Cablefax The Magazine May 2022 - 20

9
GLOBAL
CITIZEN
Dana Strong
Group CEO
Sky
Years at Current Organization: 4
Comcast's trusted ambassador to Europe,
Strong has supercharged efforts to ensure
the customer experience around entertainment
and connectivity exceeds expectations.
Last fall brought the introduction of
Sky Glass, a smart TV she believes will be
a vehicle for innovation, driver of retention
and source of additional revenue streams
in the future. In the months ahead, she'll
be guiding the launch of the SkyShowtime
joint venture between Sky and Paramount Global across more than
20 European countries. The service will offer more than 10,000
hours of content to subscribers and eventually reach 90 million
homes. Strong is making the most out of Sky's powerful platform for
content aggregation, recently striking a deal with Apple TV+ to bring
its app to Sky Glass and Sky Q. Peacock has also completed its flight
overseas, kicking off a soft launch for Sky TV and Now Entertainment
members in November across the U.K. and Ireland. ■
9
RELATIVELY
SPEAKING
Mark Lazarus
Chairman
NBCUniversal Television
& Streaming
Years at Current Organization: 11
Lazarus has his hands full, but he is a
master of juggling so nary a ball gets
dropped. He's not only responsible for
the company's television networks-including
NBC Entertainment, Telemundo,
USA, Syfy, Bravo, Oxygen, E!, Universal
Kids and international networks-but
he also oversees streamer Peacock, the NBC Sports Group,
owned television stations and NBC affiliate relations. Under his
leadership, the company forged new deals with the Olympics,
NFL, NASCAR and the Premier League, among many other
partnerships. For Lazarus, you could say being chairman means,
among many other things, making good in the family business.
His father John was a VP of sales and advertising for ABC back
when the network had famously hit its sports stride under Roone
Arledge. Two of his brothers are also in the industry. ■
FULL STREAM
AHEAD
Bill Morrow
CEO
DirecTV
Years at Current Organization: 1
In August, AT&T completed its spinoff of
DirecTV into a new entity partly owned by
private equity firm TPG. Morrow is writing a
new chapter that began with the rebranding
of the company's internet video products under
the DirecTV Stream name. The momentum
continued with Serena Williams entering the Matrix via DirecTV's
" Get Your TV Together " ad and a red-hot Super Bowl party in L.A. He's
also made some tough calls, such as $5-$10 price hikes for 2022
and the decision to remove One America News. Morrow has plenty
to keep him busy, particularly with DirecTV's contract for NFL Sunday
Ticket expiring and persistent rumors of a DISH-DirecTV merger. ■
10
ALMOST
EVERYTHING
Paul Buccieri
President & Chairman
A+E Networks
Years at Current Organization: 7
First Job in the Industry: Runner on NBC
scripted comedy series " Sister Kate "
Bucket List: I believe in living in the
moment.
Under Buccieri's leadership, you'd be forgiven for
thinking the initials of A+E Networks stand for " Almost
Everything. " His mandate: Grow the network's core areas while continuing
to evolve into a full-service, multiplatform media and IP company.
What's that mean? For starters, adding more than 2,500 hours of new
programming, including more than 200 movies and 70 hours of premium
documentaries-from former President Bill Clinton's History channel
show to a limited series about Janet Jackson. It also means diversity in
the workplace and a top-down approach to respect and kindness, which
earned A+E plenty of accolades in 2021. Look for Buccieri to keep up the
momentum and add to that list with an ambitious roadmap that doesn't
skip respect, creativity, collaboration and accountability.
The phrase " digital divide " will go away when... we stop
saying it.
What household chore could you win a gold medal in?
Gardening... with a possible silver in cooking
TV show I always recommend not on my networks: I still love " Ted Lasso. "
If I had a time machine, I would... go back and spend another day with
my parents. ■
Q&A
20
May 2022
cablefaxmag.com
10
http://www.cablefaxmag.com
Cablefax The Magazine May 2022

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Cablefax The Magazine May 2022
