There is a shift in how consumers are shopping. We are starting to see brands and retailers augment the shopping experience by delivering highly participatory experiences. For example, did you know you could help consumers choose allergy-friendly foods using augmented reality (AR) to bring your packaging to life? Come see what's happening in digital shopper marketing and social commerce now, and where is it going over the next few years. This session will include case studies and demos showcasing how emerging technologies such as AR, NFC, RFID, machine vision and more are creating the shopping experience of the future, and proven ways an app can influence the consumer at the point of decision.

The past few years have seen a tremendous amount of change — not just in technological advancements, but also in the way that people are adopting them. We have swiftly become a society that is always connected. And it isn't just our laptops, cellphones and tablets that connect us to the digital world, but rather an ever-expanding list of gadgets, household items and products.

These "connected consumers," empowered by a growing list of utilities and a myriad of ways to access content, also operate differently. They find and share in new ways and make decisions differently than a more traditional consumer. While this is a challenge in advertising, it's also an opportunity. Marketers can reach people in ways that are increasingly more relevant and engaging. This session will explore our connected world, and what it means to brands both now and in the future.

Will all the sellers please stand up? Everyone says they want innovation, yet it seems almost impossible to sell new technologies to agencies and their brands. How can we collectively create the necessary benchmarks, proof points and validation to push through more innovation that drives successful outcomes? This session is for iMedia's sell-side audience – agencies and the digital innovation community. It will include data and insights on what buyers want, case studies on success and insights the collective audience can leverage to drive more innovation with brands.

Love them or hate them, marketers are mixed. Hear from both sides and how those who have done interesting things with apps impacted their businesses and created great consumer experiences. The panel will also discuss how, with so many apps out there, a marketer can cut through the clutter. How are they using new capabilities like location, augmented reality, responsive design and dynamic rich media?

Companies in the Mobile Shopping & Commerce category of iMedia's Next Wave Startup Challenge & Showcase include technology apps that serve as a bridge between digital and brick & mortar, POS, in-store mobile shopping applications & QR codes, etc..

Earlier this year, iMedia solicited submissions and opened crowd-sourced voting via the iMediaConnection online community. Innovation experts and advisors from top-tier brands, agency incubators, and the venture community were selected to help judge and guide this year's event.

The challenge culminates in presenting finalists showcasing their technologies at the iMedia Breakthrough Summit. Finalists will be given a consistent challenge and five minutes to pitch their innovative solutions to the audience. Onsite judging will follow, and ultimately, Breakthrough attendees will weigh in via live vote to determine the true industry game-changers.

Which start-up do you think could be the Next Wave in marketing technology? Join us and help choose the winners!

Companies in the Mobile Entertainment category of iMedia's Next Wave Startup Challenge & Showcase include video apps, social TV, audio, augmented reality, and gaming applications with a focus on consumer entertainment.

Earlier this year, iMedia solicited submissions and opened crowd-sourced voting via the iMediaConnection online community. Innovation experts and advisors from top-tier brands, agency incubators, and the venture community were selected to help judge and guide this year's event.

The challenge culminates in presenting finalists showcasing their technologies at the iMedia Breakthrough Summit. Finalists will be given a consistent challenge and five minutes to pitch their innovative solutions to the audience. Onsite judging will follow, and ultimately, Breakthrough attendees will weigh in via live vote to determine the true industry game-changers.

Which start-up do you think could be the Next Wave in marketing technology? Join us and help choose the winners!

Companies in the Mobile Campaign Management & Analysis category of iMedia's Next Wave Startup Challenge & Showcase include those focused on back-end mobile campaign management: cross-platform ad-serving, measurement, attribution, analytics, and other mobile campaign management.

Earlier this year, iMedia solicited submissions and opened crowd-sourced voting via the iMediaConnection online community. Innovation experts and advisors from top-tier brands, agency incubators, and the venture community were selected to help judge and guide this year's event.

The challenge culminates in presenting finalists showcasing their technologies at the iMedia Breakthrough Summit. Finalists will be given a consistent challenge and five minutes to pitch their innovative solutions to the audience. Onsite judging will follow, and ultimately, Breakthrough attendees will weigh in via live vote to determine the true industry game-changers.

