Agenda Setters: Where are they now... Ashley Highfield

As the countdown begins to silicon.com's ninth annual Agenda Setters poll of tech's 50 most influential individuals, it is time to look back at those who held top 5 positions in 2007. Today we catch up with last year's number five, Ashley Highfield.

Ashley Highfield was, until recently, the driving force behind the BBC's digital strategy - and it was his work in this pivotal role that earned him a top five place in last year's Agenda Setters poll.

Chief among his credits is the launch of the Beeb's iPlayer video-on-demand service, which has been gaining in popularity since its launch on Christmas Day last year. The launch was not without controversy. Non-PC users were up in arms over the fact the service was not available on their platform of choice. Content suppliers were also cagey about letting their programmes be viewed for free. But overall the service has been groundbreaking.

In a 2007 interview with silicon.com, Highfield explained how part of his task was to calm the fears of programme makers about digital rights management, which illustrates his influence goes beyond the BBC and into the mindset of the wider media world.

However, in April this year he announced his departure from the BBC for Project Kangaroo, a broadband TV service being developed as a joint venture between the BBC, ITV and Channel 4, where he will take the role as chief executive. The service, announced in November 2007 and slated for launch some time this year, is intended to complement iPlayer and provide a more comprehensive archive of content.

Highfield is a self-confessed gadget fiend and his vision for digital programming goes far beyond what iPlayer and even Project Kangaroo can deliver. He sees a world where people will be able to watch programmes which have a fair idea about where they are being watched and by whom.

This Agenda Setter has made the top 10 for the last four years and seems the sort who would land a place again in 2008. However we'll see how the panel views his changing power status given he's no longer holding court at the Beeb.

silicon.com's Agenda Setters panel, made up again of CIOs, analysts, VCs, consultants, lawyers, academics and other experts, convenes in September. Stay tuned for the results - to be revealed at the beginning of October.