Join the Wharton Club of Northern California on Thursday, March 1st for an evening with Wharton Professor Eric Clemons when he will discuss the future of advertising and its role in social network website acquisitions. This will include topics and questions such as:
- Is traditional advertising dead?
- Is the use of controllable messages and single direction communication--with passive and perhaps unwilling consumers, paid for by sender--losing its power to influence purchasing decisions?
- Does traditional advertising need to be replaced?
- Will social networking websites continue their explosive growth, and will virtual friends become as important as real ones?
- Will referrals from social network friends--willing, two directional dialogs and website resident--replace traditional advertising as sources of product information?
- Can advertisers or network website owners control these dialogs so that they produce demonstrable benefits for sellers rather than for website users?
- Can network owners monetize this power and control and charge for referrals as a new form of advertising, without destroying the credibility of the message and indeed without destroying the websites themselves?
Answers to these questions will determine whether acquisitions of MySpace and YouTube represent (1) a return to the irrational exuberance of the dot.com era, (2) a hedging bet with Google's over-valued stock in the spirit of the AOL-Time Warner acquisition, or (3) wise investments unlocking hidden synergies.
The always opinionated and frequently amusing Professor Clemons will share his views and hopes that you will do the same.
Register onlineDate. Thursday, March 1th, 2007
Time. 6:00-7:00pm: Reception with light dinner. 7:00-8:00pm: Presentation/Discussion
Place. Morgan Stanley, 20400 Stevens Creek Blvd, Suite 350, Cupertino, CA 95014.
Fee. $20 each for WCNC members and their accompanied guest(s). $40 each for non-member alumni and other guests. $20 each for members of affiliate clubs. $10 additional after 2:00pm, Tuesday, February 27th and for day-of-event registrations.
Professor Eric Clemons
Dr. Eric K. Clemons is Professor of Operations and Information Management at The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. He has been a pioneer in the systematic study of the transformational impacts of information on the strategy and practice of business. His research and teaching interests include strategic uses of information systems, information economics, the changes that information technology enables in the competitive balance between new entrants and established industry participants, transformation of distribution channels, and the impact of information technology on the risks and benefits of outsourcing and strategic alliances.
In his consulting practice, Dr. Clemons focuses on helping clients anticipate the fundamental impacts information technology will have on the structure of their industries and on the future strategies available to their firms. This has enabled his clients to develop strategies and prepare for their rapid deployment. His work with clients extends beyond strategy formulation and includes the successful management of strategic change.
His education includes an S.B. in Physics from MIT and an M.S. and Ph.D. in Operations Research from Cornell University. Dr. Clemons has twenty-eight years experience on the faculties of Wharton, Cornell, and Harvard, and consulting experience in the private and public sectors both domestically and abroad.
