The NEXT Mobile Revolution: Near-field Communications (NFC)

Explore the promises and pitfalls of a technology that will change your life

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NFC is a technology that has been around for a number of years, but has been thrust into new prominence by an explosive growth in mobile phones, slated to reach five billion worldwide in 2011. With one chip, NFC enables trusted information sharing and secure business transactions to occur between paired devices. The resulting everyday applications – credit card, ID card, key card – could lead to real-life implications (from that of a wallet-less world to just-in-time target marketing) that were once the realm of movie makers and technology visionaries.

As NFC’s promise becomes reality, top players in key industries such as mobility (T-Mobile, Verizon), finance (MasterCard, Visa), retail (Amazon), and entrepreneurs (Qthru, Iota) are collaborating as well as vying to capitalize on the opportunities that this technology presents. During this lively and insightful discussion moderated by David Brudnicki, CTO of NFC software and system provider Sequent, we ask industry experts to elaborate on the promises and pitfalls of NFC, the key players, and how entrepreneurs can get in on the game.

MODERATOR:

David Brudnicki, CTO, Sequent Software, Inc. David (also known as "DB") has been at the forefront of mobile products and technology for over 20 years. He has led advanced technology and product development teams at AT&T Wireless Services including music, imaging, location-based-services, messaging, and mobile-commerce products. He has held various technology and leadership roles at Sprint, Prime Computer, Dow Jones & Company. David is also co-author of five patents related to mobile messaging and communications and is a recognized business and technology visionary in the mobile applications and services space. He is also a decorated veteran of the United States Coast Guard.

David is an expert in user interface and industrial design, as well as software architecture. DB has been critical in Sequent’s emergence as the pragmatic and elegant leading solution in NFC payments.

PANELISTS:

Kelly Franznick, Founder & CEO, Blink Interactive. Kelly manages company strategy and engagements with clients that range from startups to Fortune 500 companies. Prior to starting Blink in 2000, Kelly led user-centered design projects at E-Lab (acquired by Sapient Corporation), Lexant, and Immersant. Kelly has a Bachelor of Science in Design from Arizona State University’s Design School where he studied industrial design and human factors. He also holds a Master of Design degree, specializing in Human-Centered Design, from the Institute of Design in Chicago.

Jaymee Johnson, Head of Marketing, ISIS. Isis™ is a joint venture between AT&T Mobility, T-Mobile USA and Verizon Wireless chartered with building a nationwide mobile commerce platform that will transform the way consumers shop, pay and save. In this role, Jaymee is responsible for both consumer and business—including merchant, issuer and acquirer marketing. Before joining Isis, Jaymee spent six years with T-Mobile USA where he most recently served as Director of Strategic Development and Investments. While at T-Mobile, Jaymee was a member of the core team that developed and incubated the Isis business model. He had previously served in related business development and marketing roles. Jaymee began his career at aQuantive, in the early days of online advertising, serving in analytical and product management roles within both Avenue A (now Razorfish) and Atlas (now Microsoft). Jaymee is a graduate of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, where he received an undergraduate degree in Mechanical Engineering. Jaymee also holds an MBA from the Sloan School of Management at MIT. Outside of work, Jaymee enjoys spending time outdoors in the Pacific Northwest with his family.

Aaron Roberts, Founder & CEO, QThru. Aaron is a passionate entrepreneur who enjoys building culture-shaping services with technology. With 19 years of experience in the technology industry focusing on mobile, VOIP and image processing/tools, Aaron founded QThru. QThru is a service which provides shopping and self-checkout using a smartphone from any brick and mortar store, and is shaping the way people shop and pay for goods. Prior to QThru Aaron worked as a Senior Software Development Manager at Research In Motion where he helped grow RIM’s prosumer email service division from a few hundred thousand to over 30 million subscribers. Aaron was the brainchild behind the BlackBerry Management Center, a lightweight cloud-based management suite designed to simplify the grouping and management of BlackBerry devices for small IT Infrastructures. When he is not building companies, Aaron is an avid maker, inventor and science fiction fan.

Russ Stromberg, Founder & CEO, Iota. Iota is a Seattle-based company that accelerates check-in on social networks and rewards with one simple (tap) of wearables and other innovative mobile devices. Russ founded Iota after 15 years in the wireless industry, most recently as a leader at T-Mobile in engineering and product development.

For sponsorship and partnership opportunities: Please contact Fortunato Vega at fortunato911@gmail.com.

Event schedule

5:00 - 6:15 pm – Networking / cash bar / food buffet

6:15 - 8:00 pm – Panel discussion
8:00 - 8:15 pm – Q&A

Parking information

Although complimentary parking is available outside the venue, it is limited for the number of guests we are expecting for this event. Please consider arriving early, carpooling, or taking the bus (lines # 25, 43, 48, 167 and 545). Below are some additional parking options: