IP: Real are holding their 5th annual conference next week in Seattle (Sept 24-25th) and it is going online also

[David Farber <dave () farber net>]

> Date: Wed, 19 Sep 2001 20:17:36 -0700
> To: farber () cis upenn edu
> From: Rob Glaser <robg () real com>
> Subject: Favor
>
> Dave -- hope all is well with you in these extraordinary times.
>
> Your coverage of the terrorist situation has been terrific and a great 
> addition/counterpoint to the traditional media.
>
> When the tragedy struck on 9-11, it struck close to home.  As you probably 
> remember, I'm a native New Yorker and we still maintain a residence in 
> Manhattan.  In fact, I was in DC having just flown down from New York 
> about 15 hours before the attack, and my wife was still in New 
> York.    Fortunately we are fine, as is everyone in our families and at Real.
>
> I'm writing to ask a favor of you.    As you may know, we at Real are 
> holding our 5th annual conference next week in Seattle (Sept 
> 24-25th).   We scheduled our conference many months ago, as one typically 
> does.
>
> When the terrorists struck last week, we stepped back and thought hard 
> about the best way to respond.   We concluded that cancelling the 
> conference would give the terrorists just what they want.  Instead, we 
> decided to focus on how our technology can be used to help people 
> communicate during these difficult times when people fear the real or 
> perceived risks associated with physical travel.
>
> Accordingly, we decided to turn our physical conference into a combination 
> physical and on-line conference.   It will be the most virtual and wired 
> conference anyone's ever done -- we're webcasting everything live, we're 
> enabling interactivity over the web for every session, and we'll be 
> bringing in speakers from all over the country via videoconference and 
> satellite.     It will be a very cool and, I believe, groundbreaking event.
>
> We sent the word out yesterday to our base of thousands of partners 
> worldwide, and the initial response has been terrific.   Having said that, 
> because we made this announcement less than a week in advance of the 
> conference, we're scrambling to reach out to those who value the role that 
> the net can play in enhancing communication and speech.
>
> I'm writing to ask your help in getting out the word to IPers.    To learn 
> more, all they have to do is go to: 
> http://www.realnetworks.com/rconline/index.html
>
> One final note: as a small gesture of our gratitude to the brave men and 
> women who gave up their lives last Tuesday, for everyone who signs up for 
> the on-line conference, we're donating $25 to the NY Firefighters 
> Fund.   In addition to the obvious reasons, this choice also has personal 
> resonance.  My mother's brother served in the Oakland fire department for 
> over 40 years.  Moreover, a good friend of ours is a NYC firefighter who 
> got to the scene just moments after the tragic collapse of the first 
> tower.    He lost most of his company.
>
> Thanks for any support you and your readers can provide.
>
> Best,
>
> Rob



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