With profound sadness, SMPTE announces the passing of Peter Wharton. On August 8, Peter passed away following a short period of illness. He had been employed as the Chief Strategy and Cloud Officer at TAG Video Systems and was the founder of Happy Robotz LLC, a company specializing in media technology engineering, advancement, and consultation. This company was dedicated to establishing revolutionary cloud-centered media procedures characterized by intelligent, economically viable, and extensively automated end-to-end workflows. Notably, Peter played a leading role in managing the cloud migration initiative for a prominent U.S. network. His professional journey encompassed a variety of responsibilities, including live production, product management, technological innovation, and business expansion positions at Grass Valley, Fox, and ABC Networks.
A SMPTE Fellow, Peter was a devoted member of the SMPTE community. He served as SMPTE's Vice President of Membership, Secretary/Treasurer, and Eastern Regional Governor. He also took charge of organizing the "Bits by the Bay" SMPTE technology conference in the Washington D.C. area since 1999.