Interviews

Back to San Diego with a Look to the Future: Three Questions with the 2027 Annual Meeting Co-Chairs

Published: August 18, 2026

INTA returns to San Diego, California, in 2027, a destination that consistently ranks among Annual Meeting registrants’ favorite host cities. Following a highly successful Meeting there in 2025, the Association is pleased to bring members back to a city known for its outstanding hospitality, accessibility, and convention experience.

The return to San Diego reflects both the strength of INTA’s relationship with the city and prior commitments established during the pandemic-era negotiations, as INTA CEO Etienne Sanz de Acedo noted on stage in London earlier this year.

Kevin Blum, NBCUniversal (USA)

The INTA Bulletin spoke with 2027 Annual Meeting Co-Chairs Elisabeth Siemsen do Amaral (Dannemann Siemsen, Brazil) and Kevin Blum (NBCUniversal, USA), who shared their excitement about helping to shape the future of the global intellectual property (IP) community’s premier event of the year. Both bring long-standing connections to INTA, extensive experience in private practice and in-house leadership, Association service, and a shared enthusiasm for creating a Meeting that feels dynamic, inclusive, and memorable.

Elisabeth Siemsen do Amaral, Dannemann Siemsen (Brazil)

Ms. Siemsen do Amaral is a partner at Dannemann Siemsen in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, where she began her career as a trainee. A longtime Annual Meeting participant, she first experienced the Annual Meeting through her late father, Peter Dirk Siemsen, a founding partner of Dannemann Siemsen and a former member of the INTA Board of Directors.

Providing an in-house counsel perspective, Mr. Blum has been at NBCUniversal for more than 10 years and is now Vice President, Intellectual Property, at the global media, entertainment, and technology company. He describes his unique journey from classical clarinetist to IP lawyer.

Both reflect on why San Diego is such a compelling setting for the Association to gather again—from its walkability and waterfront atmosphere to the sense of community fostered by the convention center itself.

Could you tell us a little bit about your career in IP and with INTA?
Elisabeth Siemsen do Amaral (ESA): My story started when I was a teenager. My father used to take me to IP conferences around the world, and that is where I first became interested in IP. I met so many interesting people and, little by little, I realized that this was the field I wanted to work in.

I joined Dannemann Siemsen as a trademark trainee when I was 20, and I have been there ever since. Today, I am a partner, a member of the board, and I lead the trademark team and the firm’s operations in Latin America.

Over the years, I have also been very involved with IP associations. I have had the privilege of serving as President of ASIPI [the Inter-American Association of Intellectual Property] and as a member of the INTA Board of Directors. My story with INTA started in 1995, which feels like a long time ago, and I still remember my first Annual Meeting. I learned so much, met incredible people, and made friends that I still have today. Last year, we celebrated 30 years of friendship, which was very special. Those connections are really what made me want to get more involved with the Association. From that first Annual Meeting onward, INTA became an important part of my career, and I started taking part in committees and gradually becoming more engaged in its work.

A real highlight was serving on the INTA Board of Directors from 2023 to 2025. During that time, I also had the opportunity to participate in the development of the Association’s 2026–2029 Strategic Plan, which was a great experience for me. For this term, I am a member of the Programming Advisory Council and the Law Firm Committee.

Now, being invited as a co-chair for the 2027 Annual Meeting is a real honor for me. I am very proud of this invitation and grateful for it. This is a special opportunity, and I am excited to work with such a great team for the success of this amazing conference.

Kevin Blum (KB): It is hard to follow that, but I’ll do my best! I began my IP journey very young as well, but more on the creative side of IP. I have been a classical clarinetist since I was 11, and I studied music in college. I reached that difficult level where I was good enough to excel in college, but probably not good enough to make it as a professional orchestral musician.

So, I started thinking: what else could I do that marries these interests? I was fortunate enough to volunteer for a program where I met someone who was in-house counsel at ASCAP [the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers]. From him, I learned that there was a way to be in the creative industry, but as a lawyer. That was my inspiration to go to law school.

I had several great internships that touched on creative fields, including a summer working in HBO’s in-house department. I started my career at Proskauer, doing IP litigation and music litigation, and then moved to Davis & Gilbert, a mid-sized firm that does more traditional trademark lifecycle work, including clearance, prosecution, and enforcement. A little over 10 years ago, I moved to Los Angeles to join the legal team at NBCUniversal.

Right now, I am the lead IP lawyer for all our theme parks worldwide. I also handle our domain name strategy worldwide and oversee our trademark operations team. It has been a very exciting career and has allowed that little boy who wanted to create to grow up and help other people create. It has really come full circle for me.

As far as INTA goes, I was not very involved until I joined NBCUniversal. There is a lineage here of people being very involved in INTA. My former boss, Monique Joe, was on the Board recently, and our global head of IP, Mei-lan Stark, is a past president of INTA. So there has been a lot of encouragement and support to become more involved.

