John Smedley
President, Sony Online Entertainment

John Smedley is President of Sony Online Entertainment. Mr. Smedley is responsible for the company’s overall vision and growth, as well as management of SOE’s hundreds of employees. Mr. Smedley has over a decade’s worth of experience in the interactive entertainment industry, including positions with ATG, Knight Technologies and five years with 989 Studios as Director of Development. Mr. Smedley was instrumental in the creation and development of the original EverQuest and was co-founder of Verant Interactive, Inc., which became Sony Online Entertainment Inc. (SOE) after it was purchased by Sony Pictures Entertainment in 2000. Under his leadership, Sony Online Entertainment has grown from a small developer with a single online PC game to an industry leader with hundreds of thousands of subscribers and multiple titles published on the PC, PlayStation 2, PSP, wireless and handheld platforms.

Lecturer: Reinventing the MMO, Wednesday, 12:30 PM, Grand Ballroom