LAKE SUCCESS, N.Y., January 15, 2008 - Laurence Joseph Thorpe, the national marketing executive of Canon U.S.A., Inc.‘s Broadcast and Communications division, was inducted into the Sports Broadcasting Hall of Fame during the Sports Video Group‘s League Technology Summit on December 11, in New York City. One of the broadcast technology industry‘s most accomplished executives, Thorpe joined Canon U.S.A.‘s Broadcast and Communications division in 2004.
“From his pioneering work in integrating microcomputer and video technologies at RCA, to his successful efforts in introducing HD electronic cinematography in Hollywood, to his acclaimed lectures and technical articles explaining the importance of HD optics in creating video images, Larry Thorpe has had a global impact on the television industry,” stated Tom Yamasaki, vice president and general manager, Canon U.S.A., Broadcast and Communications division. “Throughout his career, Larry has also been instrumental in advancing many of contemporary television sports coverage‘s most essential technologies, including CCD imagers, multi-format HD cameras, and long-zoom HD lenses with Image Stabilization and Auto Focus capabilities.”
“Larry has been one of the pioneers, the spearhead, and the evangelist for HDTV,” added Charles Steinberg, former president of the Broadcast and Professional group at Sony Electronics. “His enthusiasm for HD from the very beginning in the early 1980‘s up to the present time have been unbounded.” Steinberg‘s comments preceded his introduction of Thorpe at the Sports Video Group (SVG)‘s Sports Broadcasting Hall of Fame induction ceremony. (The SVG is an industry organization dedicated to supporting the professional community that utilizes video, audio and broadband technologies to produce and distribute sports content.)
Thorpe joined Canon U.S.A.‘s Broadcast and Communications division in 2004. As the organization‘s national marketing executive, he works with networks, broadcasters, mobile production companies, program producers, ad agencies, filmmakers and other digital content creators to market and promote Canon‘s world-leading HD and SD lens products and optical technology solutions for the television industry. Thorpe‘s work includes raising awareness in conference lectures and technical papers on the vital importance of HD optics in all production areas, with emphasis on the fact that The Lens Creates the Image. He is a skilled presenter in great demand, and a frequent speaker at major industry events.
Thorpe has authored more than 70 technical articles throughout his career, including a recent series of tutorials on HD lenses and optics in a leading broadcast engineering journal. He holds ten patents in the field of broadcast development. His many honors also include the 2000 Montreux Television Symposium Gold Medal Award for Digital Cinematography, the 2002 NAB Engineering Achievement Award (Television), the 2004 Broadcasting & Cable Technical Leadership Award, a 2006 SMPTE Society Citation, and the SMPTE 2006 Journal Award (shared with three Canon colleagues).
About Canon U.S.A., Inc.
Canon U.S.A., Inc. delivers consumer, business-to-business, and industrial imaging solutions. Its parent company, Canon Inc. (NYSE:CAJ), a top patent holder of technology, ranking third overall in the U.S. in 2006’, with global revenues of $34.9 billion, is listed as one of Fortune‘s Most Admired Companies in America and is on the 2007 BusinessWeek list of “Top 100 Brands.” To keep apprised of the latest news from Canon U.S.A., sign up for the Company's RSS news feed by visiting www.usa.canon.com/pressroom.
’ IFI Patent Intelligence Press Release, January 2007
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