I started out sitting in committees and thinking, “Wow, these people know so much.” As I went along, I started to feel that maybe I had some things to contribute. For the last two and a half terms, I have been very involved in the In-House Practitioners Committee, including co-chairing the Interactive Subcommittee, which puts on programming.

Through that work, I was invited to join the Project Team to put together the first-ever In-House Practitioners Track for the 2025 Annual Meeting. I think the fact that we are now doing our third one shows how well-received this programming has become.

I was very excited to be able to give back to this community, and now I have an even greater opportunity to give back to the Association as a whole by co-chairing the 2027 Annual Meeting. I am very excited to dive in and give back.

If we get it right, people will leave with new ideas, new connections, and a feeling of being even more connected to INTA and our community. – Elisabeth Siemsen do Amaral

What excites you most about serving as co-chairs for the 2027 Annual Meeting?
ESA: I am really excited about this opportunity. I know it’s a lot of work, but I like this kind of challenge. I really like the idea of helping build an Annual Meeting that brings people together and makes a real impact.

This one will be especially exciting and challenging because we had the Annual Meeting in San Diego in 2025. I think we need to think outside the box and be very creative. One of the things I like most about being a co-chair is how collaborative the whole process is. I really enjoy working with people, and we work with so many different stakeholders. Together, I think we can build an outstanding program with high-quality content, fresh ideas, and sessions that encourage discussion and collaboration.

Co-chairing with Kevin also means bringing together different perspectives and experiences. From what I have seen so far, he truly brings a lot of positive energy, and I think we will be a good team.

For me, the goal is to create a Meeting that people are excited to be part of—a Meeting that brings together professionals from different parts of the world, creates a stronger sense of community, and makes first-time registrants feel very welcome. If we get it right, people will leave with new ideas, new connections, and a feeling of being even more connected to INTA and our community. I hope they will also leave with good memories of this special Annual Meeting.

KB: To me, it really comes down to the people and the program. That is what excites me about this role and this Meeting.

On the people front, I echo what Elisabeth said. The people you meet and the relationships you build are the most valuable aspect of these Meetings and, I think, of practicing in this space. You meet wonderful people from around the world who you really connect with and who you would not otherwise have had the opportunity to meet. Working with the INTA staff again is also exciting. I have worked very closely with the INTA staff on the In-House Practitioners Track, and I will take any opportunity I can get to spend more time with them!

On the programming side—working for a company that creates movies, theme parks, and TV shows—what really draws me to my day job is being able to be on the ground floor of creating something and then watching millions of people love it, enjoy it, and talk about how a ride or a movie is their favorite, or how it helped them connect with their families. I see this opportunity to co-chair the Annual Meeting as a chance to do that in another context.

My goal for this Meeting is for somebody to take an idea that Elisabeth threw out, or that I suggested, or that someone on the Project Team brought up and bring it to fruition. Then, 10 years down the line, I would love to hear somebody say, “Remember in San Diego, when we did that really cool benchmarking session?” or “Remember when we met after that panel, and that sparked our friendship?” I want to be on the ground floor of building that kind of experience for the INTA membership.

The San Diego Convention Center is my favorite convention center that I have ever been to. It feels like a small town. – Kevin Blum

INTA is returning to San Diego for the 2027 Annual Meeting. Why, in your view, is it such a perfect place for the Association to gather?
ESA: I think San Diego is a destination that people enjoy visiting very much. It also offers a great mix of business opportunities, so it’s a good match.

From what we’ve seen in the feedback and comments after the 2025 Annual Meeting, it is fair to say that participants don’t just talk about the conference itself. They also mention the city, the waterfront, how easy it is to walk around, and how convenient it is to get from one place to another. It’s easier to attend meetings, join networking events, and connect with people during the conference.

All of this creates a better overall experience for participants. For me, San Diego combines innovation, business, and beautiful surroundings to create an excellent experience. And I have to say, I love San Diego. I am very happy to go there again.

KB: I agree. San Diego is one of my favorite cities, not just for conferences, but just to spend time in. It has perfect weather, it is walkable, and it has a great food scene. You cannot walk more than 100 feet without finding a great restaurant.

There is also a mystique to it. Coming from NBCUniversal, when I think of San Diego, I think of movies set in San Diego, and I feel that when you experience the city, you are really experiencing what you have seen about it in the media. It rings true.

The San Diego Convention Center is my favorite convention center that I have ever been to. It feels like a small town. It does not feel like this large, cavernous place where you might not see people. I always run into people in San Diego. It is like going to the store in a small town: you run into one person, then another; you go up the stairs or ride the elevator with another friend; and then there is a colleague at the top waiting to go down. It really creates this community, small-town feel within this wonderful city.

I think there is something special not just about the city, which is amazing, but also about the specific venue. It is a great place.

Learn more about the 2027 Annual Meeting.

Although every effort has been made to verify the accuracy of this article, readers are urged to check independently on matters of specific concern or interest. The opinions expressed in this interview are those of the persons being interviewed and do not purport to reflect the views of INTA or its members.