California's Gold Rush in the mid-1800s may offer a clue to how Utah can prosper in the fast-evolving world of digital media technology.

Back then, the real money was not made by the 49ers who waded hip deep into the streams and rivers of the Sierra Nevada in search of fortune, but by the merchants who had the foresight to sell the picks, pans and shovels the prospectors needed.

Similarly, the prosperity of Utah's digital media industry may rest with innovators who create the tools to develop applications for the online interactive advertisements and 3-D films of the future, said Zions Bank President Scott Anderson. Zions is one of several sponsors of the Pushbutton 2010 Summit that continues todayWednesday in Salt Lake City.

"Utah has a great legacy in digital media and it is encouraging to know some of the technology used to create blockbuster films like 'Avatar' was developed here," Anderson said. "Such films may make a lot of money initially, then it is over. But the technology will continue to be used and new applications developed."

Pushbutton 2010 is designed to showcase Utah's best digital media businesses - companies that develop and use the latest computer-based graphic design, video production and sound-editing software to create high-tech forms of advertisements and programming, much of which is found online.

The featured speaker Tuesday was John Warnock, a University of Utah graduate and co-founder of Adobe Systems. Adobe recently purchased Omniture Inc., a Utah-grown company that develops software to help businesses monitor their Web traffic and improve online marketing.

Adobe made its fortune as a Web tool design company, Warnock said. "The world [of digital media] is changing and it is changing extremely fast. So who really knows where the next hot application or the next big business will come from."

Like any industry evolving rapidly, there will be lots of opportunities in the digital media arena, he said. And some of the trends driving those changes are forces working against traditional media outlets such as newspapers, magazines and books.

Warnock noted:

» Amazon sold more e-books on Christmas Day in 2009 than printed books.

» The share value of publicly held newspaper companies on average dropped 50 percent to 80 percent from 2005 to 2008.

» Magazine advertising revenue declined 25.6 percent from 2008 to 2009.

Warnock contends that advertising dollars are beginning to move to the online sector because it is becoming more difficult for companies to determine the effectiveness of ads placed in traditional outlets. "You can measure the effectiveness of online ads immediately," he asserted.

During another session of the two-day summit, staged at the Rose Wagner Theatre, the latest developments in gaming technology that offer a 3-D experience were showcased.

"Everyone will be moving to 3-D gaming technology because it is so immersive for players," said Park City's John Corser, an award-winning producer and director of commercials, promotional and feature films, music videos and television productions.

Although upcoming 3-D gaming technology will require use of special monitors, Corser said that will not be a roadblock because "gamers have always been the early adopters of the latest technologies."

steve@sltrib.com