Leading broadcasters will explore the future of the industry at New Zealand Broadcasting School’s 25th Anniversary celebrations.

Leading broadcasters will explore the future of the industry at New Zealand Broadcasting School’s 25th Anniversary celebrations.

From Broadcast to Broadband – is that it? That’s the title of a one-day conference on the future of broadcasting being held in Christchurch on Saturday 25 July. The conference will focus on the challenge of the internet, on-demand services and me-channels to traditional broadcasters. Can television as we know it survive?

A keynote speech from Shaun Brown, Managing Director of SBS in Australia, will set the scene, followed by a futuristic vision from the founder of a new on-demand service in the USA, ZillionTV. Other speakers include Rick Ellis CEO of TVNZ, Brent Impey CEO of MediaWorks, John Fellet CEO of Sky, Jim Mather CEO of Maori Television and Jo Tyndall, Director of Broadcasting at the Ministry of Culture and Heritage.

A panel on the future of news will feature Anthony Flannery, Head of News at TVNZ, Mark Jennings, Head of News at TV3, and Martin Hirst, Associate Professor of Journalism at AUT. There will also be a panel on the challenges posed to radio by the growth of downloading.

The conference is part of the 25th Anniversary celebrations of the New Zealand Broadcasting School at CPIT. “Most of our graduates go on to work in the broadcasting industry, so in these changing times it’s essential that we explore what the industry might look like in five or ten years time,” said Paul Norris, Head of the Broadcasting School. “The School has to be on top of trends and developments in a turbulent environment. The conference is a great opportunity for our graduates to come together to discuss the issues in the light of their experiences.”

The New Zealand Broadcasting School had its origins in community courses in broadcasting first offered by Christchurch Polytechnic in 1984 under the inspired leadership of Dr Brian Pauling, who remains a tutor at the School. One of these courses ran under the title: “How to watch the soaps without feeling guilty.”

The School established its degree programme in 1993 (Bachelor of Broadcasting Communications), and has gained a reputation for training graduates who have an excellent grounding in their craft and who are highly sought after by employers in the industry.