Sports Entertainment Summit Headliners: Guber, Wasserman, Skipper, and Exclusive Look at Moneyball

The Sports Entertainment Summit, co-produced by Variety and the Sports Video Group, will be highlighted by keynote conversations with leading industry executives Peter Guber, founder/CEO of Mandalay Entertainment; Casey Wasserman, CEO of the Wasserman Media Group; and John Skipper, EVP of content for ESPN.

This summer’s installment of the Sports Entertainment Summit, to be held on July 14 at the Sofitel Hotel in Los Angeles, will conclude with an exclusive look at Moneyball, the must-see sports movie of the year.

The day-long event features keynotes, in-depth panel session, and breakout tracks that will help attendees maximize the growing power of sports as an entertainment experience for fans in the stands, at home, and on the go. An all-star roster of speakers — spanning networks, sponsor brands, agents, sports organizations, and more — will analyze how to best take advantage of new technologies to reach fans, build brands, and capitalize on leading sports properties.

Guber, also co-executive chairman of the Golden State Warriors, is a pioneering force in entertainment and sports, producing hit films like Batman, The Color Purple, and Flashdance and recently acquiring the Warriors in November 2010.

Since founding Wasserman Media Group in 2002, Wasserman has quickly built a global sports-marketing and -management empire, representing hundreds of elite athletes and high-profile brands.

Skipper is responsible for the creation, programming — including acquisitions and scheduling — and production of ESPN content across all media platforms

Sony Pictures Entertainment will present an exclusive look at the making of September 2011 theatrical release Moneyball, starring Brad Pitt as Oakland A’s general manager Billy Beane. The session will focus on both the creative and sports perspectives in making the film.

Sponsors for the Sports Entertainment Summit are AJA Video Systems, Grass Valley, TV Logic, and Thought Equity Motion.

“The sports business is critical to the entertainment industry, as TV channels, producers, brand partners, and more strive to connect to today’s fans,” said Neil Stiles, president of Variety. “Our expanding coverage of sports in Variety reflects that significance. We are proud to present the Sports Entertainment Summit with the Sports Video Group.”

Other confirmed speakers are the Summit include:

• David Abrutyn, Senior Vice President/Global Managing Director, IMG Consulting (Agency for Coke, General Electric, Visa, Kia, Allstate, Marriott, KPMG)
• Omid Ashtari, Business Development, Twitter
• Bill Battin, Vice President, On-Air Promos, Fox Sports
• Chris Brearton, Managing Partner, O’Melveny Meyers, Century City, and Member, Entertainment, Sports and Media Practice
• David Catzel, Senior Platform Strategy Advisor, Microsoft, and Developer, Platform Evangelism Group
• John Collins, Chief Operating Officer, National Hockey League
• Tim Connolly, Vice President, Mobile Distribution, Disney and ESPN Media Networks
• Mike Davies, Vice President, Technical Operations, Fox Sports
• David Eilenberg, Head of Development at Mark Burnett Productions
• Janet Evans, Olympic Gold Medalist
• Michael Goldfine, President, AEG Digital
• Todd Goldstein, President, Global Partnerships, AEG
• Nick Grudin, Strategic Partner Development Manager, Facebook
• Joe Inzerillo, Senior Vice President, Multimedia and Distribution, Major League Baseball Advanced Media
• Jeff Jenkins, Executive Vice President, Entertainment and Programming, Bunim Murray Productions, and Executive Producer of Khloe and Lamar
• Jason Kint, SVP and General Manager of CBSSports.com
• Ted Kenney, Director of Production, 3ality Digital
• Christina Miller, Senior Vice President, Sports Strategy/Marketing, Turner Sports & Cartoon Network Enterprises
• Perkins Miller, Chief Operating Officer, Universal Sports Network
• Evan Morgenstein, President, Premier Management Group (Agent for Olympic icons Dara Torres, Bruce Jenner, Janet Evans, Nastia Liukin, Amanda Beard, and Mark Spitz)
• Marc Perman, Founder, Perman Management, and Agent for Charles Barkley
• Clark Pierce, Senior Vice President, Emerging Technology, Fox Sports
• Peter Scott, Vice President, Emerging Media, Turner Sports
• David Schwab, Managing Director, Celebrity Acquisition, Octagon First Call/@David_Schwab
• Tom Shine, Senior Vice President, Sports and Entertainment Worldwide, REEBOK
• Blain Skinner, Executive Director, Corporate Partnerships, Los Angeles Lakers
• Tzahi Sofer, Founder and CEO, attracTV
• Jerry Steinberg, Senior Vice President, Field Operations, Fox Sports
• Connor Swegle, Executive Producer, Troika Design Group
• John Ward, Senior Vice President, Production & Traffic Operations, DIRECTV
• Dana White, President, UFC
• Michelle Wilson, Chief Marketing Officer, WWE

Click here for SVG’s comprehensive coverage of the Sports Entertainment Summit II.