Chris Cataldi is co-founder and COO of Genvid Technologies. Genvid represents the combination of his lifelong interests of gaming interaction, service design and disruptive innovation.
Prior to Genvid, Chris was responsible for business development and strategic planning for Shinra Technologies, which explored the potential for cloud-native gaming content. Chris has more than a decade of experience working in Asia.
During this time, he worked in management consultancy, IoT, and wearable computing for Japanese blue chip companies specializing in the B2B sector, as well as in global human resources and organisational strategy.
He is an avid amateur cook and holds his MBA from Madrid's IE Business School with a specialisation in global management and entrepreneurship.
In Cataldi's session at Beyond Games, he will speak about Rival Peak, a Massively Interactive Live Event (MILE), held on Facebook from December 2020 to March 2021.
MILEs are a new kind of content type that straddle linear media such as TV and gaming by adding interactive elements that can be accessible for each viewer.
Before the brand new online event explores the intersection of games and other creative industries next week (May 10th to 14th), we caught up with Cataldi to see which innovations in the creative industries have impressed him and how games contribute to other media.
PocketGamer.biz: Tell us a bit about your company
Chris Cataldi: Founded in 2016 by four game industry veterans from Square Enix and Ubisoft, Genvid has grown to over 70 employees in five countries worldwide. We specialise in creating tools for game developers to facilitate fully interactive experiences for viewers of live streams on popular streaming platforms like Twitch, Youtube, Facebook and more. Until now, game developers haven't been able to directly author those end-user experiences, but with Genvid they can.
What does your role entail?
I oversee strategy, business development and marketing for the company, as well as day-to-day operations of our overseas subsidiaries in Japan and Germany.
What do you think games can contribute to other media?
Like everyone else, I grew up with games - either playing or watching my best friends (who tended to be better than me) play their games. While I never imagined myself getting into the industry, after over a decade working in multinational industrials and technology companies, I was offered a position with Square Enix's cloud gaming subsidiary, Shinra Technology and haven't looked back since.
What advice would you give to anyone looking to get into your field?
Pick your specialty and be prepared to spend the time and effort required to hone your craft. Never let someone underpay you for 'exposure', but also take challenges on to grow your area of familiarity. Also, don't let a company use your love of the industry to overwork you. If you feel burnt out, there are many many applications of your skillset in other fields, so every second spent in the game industry is a rich investment.
What innovations in games have impressed you in recent months?
COVID has been hard on the game industry on the production side. While work has been able to continue and usage by consumers has remained high, morale of staff has obviously taken a serious toll.
What major trends do you predict in the next 12 months?
I foresee a reopening and scramble to re-engage in conferences, as well as current-gen consoles hitting their stride with new title announcements.
Which part of the Beyond Games event are you most looking forward to and why?
Meeting the other speakers, networking with key folks from the industry and catching up with old friends.
Book now!
To hear Cataldi discuss MILEs next week at Beyond Games, make sure you book your ticket now. Mid-Term prices offer savings of up to $140, but hurry - the offer ends at midnight THIS THURSDAY, May 6th.
