“The sea changes resulting from the impact of digital technology on the creation, distribution and consumption of content in the last decade have created daunting challenges for the historical leaders in our industry, but also significant opportunity for them and for new entrants both large and small. While content creators and owners may still own the keys to the kingdom, the democratizing of production and distribution is changing not only the nature of what “content” is, but also spawning new business models and structures to exploit it at an unprecedented rate. A new set of winners and losers will emerge, but it will be populated by innovators of any size that seize the moment. Never has strategy as well as an inside knowledge of how things really work in this business been more crucial.”

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Ken August focuses on strategy and business development in media and entertainment companies with special expertise in entrepreneurial enterprises. From his prior work as an attorney in the entertainment industry and as Vice Chair of Deloitte’s Media and Entertainment Practice, he brings significant experience and a broad and deep network of contacts to clients in these sectors.

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Ken views the media and entertainment world through a varied set of lenses. He has been a consultant and advisor to established, large enterprises like Warner Bros. and Walt Disney, as well as younger competitors such as Activision Blizzard,. As a lawyer his clients included ATT, CLT Bertelsmann, Morgan Creek Productions, Mandalay Entertainment and NPR. In both roles he has been actively involved in emerging technology-related entrepreneurial companies, including playing a key roll in DIVX, the Circuit City home entertainment joint venture. As an advisor he and his clients have met the challenges of value-creating growth in the midst of rapidly shifting technologies. Further, in his role as a partner in the law firm of Ziffren, Briitenham, Branca and Fischer, the preeminent entertainment transactional law firm in the U.S. he played an active strategy and business development role on transactions involving content aggregation and distribution. As a consequence he can see the market and competitive matrix with abroad perspective.

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In his public service role, he currently serves on the Executive Committee of the Jewish Federation Foundation, the Advisory Board of the Columbia Law School Kernochan Center for Law Media and the Friends of the Saban Free Clinic. In his private sector governance roles he serves on the Board of the Bobrick Corporation, TodoCast TV and on the Advisory Board of Broadcast Facilities, Inc.

Ken was a National Merit Scholar at Stanford University and received his law degree from Columbia University where he was a Harlan Fiske Stone Scholar.

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