Virtual Worlds and Social Software Professional
Greater New York City Area
- Current
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- Director of Business Development at The Electric Sheep Company
- Producer at The Electric Sheep Company
- Producer at Rez Nation (Sole Proprietorship)
- Past
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- President and CEO at Onpoint Systems
- Recommended
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3 people have recommended John - Connections
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312
connections
- Industry
- Internet
- Websites
John Swords’s Summary
John started using social software 17 years ago beginning with Bulletin Board Systems and early text-based virtual worlds. Prior to joining Electric Sheep Company, John was an entrepreneur spending 7 years leading web development and new media production studios with a focus on participatory community software.
In 2007, John and the Electric Sheep machinima team won Best Series at the annual Machinima Awards Festival. John also produced the largest synchronous event ever held in Second Life in 2006 for NBC Universal.
As an independent media producer, John has generated hundreds of hours of recorded interviews and panel discussions on new media, virtual worlds, and social computer technology. He has interviewed such luminaries as Dr. Douglas Engelbart, inventor of the mouse and pioneer of networked computing as well as Robert Scoble, former Microsoft Technical Evangelist and well-known blogger.
John is a frequent invited speaker at social software conferences and summits, having recently been part of Metaverse Roadmap (2008), Penn State IST Symposium (2008), Ludium II: Video Games and Public Policy (2007), PodCamp NYC (2007), VON Policy Summit (2007), and the Metaverse Roadmap Summit (2006).
John Swords’s Experience
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Director of Business Development
The Electric Sheep Company
(Privately Held; 51-200 employees; Internet industry)
April 2007 — Present (1 year 4 months)
I create and manage relationships with all of the company's third party partners. I also advise on internal product development projects.
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Producer
The Electric Sheep Company
(Privately Held; 51-200 employees; Internet industry)
November 2006 — Present (1 year 9 months)
I produced a variety of client projects including goal-oriented games, an episodic video series, live television, movie premieres, and specialized mobile virtual world software.
As Executive Producer for Electric Sheep, I was responsible for producing the largest single events held in Second Life for NBC Universal.
In 2007, I produced an award-winning machinima (virtual world video) series called "The Grid Review" which won Best Series at the 2007 Machinima Film Festival.
I also launched "Odd Jobs", the first virtual world employment agency that staffs Electric Sheep client projects with Second Life residents paid in virtual world currency at working wage rates. -
Producer
Rez Nation (Sole Proprietorship)
(Sole Proprietorship; 1-10 employees; Online Media industry)
January 2006 — Present (2 years 7 months)
I produce podcasts about emerging online social technology.
SecondCast, which ranks in the top 10% in podcast listenership, is a podcast that has been compared to The Daily Show and Howard Stern for the users of Second Life.
Metaverse Sessions is a podcast I co-host with Mark Wallace (www.3pointD.com) which features interviews with the minds behind the up and coming technology.
I have contracted with companies like Linden Lab (www.lindenlab.com) to stream and podcast events from within virtual worlds.
I also release sessions conference panel discussions as podcasts from events like SXSW in Austin, the Virtual Worlds Conference in New York, and the Metaverse Roadmap Summit held in Palo Alto. -
President and CEO
Onpoint Systems
(Privately Held; 11-50 employees; Internet industry)
February 2000 — October 2005 (5 years 9 months)
Onpoint was an award-winning web development and new media marketing consultancy. The company specialized in content managed, dynamic website properties and online marketing strategy involving blogs, pay-per-click, and emerging social media.
Additional Information
John Swords’s Websites:
John Swords’s Honors:
John was Executive Producer for The Grid Review which won Best Series at the 2007 Machinima Awards Festival. John was awarded the "Forty Under 40" honor in 2003, an award given to the top forty business people in Central Pennsylvania and was also awarded the Paul Harris Fellow honor in 2002 for work done for his local Rotary chapter.
