Bitcoin Conference 2013 in San Jose

[Phinnaeus Gage]

Another question: Will the discussions/talks be record with quality cameras, manned by competent individuals? There should be no excuses for inferior productions. Who here has quality equipment and is planning on attending? Do you lack anything or have questions or concerns pertaining to the event? Exactly what do you need to make sure the recording process proceeds seamlessly?

As an A/V technician, professionally, I handle a lot of events like this. As a Bitcoin Foundation member, I will be attending with some solid HD gear. All I would request is for a good spot in the back and a direct XLR connection to the mix for high quality sound. I'm also a Newtek Certified presenter, and can run a TriCaster 8000 if we want to do this thing live over livestream.com to the world, which can simultaneously integrate live social media streams.

Let me know!

I don't think anyone would argue with you livestreaming the events!  After all, that's what the community has asked for and attendees have promised, but not delivered on, for all the prior conferences.  The question is, can you actually pull it off, unlike all the other who have said they would do so, only to have irreconcilable technical difficulties when push came to shove?

@ Yankee or anyone else familiar with the conference proceedings - will reliable WiFi access be available in the events room(s)?

And another question: Have you considered a price break for those who are members of TBF? Here's my line of thinking: Assuming $X is the desirable price point you're pegging for, price the fee at $(X + Y) in such a way as to make it worthwhile for a person to become a member of TBF to enjoy the price break. Perhaps I could have sent a PM pertaining to this scheme (for lack of a better word), but opt to present it for all to see. Besides, it's just a suggestion.

~Bruno K~

[furrycoat]

I may go, I live in arizona so a bit of a drive for me.

[thefiniteidea]

Assuming the organizers are keen on the idea of having some talks/discussions streamed live, do you have access to a TriCaster 8000 or only informing us that you're capable of operating said device, being certified and all?

I am capable. The unit itself is about $30,000-$40,000. It may be possible to rent out from an A/V reseller in the San Jose area for 10% of that cost, but that needs to be looked into and obviously funded (perhaps by the foundation?). I really don't know what the foundation has in mind in terms of A/V gear, and that would be well worth knowing depending on what they wanted to accomplish.

Over and beyond the streaming aspect, is it safe to assume that you would put the videos on YouTube or, at the very least, make them readily available elsewhere?

The unit itself has the ability to upload videos to youtube simultaneously while the presentation is being filmed, recorded, and streamed. It's an amazing piece of hardware/software. Note, the price lol.

One more question, and please understand that it has nothing to do whatsoever with your abilities, for they're not in question, but is there a video you can link too, thus showcasing your talent and the equipment in use?

I look forward to seeing you at Bitcoin2013. I'll be the guy with scraggly ass beard.

~Bruno K~

[thefiniteidea]

I will lay this out:

Technically, for this to really happen, we would need all of your standard conference room A/V gear, plus some:

Mic(s) for the presenter(s) (wireless/wired, depending on pref.)
Tx/Rx for Wireless mic systems
Audio Mixer
Camera or cameras/tripods (depending on number of angles desired)
Audio/video cabling (XLR, SDI/Component, etc..)
Stable (preferably wired) network connection (50Mb/s would be best, or as long as upload is at least 10Mb/s. Higher the better)
TriCaster 850 (or better, 8000)
Projector Screens
Projectors (associated cabling)

And then all of this on a room by room basis... perhaps designating the tricaster/stream to rooms with bigger talks.

Just to give you guys an idea. Again, I have no idea what the foundation intends.

EDIT: found this with a quick google search. Obviously I did not do this TEDx production, but same equipment and a place to rent it near San Jose for a good price...

...These were all shot with the  TriCaster TCXD 850 with 3 Sony EX3 cameras, streamed in standard definition, and saved in HD 1080p:

TEDxSF:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gXDMoiEkyuQ
TEDxPresidio:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nboaE3O8zE8
Stanford:
http://www.youtube.com/user/KnightFe.../0/zXuzhkgQhOs

Repertoire can rent the fly packs, or produce the video like we did in the above examples.

http://repertoireproductions.com/
Jonathan 415.846.4024

[n8rwJeTt8TrrLKPa55eU]

@ Yankee or anyone else familiar with the conference proceedings - will reliable WiFi access be available in the events room(s)?

I've attended conferences at the proposed location.  It is a premier venue with whatever facilities you can imagine.  Technically, anything you require, they can provide.

