Jonathan Taplin: Leading trends in technology investments and start-ups in California and the US (II)

Jonathan Taplin is Director of the Annenberg Innovation Lab based at USC. Jonathan Taplin's areas of specialization are in International Communication Management and the field of digital media entertainment.

Taplin began his entertainment career in 1969 as Tour Manager for Bob Dylan and The Band. In 1973 he produced Martin Scorsese's first feature film, Mean Streets, which was selected for the Cannes Film Festival. Between 1974 and 1996, Taplin produced 26 hours of television documentaries (including The Prize and Cadillac Desert for PBS) and 12 feature films. His films were nominated for Oscar and Golden Globe awards and chosen for The Cannes Film Festival seven times. 
In 1984 Taplin acted as the investment advisor to the Bass Brothers in their successful attempt to save Walt Disney Studios from a corporate raid. This experience brought him to Merrill Lynch, where he served as vice president of media mergers and acquisitions. Taplin was a founder of Intertainer and has served as its Chairman and CEO since June 1996. Intertainer was the pioneer video-on-demand company for both cable and broadband Internet markets. Taplin holds two patents for video-on-demand technologies. 

Mr. Taplin graduated from Princeton University. He is a member of the Academy Of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences and sits on the advisory board of the Democracy Collaborative at the University of Maryland. Taplin is a member of the Academy Of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences and sits on the International Advisory Board of the Singapore Media Authority and the Board of Directors of Public Knowledge. Taplin was appointed by Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger to the California Broadband Policy Task Force in January of 2007. 

Jonathan Taplin is member of CAIT (Center of Support for Technological Innovation) UPM International Advisory Board.