Octagon Speakers

In establishing himself in the world of technology, Ted Leonsis has an unmatched experience and knowledge about using new media in the promotions of business. Leonsis is credited with building AOL into the first billion dollar interactive services company and the world's biggest media company. With this in mind, he has raised the Capitals' attendance and sales through making the experience of a professional sporting event more interactive. He has led four businesses that have grown at record rates: He built Wang WP (the first word processor) from $200 million to $1 billion with the largest female management team in the country. A majority owner of the NHL's Washington Capitals, he has boosted the Capitals' attendance and revenues through state of- the-art consumer and interactive initiatives. He built AOL into the first billion dollar interactive services company and the world's biggest media company. Ted was founder and CEO of Redgate Communications Corporation, considered the first new-media marketing company. In 1976, he used an IBM 360 mainframe to prove that Ernest Hemingway actually wrote The Old Man and the Sea in 1943, not in 1951 when it was published. Leonsis was also once a mayor of Orchid, Florida and still sits on the boards of Georgetown University and several charities in accomplishing more involvement rather than just financial contributions.

Leonsis' latest book, The Business of Happiness, is due for release in February 2010.

“When you ask me about losing a playoff series or how the stock went down, my reply is, 'I'm happy to be alive.’  “Upbeat truisms spring from Leonsis's lips: “If you spend all your time looking back, you can't see the finish line.” Despite the cliches, his powers of persuasion are real, and it's remarkably easy to believe his contention that both AOL and the Caps are on the rise again. – written by Matthew Benjamin, reporter for the US News