However: I have no clue whether communications services (e.g. WiFi for attendees, or a large pipe for streaming) are standard or will require separate purchase as an add-on from the organizer.  Also, possibly the convention center will frown on 3rd party attendees doing A/V work instead of hiring their onsite personnel and equipment.  The Foundation will have to figure out all these details based on whatever budget they have for the event, and based on a ticket price that people can afford.  From a financial standpoint, announcing that everything will be livestreamed for free could be counterproductive, as it would reduce the incentive for people to fly in and attend.  If the event doesn't sell out and break even, it would look very bad for PR reasons, and would likely mean either higher prices for those who do attend or, even worse, possible cancellation of the conference.

[Phinnaeus Gage]

@ Yankee or anyone else familiar with the conference proceedings - will reliable WiFi access be available in the events room(s)?

I've attended conferences at the proposed location.  It is a premier venue with whatever facilities you can imagine.  Technically, anything you require, they can provide.

However: I have no clue whether communications services (e.g. WiFi for attendees, or a large pipe for streaming) are standard or will require separate purchase as an add-on from the organizer.  Also, possibly the convention center will frown on 3rd party attendees doing A/V work instead of hiring their onsite personnel and equipment.  The Foundation will have to figure out all these details based on whatever budget they have for the event, and based on a ticket price that people can afford.  From a financial standpoint, announcing that everything will be livestreamed for free could be counterproductive, as it would reduce the incentive for people to fly in and attend.  If the event doesn't sell out and break even, it would look very bad for PR reasons, and would likely mean either higher prices for those who do attend or, even worse, possible cancellation of the conference.

Lower turnout due to having the event freely live streamed would be a major concern.

[thefiniteidea]

@ Yankee or anyone else familiar with the conference proceedings - will reliable WiFi access be available in the events room(s)?

I've attended conferences at the proposed location.  It is a premier venue with whatever facilities you can imagine.  Technically, anything you require, they can provide.

However: I have no clue whether communications services (e.g. WiFi for attendees, or a large pipe for streaming) are standard or will require separate purchase as an add-on from the organizer.  Also, possibly the convention center will frown on 3rd party attendees doing A/V work instead of hiring their onsite personnel and equipment.  The Foundation will have to figure out all these details based on whatever budget they have for the event, and based on a ticket price that people can afford.  From a financial standpoint, announcing that everything will be livestreamed for free could be counterproductive, as it would reduce the incentive for people to fly in and attend.  If the event doesn't sell out and break even, it would look very bad for PR reasons, and would likely mean either higher prices for those who do attend or, even worse, possible cancellation of the conference.

Valid point.

They could also profit from the fact that certain segments would be streamed by charging to view it live. Or not mention that it will be streamed until it gets close enough to the point where they've sold enough tickets, and people wouldn't request refunds/change their plans. But perhaps it would be best to just upload segments after the conference.

Also, it would certainly make things easier for the Foundation if the venue did have an established, integrated A/V service already at the venue. If they do, hopefully they know what they're doing. I would really like to record the conference and sometimes those guys can make things harder than they need to be.

Of course, we're all just speculating here. I'm assuming we'll find out more details on this as the BF board members deliberate on the issue.

[n8rwJeTt8TrrLKPa55eU]

Lower turnout due to having the event freely live streamed would be a major concern.

Hopefully, the event will sell out quickly...and thus the Foundation would have enough attendance certainty to consider doing some streaming (free, or paid as thefiniteidea suggests) as a means for widening the reach.

Alternatively, what I've seen some companies do in order to give an event higher visibility without risking empty seats, is maybe livestream a keynote or two (or post them online soon afterwards) while leaving the rest of the talks unstreamed and unposted for a few months.  But in that case, as thefiniteidea points out, it's best not to announce such a plan beforehand, so as to encourage maximum attendance.  So my guess is that there will be 100% silence from the Foundation on the topic of streams until the event is confirmed sold out...which should be easy, given that Bitcoin is unquestionably the most exciting technology since the Internet itself, and the chosen location has the highest concentration of nerds/VCs/entrepreneurs per square mile of just about anywhere else on earth.  If executed and advertised properly, this event has the potential to be massive wrt. spawning new Bitcoin startups and generating millions in funding for Bitcoin ventures.

[Phinnaeus Gage]

Lower turnout due to having the event freely live streamed would be a major concern.

Hopefully, the event will sell out quickly...and thus the Foundation would have enough attendance certainty to consider doing some streaming (free, or paid as thefiniteidea suggests) as a means for widening the reach.

Alternatively, what I've seen some companies do in order to give an event higher visibility without risking empty seats, is maybe livestream a keynote or two (or post them online soon afterwards) while leaving the rest of the talks unstreamed and unposted for a few months.  But in that case, as thefiniteidea points out, it's best not to announce such a plan beforehand, so as to encourage maximum attendance.  So my guess is that there will be 100% silence from the Foundation on the topic of streams until the event is confirmed sold out...which should be easy, given that Bitcoin is unquestionably the most exciting technology since the Internet itself, and the chosen location has the highest concentration of nerds/VCs/entrepreneurs per square mile of just about anywhere else on earth.  If executed and advertised properly, this event has the potential to be massive wrt. spawning new Bitcoin startups and generating millions in funding for Bitcoin ventures.

