Cablefax The Magazine - November 2014 - 32

More of the Most Powerful Women in Cable 2014
Allison Page
GM
HGTV, DIY Network
and Great American
Country
November marks Page's
one-year anniversary as
GM of Scripps' heavyhitting
trio HGTV, DIY Network and GAC. With Page's
reputation as a strong team leader adept at creating
collaborations across the company in no dispute,
Home Category president Kathleen Finch tells us that
Page " has the right combination of innovative thinking
and 'straight-from-the-trenches' expertise. "
Kathy Payne
SVP & Chief
Programming Officer
Suddenlink
With longtime Suddenlink
programming chief Patty
McCaskill retiring at year
end, Payne has been
in line to fi ll her oversized shoes since joining the
company in February. This former Cox programming
exec is already deeply involved as a lead negotiator in
a number of key contract renewals during this year of
pivotal growth for the company. " At every fork in the
road, when you have opportunities that seem to fi t, I
recommend taking the road that takes you out of your
comfort zone, makes you take risks and evolve, challenges
you the most, and adds new skills, " she says.
Reta Peery
EVP, General Counsel
UP TV
Over the past year,
Peery has negotiated
carriage agreements and
renewals with several
MSOs, putting UP in the
top 25 DMAs. She's also responsible for negotiating
several programming acquisition agreements that
include VOD and TVE rights. Her road ahead includes
developing a comprehensive OTT rights acquisition/distribution
strategy. Her defi nition of success:
" Coming to work every day and feeling challenged,
engaged and appreciated. "
Jennifer Pirot
SVP, Business
Development, Digital
Distribution
NBCUniversal
Pirot had a busy year
overseeing licensing of
NBCU's television networks
content across every platform imaginable. And
she made key development and distribution deals,
too. Teamwork is part of her success. " Someone who
has had a positive impact on the company, earned
the respect of her peers, and created an environment
where a team can thrive and grow has been
successful in her career, " she says.
Debi Picciolo
SVP, Technical
Operations -
Residential
Time Warner Cable
Promoted to her current
role in May 2013, Picciolo
implements best
practices across the entire technical operations
organization for residential services. That puts her
front-and-center for the MSO's highly publicized
" TWC Maxx " initiative, which focuses on ultra-fast
HSD and next-generation video services. She identifi
es pending mergers as the biggest story in cable
this year. " These deals represent the evolution and
changing face of our industry-and change is what I
love and thrive on!, " she says.
Jane Rice
President,
Distribution
A+E Networks
A lead negotiator for
A+E Nets, Rice works
on many high profi le accounts
domestically and
in Canada, while managing her distribution team.
Described as a " smart and savvy dealmaker, " she
searches for a " win-win " scenario with her distribution
partners. When it comes to balancing work and
home life, she says " it's about getting the blend right
and that's a moving target based who and what
needs your attention more. "
Kristen Roberts
EVP, Pricing,
Planning & Revenue
Management
Crown Media Family
Networks
Recently promoted, Roberts
oversees strategic
analysis and management of all revenue streams for
Crown including ad sales, digital, and distribution.
She's also part of a small task force that works closely
with chief Bill Abbott to integrate all functions of the
company into one strategy, which includes planning
for Hallmark Channel and Hallmark Movie Channel,
and rebranded Hallmark Movies & Mysteries.
Jo Petherbridge
EVP, Communications
BBC Worldwide
North America
In just the last year,
Petherbridge has led the
promotional launch of
the critically acclaimed
" Orphan Black " and oversaw the 50th anniversary
celebration of the iconic and pop culture darling
" Doctor Who, " which garnered top Peabody Award
accolades. She defi nes success as " having a job that
is endlessly fascinating and challenges you every
day " and recommends that while loving your job is
key, " love your family more. "
Maria Popo
President
Ubee Interactive
Popo has driven her team
to double revenue in Tier
One key accounts this
year, and created and executed
new strategies to
enable Ubee to enter new markets. She also founded
a non-profi t focused on bringing technology education
to the economically disadvantaged-and she wants to
grow the number of women and minorities in technical
positions. This May 2014 Betsy Magness grad
looks forward to the day " when a 'Mommy Makeover'
means an employer work/life customization plan
instead of new hair, makeup and a pretty dress. "
32
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November 2014
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