborative Alliance, where content creators, technologists, distributors and researchers meet to vet their interactive televisual propositions (television, broadband, wireless and out of home). Its mission is to provide media professionals, advertisers and their agencies in attendance with the opportunity to make sure they "get it right" so that the applications developed meet the specific needs of marketers in their quest to provide the best possible platform for their messaging and consumer engagement.

The national television industry has every reason to congratulate itself for successfully adapting its ad currency to accommodate for a disruptive technology known as the digital video recorder (DVR). The acceptance and implementation of C3 ratings happened very quickly considering the enormity of the change.

Shari Anne Brill has received many honors in her research career, including WICT's Wonder Woman award as well as a Media All Star award in 2009. In my interview with her, Shari Anne shares her insights into new technologies, the CRE Mapping Study, "Digital Boomers," CIMM, the future of measurement, and how research and the entire media industry have changed. Below is a short excerpt from the interview.

Last week, comScore's Tania Yuki moderated a panel at NATPE entitled Cross Media Planning for a Convergence Culture. Adam Kasper, Lori Schwartz, Seth Newams and I were panelists. While waiting to be escorted out of the Speaker Ready room for our session, Tania quizzically queried: why did we think that there hasn't been more engagement with cross media platform campaigns at ad agencies. Each pundit punted in turn.

Colleen Fahey Rush is the executive vice president of strategic insights and research for MTV Networks. There are six videos in my interview of Fahey Rush, on a range of subjects from research quality, Logo's gay and lesbian research, past trends and predictions, to the role of research at MTV networks. Here's an excerpt from the interview.

Back in July, I had written a TV Board entitled "All Along The Watchtower: An Ode To Agency Researchers." The piece was prompted by Steve Sternberg's forced exit from his decaded home at McCann and Magna. He was one of the many prominent, agency researchers - David Ernst, Bruce Gorelich, Tony Jarvis, David Marans, Susan Nathan, Stacey Lynn Schulman, and Jon Swallen to name a few - who in recent years had become a statistic, as opposed to a calculation in the evolution of the advertising agency business.

Every time I ask today's research leaders how they decided on research as a career, I am struck by the range of answers. But none has been as fascinating as SVP Research for Scripps Networks Interactive Mike Pardee's. His research moment started on a tramp freighter headed to Sri Lanka. While there, Mike's interest in anthropology was formed and now he is one of the leading thinkers in the research community today. His current responsibilities span all areas of research.