The Future of Content
Variety returns with its popular Entertainment Summit at CES exploring how new technologies and innovations are steering the future of film, TV, digital media, music, podcasts, gaming and more.
The event is open to all CES registrants at no additional charge.
9 AM - 4:30 PM PT l CSPACE @ THE ARIA, LAS VEGAS
Agenda
9:00 AM - 9:35 AM PT
The Future of Content
Jon Liebman - CEO, Brillstein Entertainment Partners
Julian Franco - President Strategy and Operations, Fox Entertainment
Val Boreland - President, Entertainment, Versant
Jay Levine - Chief Strategy & Business Officer, Sony Pictures Entertainment
Alison Hoffman - President, STARZ Networks
Cynthia Littleton (Moderator) - Co-Editor-in-Chief, Variety
An exploration into how the entertainment industry is reimagining itself across platforms, delivering different content formats and creative strategies to attract loyal audiences.
9:35 AM - 9:50 AM PT
Conversation with Breckin Meyer, Actor/Producer and Jonathan Yunger, CEO, Arcana
Breckin Meyer - Actor/Producer
Jonathan Yunger - Co-Founder & CEO, Arcana Labs
Andrew Wallenstein (Moderator) - Chief Media Analyst & President, Luminate Intelligence
A look at opportunities for creative talent to find new opportunities with AI for storytelling.
9:50 AM - 10:30 AM PT
The New Business of Entertainment
Tim Natividad - President, U.S. Advertising Sales and Marketing, TelevisaUnivision
Jeff Collins - President, Advertising Sales, Marketing and Brand Partnerships, Fox
Rita Ferro - President, Global Advertising, Disney
Mark Marshall - Chairman, Global Advertising and Partnerships, NBCUniversal
Amy Reinhard - President, Advertising, Netflix
Mike O'Donnell - VP, Vizio
Danny Ledger (Moderator) - Telecom, Media & Entertainment Leader for Consulting Services, Deloitte
So many of us watch TV – but how, where and when is the question. However, TV leaders are sharpening their tools to reach, attract and understand such fractured audiences. How is the industry improving the TV platform to be the medium of choice for its business partners?
10:30 AM - 11:00 AM PT
First Look: Go Behind the Scenes of the forthcoming/new AMC and AMC+ series "The Audacity"
Simon Helberg - Actor, “The Audacity”
Billy Magnussen - Actor, "The Audacity”
Jonathan Glatzer - Showrunner, “The Audacity"
Dan McDermott - President, Entertainment and AMC Studios, AMC Networks
Cynthia Littleton (Moderator) - Co-Editor-in-Chief, Variety
A sneak peek at upcoming AMC and AMC+ series The Audacity, a provocative, timely and darkly comedic look at Silicon Valley. The show is created by Better Call Saul and Succession writer Jonathan Glatzer and stars Billy Magnussen and a stellar cast that includes Sarah Goldberg, Zach Galifianakis, Simon Helburg and Rob Corddry.
11:00 AM - 11:30 AM PT
How Smarter Partnerships Are Reshaping Media
Khurrum Malik - CMO, Walmart Connect
Ian Colley - Chief Marketing Officer, The Trade Desk
Andrew Wallenstein (Moderator) - Chief Media Analyst & President, Luminate Intelligence
Join leaders from The Trade Desk and Walmart Connect as they speak about working together to expand effective consumer reach across growing media ecosystems.
11:30 AM - 11:50 AM PT
Headliner Conversation with Anthony Wood, Founder, Chairman and CEO, Roku
Anthony Wood - Founder, Chairman and CEO, Roku
Cynthia Littleton (Moderator) - Co-Editor-in-Chief, Variety
11:50 AM - 12:25 PM PT
Experience This! What’s Next in Events Across Platforms
Kim Boyd - President, Licensing & Entertainment, Hasbro
Javi Borges - Global and US Media and Entertainment Sector Leader, EY
Jenefer Brown - President, Global Products and Experiences, Lionsgate
Kevin Chernett - EVP & Head of Global Media Partnerships, Live Nation
Sandra Douglass Morgan - President, Las Vegas Raiders
Todd Spangler (Moderator) - Business Editor, Variety
As companies work to build out universes for their IP, brands and characters, experiential entertainment is crucial to extend reach. What types of in-person and digital events are especially gaining traction?