Valid point on the streaming aspect being withheld up to the event date, whereby whatever is announced, we shouldn't be that disappointed, but what is paramount is that close to 100% of the event is filmed with utmost quality and released to the general public ASAP.

It would be amazing to see the venue sold out, thus creating a secondary market by the scalpers at its entrance.

[niko]

I will not be able to attend, and see no advantage to having a live stream available. Being able to see the talks few days after they took place is a better option as it would save BF resources and make them available for other jobs related to the conference.

[Boussac]

I will not be able to attend, and see no advantage to having a live stream available. Being able to see the talks few days after they took place is a better option as it would save BF resources and make them available for other jobs related to the conference.

+1

I plan to attend (the venue is only a short 11-hour flight from where I live)

[arklan]

may eh? i'd certain like to attend. we'll see how the money plays out.

[Phinnaeus Gage]

https://gc.synxis.com/rez.aspx?hotel=54488&chain=13325&template=ABVI_GCFLX&shell=ABVI_flex&arrive=05-17-2013&depart=05-20-2013&NumberOfRooms=1&FrequentGuestId=

2 Queen Beds

USD 71.20 / Night
Excluding Taxes & Fees
View Price Breakdown

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hWKUxgozeWI

http://www.booking.com/searchresults.html?src=searchresults&city=20015742&order=popularity&ssne=San+Jose&ssne_untouched=San+Jose&error_url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.booking.com%2Fsearchresults.en-us.html%3Faid%3D342443%3Blabel%3Dcity-san-jose-RisE0RG9M5JU0SNw0Y9gqAS16341102110%253Apl%253Ata%253Ap1%253Ap2%253Aac%253Aap1t2%253Aneg%3Bsid%3Daaed1ea47006ab466733121cb9847e43%3Bdcid%3D1%3Bcheckin_monthday%3D17%3Bcheckin_year_month%3D2013-5%3Bcheckout_monthday%3D18%3Bcheckout_year_month%3D2013-5%3Bcity%3D20015742%3Bclass_interval%3D1%3Bcsflt%3D%257B%257D%3Binac%3D0%3Boffset%3D0%3Border%3Dpopularity%3Bradius%3D0%3Bredirected_from_city%3D0%3Bredirected_from_landmark%3D0%3Breview_score_group%3Dempty%3Bscore_min%3D0%3Bsi%3Dai%252Cco%252Cci%252Cre%252Cdi%3Bsrc%3Dsearchresults%3Bss%3DSan%2520Jose%3Bss_all%3D0%3Bssb%3Dempty%3Bssne%3DSan%2520Jose%3Bssne_untouched%3DSan%2520Jose%3B&aid=342443&dcid=1&label=city-san-jose-RisE0RG9M5JU0SNw0Y9gqAS16341102110%3Apl%3Ata%3Ap1%3Ap2%3Aac%3Aap1t2%3Aneg&sid=aaed1ea47006ab466733121cb9847e43&si=ai%2Cco%2Cci%2Cre%2Cdi&ss=San+Jose&radius=0&checkin_monthday=16&checkin_year_month=2013-5&checkout_monthday=20&checkout_year_month=2013-5&in_a_group=on&org_nr_rooms=1&org_nr_adults=2&org_nr_children=0&group_config=&group_adults=2&group_children=0&dest_type=city&dest_id=20015742

[SouthernComfort]

Wish I could go 

[SgtSpike]

https://gc.synxis.com/rez.aspx?hotel=54488&chain=13325&template=ABVI_GCFLX&shell=ABVI_flex&arrive=05-17-2013&depart=05-20-2013&NumberOfRooms=1&FrequentGuestId=

