Rochester, NY - August 19, 2008 - PODi, the Digital Printing Initiative, announced today that a stellar group of industry leaders has been confirmed to chair track sessions at its seventh annual AppForum, January 19 - 21, 2009 in Las Vegas at the Rio All-Suite Hotel & Casino.

- Laurie Beasley, President of the DMA of Northern California, will chair the new Direct Marketing Track. Laurie runs Beasley Direct Marketing and has managed hundreds of successful direct mail and online campaigns. She's been honored with Echo, Summit, Marcom, Pyramid and Caples awards.

- Joe Metzger, President of Metzgers Printing + Mailing will be leading the Web-to-Print Track. Joe heads up a $13M full service firm that built its first web-to-print site in 1997. Web-to-print has been a major factor in the company's growth - they currently serve over 25 clients on web-to-print, eFulfillment or eCommerce systems.

- Kate Dunn, President of Digital Innovations Group (DIG) is leading the Sales and Business Strategies Track. DIG is an award-winning marketing firm that specializes in targeted, personalized sales campaigns and collateral. Kate has been a recognized leader in helping businesses grow with digital print and personalized communications.

- Michael Chiricuzio, President of Blue Moon Solutions; Director, GI Solutions, Arizona State University is chairing the Gold Sponsors Track, sessions led by the top technology leaders supporting the 2009 AppForum. Mike's 35 years in commercial printing and position as a pioneering advocate of digital printing give him a unique perspective on what's new in the industry.

"We've updated our session tracks this year to reflect the new directions we're seeing," says PODi President, Rab Govil. "This year's conference will cover all aspects of creating great digital print applications - from marketing strategy to implementation and breakthrough technology. There is a vital need for thinking differently about our relationships with customers and the way we approach business - our goal for the AppForum this year is to help attendees make that leap."

To deliver on these promises, the AppForum will feature two brand new tracks on high growth applications - Direct Mail and Web-to-print. These tracks, in conjunction with the Sales and Business Strategies Track, will provide all the tools marketing and print service providers need to grow profitable businesses using digital printing.

Direct  Marketing Track

Laurie Beasley will ensure that the Direct Marketing Track addresses the needs of both service providers and their clients, Enterprise marketers. Attendees will learn the latest best practices and strategies for creating and delivering direct marketing solutions that drive business - from data and segmentation to timing, relevance and offers, plus learn about new advances in technology that make it happen. Sessions will tackle cross-media marketing, event-driven campaigns, transpromo and more.

Sales and Business Strategies Track

The Sales and Business Strategies Track is designed to help service providers be more successful and profitable with digital print by choosing new business models that fit their company and shortening sales cycles. It explores topics track chair, Kate Dunn knows well - identifying the right opportunities, successfully integrating digital print into your business and other hot-button topics.

Web-to-Print Track

Service providers will get strategies for using the Web to communicate directly with their own customers plus technology details on building collateral management systems for clients. Enterprise marketers will learn how web-to-print can make organizing brand management and supporting sales channels easier and more efficient. As chair for the Web-to-Print track, Joe Metzger's focus will be on driving interaction between speaker and audience - challenging assumptions and pushing people to share experience and vision. It promises to be an entertaining track, featuring issues like emerging markets for web-to-print, driving volume, launching dealer networks and comparing custom work flow automation to off-the-shelf products.

Gold Sponsors Track

The AppForum is supported by the digital industry's most important and innovative technology companies - AppForum Gold Sponsors. The Gold Sponsors Track gives attendees the opportunity to hear about the very latest advancements from knowledgeable representatives in a casual setting.

For more information or to register for the 2009 AppForum, visit http://www.podi.org/2009AppForum