Cablefax The Magazine - August 2021 - 77

CONTENT LEADERS
40. LET'S MAKE A DEAL
Mac Budill | President, TV Networks Distribution
NBCUniversal
Budill and NBCU Content Distribution Chair Matt Bond have been working in tandem for years-and their
natural synergies and industry prowess just keep accelerating. Coming off last year when NBCU's broadcast
television revenue increased 10% due to higher retrans consent fees, Budill is focused on identifying value
drivers for the company's cable network and retrans goals, as well as on strengthening relationships with
MVPD, vMVPD and connected device partners as NBCU looks to the 2021 Winter Olympics and beyond. ■
41. WATER COOLER CONTENT CONNOISSEUR
Casey Bloys | Chief Content
Officer, HBO and HBO Max
WarnerMedia
Years in Media & Broadband: 25
Education: BA, Economics,
Northwestern University
Bloys is relentless in his pursuit of
captivating stories that could call
HBO home. He expanded his purview
to include HBO Max last year
and now finds himself diving into the worlds of young adult content,
reality series and adult animation shows that could be meaningful
additions to its library. With standout series like " The Flight Attendant "
and " Mare of Easttown, " Bloys ensures that the HBO brand
continues to be a household name.
WHAT HABIT ARE YOU KEEPING POST-PANDEMIC?
Wearing a mask while traveling.
MY COMFORT TV BINGE? " Shark Tank, " " Amazing Race "
LAST PODCAST LISTENED TO: " The Watch " with Chris Ryan
and Andy Greenwald
NUMBER OF TIMES FLOWN IN THE PAST YEAR? Zero. ■
42. BETTER THAN PAR
FOR THE COURSE
David Zagin | President, Distribution
A+E Networks
Years in Media & Broadband: 30+
Education: Syracuse University
My personal superpower is: Perseverance
Zagin works his magic as a master negotiator at A+E Networks the
way he works his magic on the golf course-he focuses on the
goal, factors in whatever direction the wind is blowing, swings, and
lands the shot. While he has boasted numerous holes-in-one on his
golf card, he has also taken the team to new heights with A&E, The
History Channel and Lifetime now reaching more than 90 million
households each.
MY PROUDEST PROFESSIONAL ACHIEVEMENT OVER
THE PAST 12 MONTHS IS... working with my team so that we
continued to manage the day-to-day business in the same manner as
we did pre-COVID
WHAT HABIT ARE
YOU KEEPING
POST-PANDEMIC?
Hoping to maintain some
semblance of a flex
schedule, recognizing
that remote working can
be a nice complement
to occasionally being in
the office.
NUMBER OF
TIMES FLOWN IN
THE PAST YEAR?
Zero. Hard to believe
that I still have not been to the renovated LaGuardia airport.
WHAT'S THE FUTURE OF DIRECT-TO-CONSUMER
STREAMING LOOK LIKE? There will likely be 4-5 mainstream
streaming services that many households subscribe to. And then there
will be a several niche D2C services that have a small but very loyal
following.
MY COMFORT TV BINGE? " Shark Tank. " New ideas never get
old. ■
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August 2021
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Cablefax The Magazine - August 2021

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