United Kingdom

The UK Section holds monthly evening meetings, where we get together to socialise and discuss topics impacting our industry. Take a look at the meetings listed below, sign up and come along! Priority is given to SMPTE members, but newcomers are very welcome. At every event, there will be an interesting technically-oriented presentation, plenty of time to network with industry peers, and ample refreshments courtesy of our sponsors and supporters.

Take a look at our previous meetings to see what we've been upto! 2023 meetings | 2022 meetings | 2021 meetings

Next meeting

Joint meeting: SMPTE UK and Women in Streaming Media

Join us for an evening's lively discussion all about streaming media, followed by drinks on the 34th floor of BT Tower.

When: Thu 27 April 2023

Where: BT Tower, 45 Maple Street, London, England, W1T 4BG

Food and networking from 6pm. Talk starts at 7pm. Event ends at 10pm.

In this first ever UK joint meeting we will be hearing from two female industry leaders, Ailin Tarbinian and Kate Lowe, who will explore the increasing demand for OTT video services, how OTT platforms have evolved over the years and how they are delivering seamless user experiences with changing viewing technology. Ailin is Head of Streaming and Platform Capabilities at Sky, responsible for Sky’s OTT Linear Streaming Platforms which delivers the linear streams for Sky Go, NOW, Sky Sports and Sky News Apps in the UK and ROI. Kate is Head of Product for Sky’s digital identity platform, responsible for defining the strategy to unlock the value of identity capabilities whilst continuing to protect customers across Sky, NOW and NBCU’s Peacock and Showtime. 

We will also be exploring how individuals end up in these kinds of technical roles with a talk from Polly Hickling, Head of Education for Women in Streaming Media, and Education Director at SMPTE. Polly will be delving into the current educational pathways in streaming media and the trending topic of whether there is a skills shortage or just an unclear pipeline.

Finally we will her from Jason Thibeault of the Streaming Video Technology Alliance, who will tell us about an exciting education initiative they have launching soon!

Our evening will end in style with drinks and views on the 34th floor of BT Tower.

Just like all SMPTE UK events, this meeting is open to existing professionals and students alike. Attendance is free of charge. Tickets are limited so please book early!

Ample refreshments will be provided courtesy of BT Media & Broadcast.

SMPTE is a members’ organisation - we gather together for community, to educate one another, and to set standards, and we'd really like you to play a part.

The benefits of SMPTE membership are vast. Whether you're a student, graduate or industry professional, there's a lot to gain. Click here to find out more! And as an extra benefit for UK tax-payers, your membership subscription can be offset against tax.

Meet the SMPTE UK Managers

SMPTE UK is run by an enthusiastic group of volunteers, all of whom have day-jobs as professionals in the Motion Picture and Television industries. SMPTE runs elections each year to appoint members to these and other leadership roles. If you'd like to help out with running SMPTE UK, or even run for election to one of these roles in a future year, come to our meetings and talk with our current Chair, John Ellerton.

We look forward to welcoming you at our next UK meeting.

We really want to hear your ideas and suggestions as we build up SMPTE UK. Feel free to get in touch if you have topics for talks you think people would be interested to hear; or a venue we could use for one of our evening meetings. We're always on the hunt for a new venue or facility to tour!

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