For Immediate Release: August 22, 2007

Contacts:	Kerry Parke, kparke@hbs.edu, (617) 495-6931

NEW HARVARD BUSINESS SCHOOL PROGRAM WILL HELP MEDIA FIRMS RESPOND TO NEW TECHNOLOGIES

BOSTON - Harvard Business School (HBS) announced today the launch of a new Executive Education program that will provide media and entertainment companies with innovative strategies to help them prosper within their increasingly competitive business environment and take advantage of new and continuously evolving distribution channels. The program, Effective Strategies for Media Companies: Navigating the New World, will be held on the School's Boston campus on November 28 - December 1.

"Media organizations are facing intense pressure to be proactive in their business strategy as the Internet and other multimedia channels lure consumers away from traditional media outlets," said Professor Bharat N. Anand, faculty co-chair of the Harvard Business School program and an expert in corporate strategy and the media sector. "For media organizations to maintain a viable and profitable business, they must exploit marketplace trends, adapt to the heightened consumer demand for Web-based media services, and explore new business models that will keep them competitive."

The program will also be led by Professor Felix Oberholzer-Gee, an expert on business strategy who has studied how entertainment companies can successfully manage the digital transition.

Effective Strategies for Media Companies is designed for senior executives who have responsibility in the areas of business development, strategic planning, technology, and legal services. It will address the central issues that confront media organizations including:

• attracting and sustaining audiences that find themselves overwhelmed with choices;
• getting paid for the content they provide;
• adapting to emerging trends in technology and consumer habits.

"The business of running a media company evolves daily, forcing senior executives to rethink how they can ensure the profitability of their business in a world with rapidly changing technologies," said Professor Oberholzer-Gee. "A major goal of this program is to introduce participants to ideas that can help their companies understand the likely impact of these technologies and compete more effectively.

HBS faculty will interact with participants from diverse industry backgrounds to examine case studies from a wide range of media sectors including print, publishing, radio, television, and music. Faculty will also present participants with business models that exemplify best practices within each industry and develop ones that are appropriate for their own organizations.

Admission to the program is based on professional achievement and organizational responsibility. For more information or to apply online visit http://www.exed.hbs.edu/programs/med/.

About Harvard Business School
Founded in 1908 as part of Harvard University, Harvard Business School (www.hbs.edu) is located on a 40-acre campus in Boston. Its faculty of more than 200 offers full-time programs leading to the MBA and doctoral degrees, as well as more than 70Executive Education programs. For almost a century, HBS faculty have drawn on their research, their experience in working with organizations worldwide, and their passion for teaching to educate leaders who have shaped the practice of business around the globe.