Which start-up do you think could be the Next Wave in marketing technology? Join us and help choose the winners!

With over 10 years in the mobile marketing industry, iMedia Breakthrough Summit Host, John Hadl, knows a thing or two about spotting industry trends. Hadl has been an angel investor, board member, adviser or consultant to numerous mobile, digital advertising and e-commerce companies – most of which have been acquired by major players the likes of Google, Apple and Amazon.

He also had the foresight and belief in mobile so much so that he founded a "mobile agency," Brand in Hand, back when those didn't exists. The agency handled more than 600 mobile campaigns and its clients included Procter and Gamble, Best Buy, American Express, Coca Cola, General Mills, Lions Gate Studios and others.

Now he's putting this knowledge to use on the investor side at USVP.

To kick off iMedia's Breakthrough Summit: Keeping Pace with the Mobile Consumer, Hadl will share his theories of where and why he made his bets as a marketer and as an investor. His biggest piece of advice? Start with consumer and work backwards from there…a concept he learned from P&G. Join us as Hadl kicks off the Summit with an exciting vision of the future.

Mobile represents a sociological shift in how users relate to both the digital and physical world. Businesses that understand this will win. Advertisers are no longer asking, "Why should I invest in mobile?" Instead they are asking, "How should I invest in mobile?" How can brands win moments that matter, make better decisions and go bigger faster with mobile? In this dynamic and inspiring opening keynote, Google's Brendon Kraham tackles how mobile is opening up new customer journeys and discuss some of the latest mobile technologies, and creative ways that marketers are making mobile work for their business.

The future of marketing is evolving at a rapid pace. Mobile is playing an increasingly significant role, "Big Data" is now part of virtually every conversation and the integration of new and innovative marketing channels with traditional programs has never been more challenging.

The evolution of the mobile device brings significant improvements in the measurement and accountability of marketing investments, and places a sharper focus on achieving campaign objectives around mobile loyalty and engagement. It also provides marketers the unique opportunity to make more powerful and precise data-driven decisions than ever before, as they now have the ability to leverage the always-on access to subscribers via their mobile devices. There is no stronger relationship between a customer and a potential marketing channel than there is between a user and their connected devices. Given the increased reliance upon the device with the advent of mobile social media, navigation, mobile banking and so much more, the role of mobile has quickly escalated to being the centerpiece of consumers' daily lives. It's this relationship that enables marketers to solve for the longstanding challenge of shifting the measurable customer engagement further down the purchase funnel to greatly improve marketing ROI.

A proliferation of cameras on mobile devices and the popularity of Pinterest, Instagram and other photo sharing sites have put renewed emphasis on images as a point of consumer engagement and a vehicle for marketing and monetization. As publishers make images a central part of their strategies, advertisers are finding new ways to connect with consumers around this highly engaging content. Meanwhile, breakthrough technologies are emerging to help marketers capitalize on images as a scalable, brand-safe channel for high impact engagement, content distribution and social sharing. Join GumGum CEO Ophir Tanz as he shares insights, trends and best practices for incorporating in-image advertising into your media and creative strategy.

With industry experts projecting the mobile ad market to reach $2.29 billion in the U.S. this year, brands are faced with the challenge of creating meaningful connections with consumers on handheld devices. Premium brands are no longer looking to simply extend to a third screen, but rather drive preference and loyalty in a compelling way. As devices get more sophisticated, marketers and content providers are shifting their focus from banner ads and CTRs to building real brand loyalty. This session will discuss the benefits of transitioning your brand to mobile while detailing key trends that are shaping innovative campaigns for 2012 and beyond. Through a collection of case study examples such as American Express, Boeing, Mercedes, JC Penney, Chevy, Sprint and Ford, industry attendees will learn how a holistic brand integration approach will engage consumers on mobile in a new meaningful and actionable way.

Mobile plays a key role in consumer multi-screen consumption, despite having the largest gap between consumer time spent and advertiser spend. See how using TV viewing data from digital set-top boxes may be targeted to audiences, across devices, with measurable success. Multi-screen measurement panels prove the results are dramatically better than any medium in isolation—and that the outcome may even be controlled.