Teletrax has engaged the services of Pilson Communications, Inc., whose president, Neal H. Pilson, was formerly president of CBS Sports, and DPB Communications, Inc., managed by Dave Berman, former senior vice president of PanAmSat, to develop television sports rights and content management opportunities for the global broadcast intelligence company, it was announced today. Teletrax is a subsidiary of Medialink Worldwide Incorporated (Nasdaq: MDLK) and recently announced an agreement with Major League Baseball® to test its digital watermarking and broadcast evaluation service.
Pilson, recently listed among the top 20 most influential sports business media executives by the Sports Business Journal, and whose current clients include NASCAR, Arena Football League, the Rose Bowl, World Series of Poker and JetBlue Airways LiveTV, among many others, served in a number of executive capacities at CBS, including two terms as president of the networks sports division. Berman also served CBS in several capacities in New York and London, including 10 years as vice president of production, operations and administration of CBS Broadcast International, before joining PanAmSat, the worlds largest private provider of satellite-based communications services, which was merged with Intelsat in 2006.
Neal and Dave bring unique skills, extraordinary contacts, industry knowledge and business savvy that will help expand Teletrax already an established presence in the television news, entertainment and advertising sectors into the very dynamic sports arena, said Laurence Moskowitz, chairman of Teletrax and chief executive of Medialink. Sports leagues, teams and associations face an increasingly difficult task in tracking and protecting their valuable content. Neal and Dave will help us bring the power of digital watermarking technology and the global reach of Teletrax into this vibrant marketplace.
There is a rapidly growing need for greater transparency and accountability in the world of television sports coverage, Pilson explained. Billions of dollars, euros, pounds and yen are involved in the payment for broadcasting rights and the sale of advertising and sponsorship. With so much value at stake, an electronic watchdog such as Teletrax is not a luxury, but a critical tool. Pilson and Berman will work with Teletrax sales and business development director Christopher Golden, who joined Teletrax earlier in the year from The Hollywood Reporter.
Teletrax offers the only digital video monitoring and content tracking service that provides vital broadcast intelligence on a global scale to video providers such as entertainment studios, news organizations, TV syndicators, and the advertising industry. The company is a joint venture between Royal Philips Electronics of the Netherlands (NYSE: PHG) and Medialink, with an underlying technology that is patent protected both by Philips and Digimarc Corp. (Nasdaq: DMRC).
Teletrax currently maintains a proprietary network of detectors that monitors the television broadcasts of nearly 1,500 channels from more than 50 nations, including all 210 markets in the United States, representing all measured U.S. television households. Its international network covers television stations across Europe, Asia, the Middle East, Australia, South and Central America, and Canada. Teletrax clients include ABC Television Network, Associated Press, BBC, CBS Television, Disney-ABC Domestic Television, Fox Broadcasting Company, NBC News Channel, The NBC Agency, NBC Universal Domestic Television, Reuters Television, United Nations, ITN Networks, Euro RSCG 4D DRTV, and Medialink. A number of other companies are also in active trials with the Teletrax service.