2 Queen Beds

USD 71.20 / Night
Excluding Taxes & Fees
View Price Breakdown

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hWKUxgozeWI

http://www.booking.com/searchresults.html?src=searchresults&city=20015742&order=popularity&ssne=San+Jose&ssne_untouched=San+Jose&error_url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.booking.com%2Fsearchresults.en-us.html%3Faid%3D342443%3Blabel%3Dcity-san-jose-RisE0RG9M5JU0SNw0Y9gqAS16341102110%253Apl%253Ata%253Ap1%253Ap2%253Aac%253Aap1t2%253Aneg%3Bsid%3Daaed1ea47006ab466733121cb9847e43%3Bdcid%3D1%3Bcheckin_monthday%3D17%3Bcheckin_year_month%3D2013-5%3Bcheckout_monthday%3D18%3Bcheckout_year_month%3D2013-5%3Bcity%3D20015742%3Bclass_interval%3D1%3Bcsflt%3D%257B%257D%3Binac%3D0%3Boffset%3D0%3Border%3Dpopularity%3Bradius%3D0%3Bredirected_from_city%3D0%3Bredirected_from_landmark%3D0%3Breview_score_group%3Dempty%3Bscore_min%3D0%3Bsi%3Dai%252Cco%252Cci%252Cre%252Cdi%3Bsrc%3Dsearchresults%3Bss%3DSan%2520Jose%3Bss_all%3D0%3Bssb%3Dempty%3Bssne%3DSan%2520Jose%3Bssne_untouched%3DSan%2520Jose%3B&aid=342443&dcid=1&label=city-san-jose-RisE0RG9M5JU0SNw0Y9gqAS16341102110%3Apl%3Ata%3Ap1%3Ap2%3Aac%3Aap1t2%3Aneg&sid=aaed1ea47006ab466733121cb9847e43&si=ai%2Cco%2Cci%2Cre%2Cdi&ss=San+Jose&radius=0&checkin_monthday=16&checkin_year_month=2013-5&checkout_monthday=20&checkout_year_month=2013-5&in_a_group=on&org_nr_rooms=1&org_nr_adults=2&org_nr_children=0&group_config=&group_adults=2&group_children=0&dest_type=city&dest_id=20015742

Dang, that's cheap!

[workingforbitcoin]

Hi everyone,
Apologies for neglecting the forum in an *official* announcement.  I've started an announcement thread and I will try to answer some of the questions you've posted:

Who is running it?

The Bitcoin Foundation

Is it just going to be panels, or will there be individual speakers, breakout rooms, etc?

Moreover, whether all panels or not, is this the type of panel (or similar) to be expected at Bitcoin2013 shown in the following video?: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=poSouQFcb0Q

There will be keynote speakers and panels, and we are also encouraging attendees to self-form panels or suggest topics.  Yes, the panel discussions will be similar in format to the video referenced.  To make a request to be a panelist or speaker, submit your information through the conference website Panelists page: http://www.bitcoin2013.com/panelists.html

If I go to the website, there is only a submission form to be part of a panel discussion (worthless, imho). Where do I submit a paper or sign up to give a talk?

As noted on the site, if you are interested in presenting on a different topic, you should submit a request through the Panelists page as well - please choose "Other" under "Panel Topic" when making your request.  If you want to submit a paper, make a note of that in your request.

BTW, the website makes no mention of conference ticket cost. 

We are working on getting attendee registration up and running - it should be available in the next couple of weeks, at which point we'll publish the ticket cost.  You can submit your name and email on the site (www.bitcoin2013.com) to be notified when attendee registration is available.

If I am cost-conscience, are there any hotels available cheaper than those with "blocks" allocated to the conference?

You are welcome to look into other options, but those are the official room blocks available.  The four hotels offered are closest to the convention center.

Will the discussions/talks be record with quality cameras...?

As an A/V technician, professionally, I handle a lot of events like this. As a Bitcoin Foundation member, I will be attending with some solid HD gear. All I would request is for a good spot in the back and a direct XLR connection to the mix for high quality sound. I'm also a Newtek Certified presenter, and can run a TriCaster 8000 if we want to do this thing live over livestream.com to the world, which can simultaneously integrate live social media streams.

...announcing that everything will be livestreamed for free could be counterproductive, as it would reduce the incentive for people to fly in and attend.

We are definitely interested in recording the panels.  As previously mentioned on this thread, livestreaming would reduce the number of people who would come to the event, and we see a lot of value in those in-person interactions.  At this point, it's not something we're planning.  If we're able to record, however, we'll definitely post the videos after the event.  We are looking into costs of recording, etc.  thefiniteidea, thanks for volunteering to help us - I'll be in touch to discuss further.

will reliable WiFi access be available in the events room(s)?

Yes, absolutely.  We are working with the onsite communications team to have wifi available throughout the entire event.

Let me know if I missed anything.  Thanks for all your input!

[dacoinminster]

Here's the official thread:

https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=135407.0

I'm registered, although I have no idea what activities and speakers I paid $250 for, or why they asked me about dietary restrictions, but this is the first bitcoin conference in the U.S., and I wouldn't miss it!

[jphonixe]

When the next conference held on. Anyone have any information regarding conference.


San Jose CA Locksmith

[edd]

When the next conference held on. Anyone have any information regarding conference.


San Jose CA Locksmith

Bitcoin2014
Building the Digital Economy

15 - 17 May, Amsterdam

http://bitcoin2014.com/