Xbox project co-founder Ed Fries and 2D Boy’s Ron Carmel have been revealed as the two main keynote speakers for this year’s Montreal International Games Summit, set for November 8 and 9.

Fries will discuss "beauty, constraints and the Atari 2600," according to organizers; Carmel will talk steps involved in developing an independent game, and share his predictions for the current industry. Along with these two keynotes, MIGS also said that the show’s five tracks will each have their own keynotes.

First up, on the business track, Fuzbi director David Edery will discuss the lifecycle of online distribution platforms. The art track will see a keynote from Gnomon School of Design chief executive Alex Alvarez, who will discuss the role education will play in inspiring and motivating artists.

Third, on the design track, Playdom designer Scott Jon Siegel will talk measuring success in the casual games space, and why fear of innovation is unnecessary. The production keynote will be the purview of Autodesk’s Tom Wujec, who will discuss methods of addressing current visual challenges.

Lastly, Harmonix software developer Ryan Challinor will tackle the keynote on the technology track, discussing his company’s unusual approach to controller design.

Interested parties can find further info on MIGS at the event’s official website.

MONTREAL, QUEBEC–(Marketwire – Dec. 18, 2009) 
SENSIO Technologies Inc. ("SENSIO") (TSX VENTURE:SIO), leader in the development of stereoscopic 3D digital compression, decompression and display formatting solutions, is proud to announce that it will present its latest 3D distribution solution at the Consumer Electronics Show ("CES") in Las Vegas from January 7 to 10. This solution is fully compatible with the recently announced Multiview Video Coding ("MVC") specification adopted by the Blu-ray Disc Association, and will be in demonstration along with SENSIO’s original 3D solution for the distribution of 3D content on multiple platforms and multiple distribution streams. At SENSIO’s booth (South Hall, 20931), visitors will view exciting immersive experiences at its many platform demonstration stations; play Ubisoft’s Avatar: The Game on an Xbox(R), order films or sports thanks to video-on-demand, watch a concert on-line and catch an HD 3D movie on Blu-ray.

Having already achieved several industry firsts – the first to distribute an HD 3D solution, the first to distribute a live 3D broadcast and the first 3D format standard – SENSIO will demonstrate a, fully functional, complete distribution ecosystem for deployment into the typical consumers’ home.

"The message visitors will get when they visit our booth is that 3D is available now and that there are a variety of SENSIO(R) 3D enabled products working today; a Sagem set top box, an Aspen Media server, Hyundai IT 3DTVs and CyberLink PowerDVD software player. Whether the consumer is using a game console, or is downloading via video-on-demand, watching a concert on-line or sitting in his home theater watching a 3D movie on his Blu-ray player, our technology works using existing delivery platforms the consumer has in his home right now" states Nicholas Routhier, SENSIO’s President and Chief Executive Officer.

"We provide the format that bridges all 3D content and consumer electronics found in the home. At CES, we will demonstrate that we support existing formats as well as new distribution formats such as MVC" notes Mr. Etienne Fortin, Chief Technology Officer.

Discover our MVC compatible 3D solution

SENSIO always striving to be at the cutting-edge of 3D technology and has developed a patent-pending technology, SENSIO Advanced, that delivers up to Full 1080p resolution to each eye. SENSIO Advanced adds value to Blu-ray players; it is a flexible solution that allows 3D playback on legacy players as well as on the new MVC enabled players.

"We are offering the best of both worlds; consumers who have already invested in new HD equipment may prefer to use their existing equipment to enjoy a quality immersive 3D experience. With SENSIO Advanced, they can experience 3D in their living room on these legacy devices" explains Nicholas Routhier.

To make an appointment with the SENSIO team at CES:

Contact Magali Valence at 514-846-2022 extension 11, or e-mail magali.valence@sensio.tv

About SENSIO Technologies Inc. (SENSIO):

SENSIO Technologies Inc. (TSX.V:SIO) – With its expertise in the field of 3D video, SENSIO develops and markets Stereoscopic 3D digital compression, decompression and display formatting technologies. Its solutions are deployed on a global scale by content creators, games developers, broadcasters, specialty channels, and digital cinemas, allowing customers to generate substantial additional value-added revenue streams. Its flagship technology, SENSIO(R) 3D, allows the high-quality distribution of 3D content through conventional existing 2D Broadcast channels networks (cable, satellite and/or IPTV) and playback on any 3D display device, including plasma TVs, LED/LCD HDTV’s, PC and glass-free 3D displays, as well as home theater and digital cinema projectors. A true multi-platform format, SENSIO(R)3D is compatible with existing standard DVD and Blu-ray players as well as game consoles including Xbox(R) and Playstation(R) 3 and is the format of choice for the creation of high profile 3D gaming experiences. SENSIO is listed on the Toronto TSX Venture Exchange. For more information, please visit www.sensio.tv – We.Deliver.3D.Today.(TM)

SENSIO(R) is a registered trademark of SENSIO Technologies Inc.

Xbox(R) is a registered trademark of Microsoft Corporation.

Playstation(R) 3 is a registered trademark of SONY Corporation

We.Deliver.3D.Today. is a trademark of SENSIO Technologies Inc.

This news release contains forward-looking statements that reflect the Company’s expectations with regard to future events. Actual events could differ significantly from those anticipated in this document.

Game Developers Conference 2010 organizers have announced its first set of Main Conference lectures for the March 9th-13th event, with Uncharted 2, Braid and Brutal Legend-specific talks already confirmed.

An initial set of talks for the Audio, Business, Design, Production, Art, and Programming tracks for next March’s event are now viewable in GDC 2010’s schedule-building app or via the official Game Developers Conference website.

Organizers of the industry-leading San Francisco-based event (part of Think Services, as is this website) will be highlighting track-specific talks gradually over the next few weeks, but some of the notable lectures already posted include:

- Among Friends – An Uncharted 2: Among Thieves Post-Mortem (Production Track)
In this postmortem, Naughty Dog co-lead game designer Richard Lemarchand examines what went right and wrong in the creation of the critically acclaimed PS3 title, "…in expanding our gameplay through the use of new traversal, combat and AI technologies, introducing characters that shed new light on our hero Nathan Drake, and tackling our first foray into multiplayer in four years."

- Rock Show VFX – The Effects That Bring Brutal Legend to Life (Art Track)
Two of Double Fine’s key employees — lead platform programmer Peter Demoreuille and technical/VFX artist Drew Skillman — will discuss the making of the visual effects for action-adventure Brutal Legend, covering "the design and most commonly relied upon features of our particle rendering, simulation, effects timeline and climate packages."

[…]

Read the rest at Gamasutra

And concerning a GDC discount for IGDA members:

From IGDA:

We are delighted to continue our partnership with GDC in San Francisco March 9 – 13, 2010.  GDC is one of the focal points for our industry and this year looks to be as good, if not better, than previous years in terms of the educational content and networking opportunities available to IGDA members.

The IGDA offers a number of programs throughout the GDC event, and I wanted to take a few moments to walk through them with those of you planning to attend this remarkable event.

IGDA Member Discount:  This year the IGDA and GDC have agreed to increase the member discount to $75 off the registration rates.  As a member of the IGDA you should contact the IGDA staff, via email: joda@igda.org or via phone: +1 856.423.2990 and obtain your registration discount code.  You will need to enter this code during registration to obtain your discount.  GDC is using a new registration system which no longer ties directly into the IGDA membership list.  Each discount code is unique, so please call for yours today, and don’t share your code with anyone else, or it won’t work for the second user.