Jeremy Wright Amongst the Speakers announced as The Royal Television Society Publishes Full Programme For its 2018 London Conference

Further high-profile speakers announced

The Royal Television Society (RTS) has announced the full programme for its 2018 London Conference to be held on September 18th at Kings Place in London. The complete schedule can be found on the RTS website.

The line-up includes new confirmed speakers Jeremy Wright, MP, Secretary of State for Digital, Media and Culture; Tom Mockridge, Chief Executive Officer, Virgin Media; Peter Salmon, Chief Creative Officer, Endemol Shine Group; Jeff Wachtel, President, NBCUniversal International Studios; Matthew Postgate, Chief Technology and Product Officer, BBC; Tess Alps, Chair, Thinkbox; Babak Hodjat, Co-Founder and CEO, Sentient Technologies; Karen Blackett OBE, Country Manager, WPP; Damian Collins, MP and Rachel Coldicutt, CEO, Dot Everyone.

Titled Is Bigger Better? - Will 'The Consolidation Game' Help TV Tip the Scales Against the Tech Giants?, the RTS London Conference 2018 is sponsored for the first time by Viacom International Media Networks, and co-chaired this year by David Lynn, President Viacom International Media Networks (VIMN) and James Currell, President, VIMN, UK, Northern and Eastern Europe.

The biennial one-day conference will explore the accelerating pace of consolidation across global media sectors and how this drive for scale is impacting the commissioning and production landscape. Global leaders will gather to discuss the future evolution of television both in the UK and internationally. With giant technology companies pushing deeper into the content creation and acquisition market, and threatening a further wave of disruption, where does this leave the traditional media majors - the UK PSBs and production companies - both big and small? How are issues around trust and competition being addressed by organisations and by regulators? And what will the outcome be for viewers?

Previously announced high profile speakers include International Keynote Bob Bakish, President and CEO of Viacom, in a conversation with Sian Williams; Sharon White, Chief Executive, Ofcom; Tony Hall, Director General, BBC; Carolyn McCall, Chief Executive, ITV; Alex Mahon, Chief Executive, Channel 4; Ian Katz, Director of Programmes, Channel 4; Zai Bennett, Director of Programmes, Sky Entertainment UK and Ireland; Darren Throop, President and CEO, Entertainment One; David Abraham, CEO, Wonderhood Studios; Georgia Brown, Director European Originals, Amazon Studios; Mark McLane, Global Head of Diversity and Inclusion, Barclays; Anne Nguyen, Principal, BCG; Lord Holmes of Richmond MBE, Chair, Global Disability Innovation Hub and Deputy Chair, Channel 4; as well as Jane Turton, CEO, All3Media.

Sessions will be chaired by industry experts driving the conversation including Kirsty Wark, Writer and Broadcaster; Kate Bulkley, Media Commentator and Journalist; Sian Williams, Presenter, Channel 5 News; Trevor Phillips OBE, Founder, Webber Philips; Kate Russell, Technology Reporter, BBC Click; Zainab Badawi, Presenter, BBC News; Tim Hincks, Co-Chief Executive Officer, Expectation Entertainment; and Beth Rigby, Political Correspondent, Sky News.

About The Royal Television Society
From glamorous award ceremonies to lively debates, the RTS embraces all aspects of television, and is open to anyone with an interest in the medium.

As an educational charity, we encourage and celebrate work in television and its related fields, from finding out how the nation’s favourite shows are made in our Anatomy of a Hit series, to celebrating burgeoning talent at our annual Student Awards.

The industry’s most talented individuals give us an insight into the work that goes into making cutting edge contemporary TV. From Government ministers and CEOs to workshops with great runners, our events look at every part of the business.

Our annual Television Journalism, Programme, Craft and Design and Student Awards, celebrate achievements across the broadcasting industry.

Education is key to what the RTS does. Each year, we offer Television Production and Technology bursaries to help those from less affluent backgrounds get a foothold in the industry and Masterclass sessions bring together students, academics and industry heads.

RTS Futures, which is aimed at those in their first two years of employment, organises an exciting roster of discussion, training and social occasions. Recent events have included workshops on learning to format shows and how to survive as a freelancer, and expert panels explaining how to be the best researcher and how to make it on-screen.

Each year global television leaders gather to discuss what the future holds for television at our London Conference or the RTS Cambridge Convention.

Alongside our engaged community of over 4600 full members, the Society is supported by Britain and the world's biggest broadcasters, producers and consultants, including Principal Patrons BBC, BskyB, Channel 4 and ITV.

Originally founded as the Television Society in 1927, the Society was granted its Royal title in 1966 and HRH The Prince of Wales became Patron of the RTS in 1997.

Today, 14 regional and national groups curate lively events and awards around the UK and Ireland, from Glasgow to Galway.

About Viacom International Media Networks
Viacom International Media Networks (VIMN), a unit of Viacom Inc. (NASDAQ: VIAB, VIA), is comprised of many of the world’s most popular multimedia entertainment brands including Comedy Central, MTV, Nickelodeon, Nick Jr., Paramount Channel, Spike and a growing number of flagship local networks such as Channel 5 in the UK, Telefe in Argentina and COLORS in India. Viacom branded networks reach more than 4.4 billion cumulative subscriber households in more than 180 countries and territories via some 300 locally programmed and operated TV channels in more than 40 languages. It also owns many digital media and mobile TV properties. Keep up with VIMN news by visiting the VIMN PR Twitter feed.