Anthony will be speaking and moderating for the fourth year at the International Intercollegiate Broadcast Systems (IBS) Conference in New York City next weekend.

Once again, Anthony will speak about streaming and podcasting at the 70th annual conference. In addition, he will be talking about Web 2.0 and how college radio stations can operate on open source software.

Since 2002, Anthony has operated an online media empire which attracts 100,000 users a month. Currently, Anthony is general manager of WRAJ Internet Radio, an online internet radio station and audio podcast network, and Vidgle, a video podcast portal with its own original series.

For more information about the IBS conference, go to www.ibsradio.org. Check website for schedule.

Here are a list of conventions I’m planning to go to for 2008:

• IBS Radio Conference – New York, NY: Hotel Pennsylvania ( March 7, 8 )
• Anime Boston – Baltimore, MD: Haynes Convention Center ( March 21 – 23 )
• I-CON – Stony Brook, NY: Stony Brook University ( April 4 – 6 )
• Renaissance Fair – NJ ( ? )
• Sign Business & Digital Graphics, Printwear Show – Baltimore, MD: Baltimore Convention Center ( June 21 )
• E3 Media and Business Summit – Los Angeles, CA: Los Angeles Convention Center ( July 15 – 18, CID )
• Otakon – Baltimore, MD: Baltimore Convention Center( August 8 – 10 )
• MangaNext – Secaucus, NJ: TBA ( TBA )

Some of the conventions, like Anime Boston, is not giving me a press pass because they believe we don’t cover that much anime. We are hoping by 2009, we will be able to get press passes from all conventions because of the reporting we are doing at all of the anime conventions we are covering with Vidgle this year beginning with Anime Boston.

I truly enjoy going to conventions, I’ve been going to different type of conventions since I was 5. I’ve been to bus shows, trade shows, sign shows, radio conferences, anime and sci-fi, and more. I’ve meet many people, especially at the Live365 conferences in 2004 and 2005 in California. By 2009 or 2010, I am planning to have a radio and internet conference covering podcast, internet radio, and other streaming technology. I’m also in full support for Jon’s idea of our own anime convention which is cheap, small and at a great location. I hope to get those two conventions alive by the beginning of the decade.

Picture above: Justin Taub, Peter Iengo, and Angelo Cannella attending the IBS National Radio Conference in New York City in March 2007. More pictures from the convention are here.

The New York Anime Festival is over and what a great time it was. There was somethings I didn’t like about the con, but I still had a good time. This is the fifth and final con for the year, the next con is Katsucon in Washington D.C. this February. Each day, my sister and I took the train in, instead of staying near the city. That was because there is no good hotels near the convention center, the closet one was Hotel Pennsylvania, which is located near Penn Station. We stayed at the hotel in March 2007 for the IBS Radio convention; because of the poor quality, we are not planning to go back to hotel.Pictures of the con are already up, click here to see the pictures!

Of course, I can’t forget the friends who went to the con. If it wasn’t for them coming to the con, I would have left the con and never come back. I think its pretty much like that for most of the cons. Mostly everyone was there: Fred, Jon, Meredith, Louis, Jesse, Brian was there!
The Dealers Room was the place to be, actually, it was the only place to be. Luckily, there was a variety of different merchandise at different booths, which usually 1 out of 5 booths will have the same stuff as another one, especially at Otakon. I think there should have been more stuff going on, especially after 7:00pm. Most of the panels at the convention either did not draw me interest, or I wasn’t there at the time of a panel.

Compared to the Big Apple Anime Festival (BAAF) in 2002 and Anime Expo (2003) in New York City at Marriott Marquis, NYAF wasn’t as big and I believe that NYAF should be at the Marriott next year. (I compared it to BAAF and AE because it was the con in New York related to NYAF) Not only it was big, but there are other attractions outside of the hotel, which of course is Times Square. Of course, at the Javits Center where NYAF, there was nothing outside of the convention center, not even a variety of restaurants. The closest place to be near attractions is Times Square which is around a 10-15 block walk.

If there shall be another New York Anime Festival again next year, I won’t mind going again. However, I wish that the convention can be at the Marriott Marquis, which I mentioned, or at a different location near attractions; such as restaurants, hotels, and coffee shops where we can go to a place to sit down or hangout after the con is over.