Cablefax The Magazine - December 2010 - 26

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OPRAH SPREADERS
Joe Abruzzese
Title: Pres, Ad Sales, Discovery Comm
Number of Years in Cable: 8
Education: Bachelor's in Marketing and
Finance, Seton Hall
I Watch TV Mostly: Live
Bill Goodwyn
Title: Pres, Global Distribution; CEO, Discovery
Education
Number of Years in Cable: Nearly 25
Education: BA, UNC at Chapel Hill
I Watch TV Mostly: Live
Why Them? Cable vet Goodwyn landed
a much-deserved promotion this summer
and now heads global and domestic
distribution, as well as Discovery's
education business. In '10 he expanded
carriage for Investigation Discovery from
55mln homes to 70mln. The ever-dapper
Abruzzese continues to deliver-ad
sales have been up all year, and in its
most recent earnings report, Discovery
showed a 16% increase in ad sales dollars
to $304mln, driven by higher CPMs
and strong ratings.
O Say: Abruzzese was instrumental in
supporting OWN's landmark launch deals
with blue chip advertisers.
The Year Ahead: Many are betting on
Discovery's 3D network and OWN.
Joe Abruzzese
(left)
On Your iPad:
Discovery Channel
MythBusters app
If I Could Have Dinner
With Any Cable
TV Star, It Would
Be: Jon Hamm for his coolness and Buddy
Valastro for his desserts!
Favorite City for Business: NY
Bill Goodwyn
On Your iPad: Miley Cyrus and Justin Bieber...My
daughter has hijacked my iPad
My Motto: The harder you work, the
luckier you get.
Best Business Advice: Do not let what
you cannot do interfere with what you
can do.
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cablefaxmag.com
December 2010
40|
THE DEALMAKER
Denise Denson
Title: EVP, Content
Distribution and
Marketing, MTV Networks
Number
of Years in
Cable: 17
Education: USC
I Watch TV Mostly: Live
Why Her? Last year, we thought Denson
would struggle to get distribution for EPIX,
the premium joint-venture movie channel.
We were partly right. DirecTV, Comcast
and Cablevision passed, but Denson
inked Charter, Cox, Mediacom and Dish.
A dedicated Deadhead, Denson also got
a Netfl ix partnership and jumps nearly 40
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LAUGHING TO THE BANK
Michele Ganeless
Title: President, Comedy Central
Years in Cable: 20 (2nd from left)
Education: BA, Northwestern
I Watch TV Mostly: TiVo/Recorded
Doug Herzog
Title: President, MTV Networks
Entertainment Group (pictured, below)
Number of Years in Cable: 28
Education: Emerson
I Watch TV Mostly: TiVo/Recorded
Why Them? This pair created tremendous
value in comedy during a very
serious year. After a slow '09, Comedy
and TV Land-two of Herzog's three
networks at MTV Entertainment-
rebounded with 20%+ rating improvement
in '10. Much of that was due to
Comedy's consistent late-night hits:
The Daily Show with Jon Stewart and
The Colbert Report. And did we mention
Ganeless successfully negotiated
contracts for Stewart and Colbert,
keeping them at Comedy through '13?
Betty White-Hot: Who knew? Betty
White and Hot in Cleveland were home
runs for TV Land. Up in '11 is more
Cleveland and comedy Retired at 35.
Michele Ganeless
What Should Cable Do to Improve
its Image? Continue to develop highquality
programming
A Non-Cable Co That Knows How
to Run/Market its Business: Apple
Dinner with A Cable Star: Tom Colichio
from Top Chef - I would ask him to cook!
Fave Show Not on Comedy: Mad Men
Doug Herzog
My Goal on Foursquare is to be
Mayor of: Yankee Stadium
Fave Non-MTV TV: Fri Night Lights
Motto: Clear eyes, full hearts, can't
lose.
CableFAX: The Magazine
slots on our list. She completed a twoyear
project, securing agreements with
85% of MTV Nets' total distribution.
No Rest: Online distribution agreements
will take up much of Denson's time in '11.
Year Ahead: Whether it's Jersey
Shore or Tosh.O, ratings are up, helping
Denson as she negotiates.
Fave Non-MTV Show: Modern Family
Most Creative Part of My Job: Structuring
high-value distribution deals that
provide our brands and content across
new and existing platforms.
Who Wins a Fight Between Kevin
Martin and Julius Genachowski?
Whichever one has J-Woww in his
corner.
3DTV is: Another awesome opportunity
for us to connect with our fans.
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