Entertainment Tomorrow: The Net

""Do not underestimate the power of Sony."" That was the good-natured warning from Columbia TriStar Interactive Vice President and General Manager Lynda Keeler. She made the remark, directed at start-up Internet-based entertainment companies, during a panel discussion Thursday at the National Association of Television Programming Executives' Etc. New Media Road Tour at the American Film Institute in Los Angeles. ""History will record that the last five years and next 20 years will probably be the most revolutionary and interesting times for business and society around the world, and it comes down to one specific thing: the Internet,"" said panel moderator Robert J. Dowling, The Hollywood Reporter's Editor-In-Chief and Publisher. Start-up Internet firms are streaming mostly cutting-edge comedy - sometimes fairly raunchy short fare - on the Web with increasing frequency. Thursday's panel, which included executives from Digital Entertainment Network, AtomFilms and Pseudo Programs, discussed the viability of Internet entertainment as a profitable business model.Source: The Hollywood Reporter