MUMBAI: BBC Television director Jana Bennett will kick off proceedings at MIPTV and Milia 2004. The event takes place in Cannes from 29 March - 2 April.

In her keynote speech she will dwell on The Future of Television Programming in a Cross-Platform World. Bennett replaces former BBC DG Greg Dyke as the opening keynote speaker. Dyke resigned from the BBC in January following the Hutton report.

In her speech, Bennett will underline the growing importance of convergence to television executives - a subject which is set to be at the heart of this years MIPTV and Milia. Event attendees will come together to explore new business opportunities created by the increasing links between traditional television, digital technology and content, and new distribution platforms.

To facilitate this exchange of views, the Milia 2004 conference programme will offer sessions looking at networked home entertainment, cross-platform content creation, participation television and new distribution opportunities provided by the emerging broadband and mobile channels. In addition, content security solutions, as well as on-line and mobile games, will be featured.

On 31 March, Sony Pictures Digital Networks (US) executive VP Patrick Kennedy will deliver a keynote speech on the Future of Entertainment for the Always-On Generation. Another keynote speech at the event is Mobile ntertainment: The Next Generation. This will examine the impact of mobile telephony on the entertainment industry. The speaker is News Corp senior VP content and marketing Lucy Hood.