12:25 PM - 1:25 PM PT
Lunch Break
1:25 PM - 2:05 PM PT
AI in Overdrive
Rahul Gautam - Global TMT Consulting Leader and Americas Media and Entertainment Consulting Leader, EY
Sam Hall - Chief Product Officer, Epidemic Sound
André Kudelski - Chairman and CEO, NAGRA – Kudelski Group
Jill Steinhauser - Group SVP, Platform Monetization & Partnerships, Warner Bros. Discovery
Kristen O’Hara - VP, Agency, Platforms & Client Solutions, Google
Cynthia Littleton (Moderator) - Co-Editor-in-Chief, Variety
Susan Doniz - Chief Information and Data Officer, Disney
If last year centered around experimentation, now AI is a must-have integration for many in the entertainment and media industry to succeed. AI leaders converge to share their use cases for AI in driving their business forward.
2:05 PM - 2:25 PM PT
Harnessing Fandom through Live Sports Content featuring Amazon Ads & WPP Media
Danielle Carney - Director, US Video and Live Sports, Amazon Ads
Martin Blich - Executive Director, Head of Sports Partnerships & Content US, WPP Media
Cynthia Littleton (Moderator) - Co-Editor-in-Chief, Variety
Discover key moments where brands can create meaningful connections with fans across live sports content.
2:25 PM - 3:00 PM PT
Brandmakers Elite Roundtable
Allison Stransky - CMO, Samsung Electronics America
Grace Kao - CMO, Snap
Monica Austin - CMO, Blizzard Entertainment
Darren Schillace - CMO, FOX Entertainment
Andrew Wallenstein (Moderator) - Chief Media Analyst & President, Luminate Intelligence
A look at marketing chiefs who are transformational leaders for their companies. How are marketers making their brands truly matter to today’s audiences? When ads are so easily clicked away these days, what marketing is really commanding our attention?
3:00 PM - 3:15 PM PT
Conversation with Kelly Day, VP, Prime Video International
Kelly Day - VP, Prime Video International
Andrew Wallenstein (Moderator) - Chief Media Analyst & President, Luminate Intelligence
3:15 PM - 3:35 PM PT
Headliner Conversation with Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Actor, Filmmaker, and Entrepreneur, HitRecord
Joseph Gordon-Levitt - Actor, Filmmaker, and Entrepreneur, HitRecord
Todd Spangler (Moderator) - Business Editor, Variety
3:35 PM - 4:10 PM PT
Fandom in the Zeitgeist
Pat Shah - Global Head of Content Acquisition, Strategy, and Partnerships, Audible
Nadine Zylstra - Global Head of Programming and Originals, Pinterest
Thai Randolph - CEO, LL Cool J’s Rock the Bells
Mitchel Berger - EVP Global Commerce, Crunchyroll
Farzeen Ghorashy - President, Overtime
Todd Spangler (Moderator) - Business Editor, Variety
Jonathan Adashek - SVP Marketing and Communications, IBM
Creating and sustaining fandom for new content, products and services is end game for any company. With our growing history of seeing what hits, are there new strategies to engineer devoted passion among audiences? A look at how entertainment – spanning TV, film, creator content, gaming, music and more – is being developed for maximum fan impact.
4:10 PM - 4:30 PM PT
Decoding the Feed: How Zefr Leverages NVIDIA Technology to Analyze Social Content at Scale
Jamie Allan - Global Head of Business Development, Streaming, Sports, AdTech, NVIDIA
Jon Morra - Chief AI Officer, Zefr
Content creation on social platforms is evolving faster than ever, shaped by rapidly shifting trends, user generated content, and new technologies like AI assisted and AI manipulated media. In this session, discover how Zefr leverages NVIDIA’s technology to fuel large-scale content intelligence, analyze social platforms in real time, spot emerging trends, and give brands meaningful insight into the environments surrounding their ads.
4:30 PM - 5:05 PM PT
The Big Picture Outlook – What Trends Will Shape 2026?
Chris McGurk - CEO, Cineverse
Maureen Polo - CEO, Hello Sunshine
Yong-yi Zhu - VP and Head of Business Operations, Strategy and Compliance, Tencent Games
Shahrzad Rafati - CEO, RHEI
Mike Romoff - Chief Revenue Officer, Reddit
Cynthia Littleton (Moderator) - Co-Editor-in-Chief, Variety
Nikki Santoro - CEO, IMDb
Jim Squires - EVP, Business Marketing and Growth, Reddit
The entertainment and media’s brightest converge to share their predictions for what trends will shape their future business. What trends will bring new challenges and opportunities? What new ideas are they betting on with new resources and support? Leaders tell all about how they are preparing to thrive in the new year.
Speakers
2026 Partners
PREMIER PARTNERS
OFFICIAL PARTNER
SUPPORTING PARTNERS
Sponsorship Opportunities
Michelle Fine- Smith
Programming Opportunities
Susanne Ault
Sponsorship Opportunities |
Speaking Opportunities |
|---|---|
Michelle Fine-Smith |
Susanne Ault |