Fox appoints Agostinelli as EVP Affiliate Distribution
February 27, 2017
Fox Networks Group (FNG) Europe & Africa has announced the appointment of Paolo Agostinelli as Executive Vice President, Affiliate Distribution.
Based in London, Agostinelli will lead all affiliate distribution across Europe & Africa, covering all of the group’s main brands: FOX, National Geographic, FOX Sports and Baby TV. Reporting to Jan Koeppen, President, FNG Europe & Africa, Agostinelli will be responsible for commercial strategy, distributor negotiations and new product development, and will join the organisation on April 3rd 2017.
Commenting on the appointment, Jan Koeppen said: “With one of the largest distribution footprints in the region, we invest in content that matters to our customers and in innovative ways to make this content accessible. Paolo is a seasoned executive and with extensive first-hand experience of working with pay TV providers, which will help us to further deepen our partnership approach with our affiliates.”
Upon taking the role, Paolo Agostinelli said: “After working with a range of platforms across different markets, with a focus on creating value for end users, this is now a unique opportunity to leverage my experience and help expand this prominent business, working with some of the most iconic programming and leading channel brands in the industry. It is very exciting to be joining FNG in this regional role, part of the benefit of working for an integrated, global media group”.
Agostinelli joins FNG from Tata Sky, a joint venture between Tata Group and 21st Century Fox, where he was a Senior Executive Committee member and held the position of Chief Content & Business Development Officer for four years. In this role, he was responsible for the overall business strategy as well as programming strategy definition and execution, with a focus on creating value for customers for both content and viewing experience. Prior to this, Agostinelli served as VP, Partner Channels, Pay-per View & VOD at Sky Italia, where he lead the scouting, acquisition and management of all third-party channels on the platform, and launched its VoD service. Throughout his career, Agostinelli has developed broad international experience, working in two different continents, with a range of local markets, driving growth within a global context.
FNG Europe & Africa operates 151 channels as well as numerous digital services, from 28 offices, broadcasting in 52 countries. Through genre defining channel brands FOX, FOX Sports and National Geographic, FNG Europe & Africa is watched by over 250 million viewers in 150 million households making it the pan-regional leader for entertainment, factual and sports programming*.