Event Coverage
Imagine Communications to host thought-leadership sessions at IBC2017
MUMBAI: Imagine Communications has unveiled the schedule and speaker lineup for the IBC2017 edition of the company’s popular ImagineLIVE Power Sessions, a series of presentations and interactive discussions featuring prominent executives and experts from across the media and entertainment and IT industries. This year’s thought-leadership series, presented at Imagine’s IBC stand (4.A01), also includes a line-up of Master Classes, topical educational courses led by Imagine Communications subject matter experts.
Power Sessions and Master Classes will be conducted at lunchtime and in the early afternoon throughout the exhibition. The IBC2017 Power Session series will include testimonials from customers and highlights of how media companies from around the world are adapting operations to next-generation architectures to achieve new levels of agility and evolve their media facilities to meet future market requirements. Power Sessions and Master Classes will focus on the solutions and technology trends, such as microservices, inventory optimisation, real-world IP deployments and OTT distribution, that are influencing the direction of evolving business models and monetisation practices.
“The media industry is now fully engaged in transitioning operations to a new technology foundation based on next-generation architectures that leverage IP, commercial-off-the-shelf (COTS) compute and networking resources, virtualization and other IT technology attributes,” said Imagine Communications CEO Charlie Vogt, who will be kicking off the ImagineLIVE sessions with a special keynote on the impact of microservices that features representatives from IBM and Al Jazeera. “ImagineLIVE Power Sessions and Master Classes spotlight the trends and technologies influencing the direction of the industry and provide valuable insights into the remaining challenges and future opportunities facing today’s media and entertainment ecosystem.”
ImagineLIVE Power Sessions and Master Classes schedule and speakers:
Friday, 15 Sept., 17:00-17:45
CEO Keynote: Why Microservices are a Game Changer (Charlie Vogt, CEO, Imagine Communications; Brick Eksten, Chief Product Officer, Imagine Communications; Steve Canepa, Global Managing Director Telecommunications, M & E Industry, IBM; and Miljenko Logozar, Chief Broadcast Architect, Al Jazeera Media Network)
Saturday, 16 Sept., 12:00-12:30
Master Class: Microservices & Open Zenium (Darren Gallipeau, Zenium Program Director, Imagine Communications)
Saturday, 16 Sept., 15:00-15:30
Multiscreen Opportunities – Moderated by Allan McLennan, President and Chief Market Technologist, PADEM Media Group (Steve Reynolds, CTO, Imagine Communications; Tony Emerson, WorldWide Managing Director, Media & Cable, Microsoft; and Chris Carey, Chief Revenue Officer, Verizon Digital Media Services)
Sunday, 17 Sept., 12:00-12:30
Master Class: End-to-End IP (John Mailhot, CTO of Networking, Imagine Communications and Andreas Lattmann, CTO, tpc)
Sunday, 17 Sept., 15:00-15:30
From Playout to Payout (Yuval Fisher, CTO of Distribution, Imagine Communications)
Monday, 18 Sept., 12:00-12:30
Master Class: Ad Optimization in the Cloud (Graham Heap, Director, Product Management, Advertising Management Systems, Imagine Communications)
Monday, 18 Sept., 15:00-15:30
Revenue Optimization (Sarah Foss, Chief Product Office, Advertising Management Systems, Imagine Communications and Angela Goodsir, Chief Technology & Systems Operations Officer, Multi Channel Network)
Event Coverage
Anime India announces Amazon MX Player as co-presenting partner for Anime India Kolkata 2026
MUMBAI: Riding high on the success of its blockbuster Mumbai debut, Anime India is accelerating its nationwide expansion with the announcement of Amazon MX Player as the co-presenting partner for Anime India Kolkata. The partnership marks a significant step forward in the festival’s mission to deliver large-scale, accessible, and fan-first anime experiences across the country.
Scheduled for 14 and 15 February 2026 at the iconic Biswa Bangla Mela Prangan, Anime India Kolkata will launch the first regional chapter of what is set to be a year-long, multi-city tour. As the curtain-raiser for the 2026 circuit, the Kolkata edition aims to fuse the energy of global Japanese pop culture with India’s fast-growing community of anime, manga, and pop-culture fans.
A household name in digital entertainment, Amazon MX Player brings unmatched reach and cultural relevance to the Anime India platform. With its expanding focus on anime and youth-driven content, Amazon MX Player’s involvement as co-presenting partner reinforces Anime India’s vision of making anime culture more inclusive breaking barriers of language, geography, and accessibility to connect with fans nationwide.
Anime India Kolkata 2026 will showcase cosplay competitions, interactive zones led by the Indian Gunpla Community, India-39 Vocaloid Community, The Japan Curry, and Adda-o-Otaku by The Otaku Guild. Fans can join tournaments across fighting games, Pokémon VGC, and more. Acclaimed Japanese director Susumu Mitsunaka (Haikyu!!) will attend as guest of honour, appearing in panels and live sessions. Positioned as an immersive celebration of fan culture and industry collaboration, the Kolkata edition marks the beginning of Anime India’s nationwide expansion.
Sharing their perspective on the partnership, Amazon MX Player director Aruna Daryanani expressed, “Anime in India has evolved from a niche interest into a mainstream cultural movement, driven by an increasingly engaged and passionate fanbase. At Amazon MX Player, our focus is on expanding access by bringing anime to audiences across the country for free and in multiple local languages. Our association with Anime India reflects our commitment to supporting the growth of anime in India and deepening connections with fans, while continuing to build Amazon MX Player as a trusted destination for free, high-quality entertainment.”
“Anime India Kolkata is a celebration of how anime has grown beyond entertainment into a powerful cultural and creative force. By bringing fans, creators, and industry leaders onto one shared platform, the festival is helping define the future of pop culture in India,” said Anime India co-founder and director Neha Mehta.
The debut edition of Anime India 2025 in Mumbai attracted over 29,000 fans, quickly cementing its status as a landmark celebration of anime and Japanese pop culture. Riding on this overwhelming response, the Kolkata chapter is projected to draw more than 40,000 visitors across two days, positioning it as one of the biggest anime conventions ever held in eastern India.
Anime India is focused on bringing together fans from across the country to create a truly pan-India celebration of anime, manga, cosplay, gaming, and Japanese culture. With plans to expand into four key metropolitan hubs in 2026—east (Kolkata), north (Delhi), west (Mumbai), and south (Hyderabad)—the festival seeks to deliver globally benchmarked experiences while supporting and uplifting creators, artists, and fan communities throughout India.
