MUMBAI: MTV Networks vice chairman and Nickelodeon Networks president Herb Scannell has put in his papers at the company to pursue other business opportunities.
In conjunction with Scannell’s departure, MTV Networks also announced a management restructuring of Nickelodeon Networks.
MTV Networks chairman and CEO Judy McGrath said, “Herb and I have worked together for nearly two decades, and I’ve appreciated him as a creative and strategic thinker and, most importantly, as a friend. He has guided Nickelodeon Networks to an unrivaled leadership position and has broadened its businesses to engage viewers beyond the TV screen in licensing, movies, recreation and much more. He is a true innovator, and he is leaving a great legacy for our company and the industry.”
Scannell added, “After nearly 20 years with MTV Networks and Nickelodeon, I felt this was the right time to move to the next leadership position in my career. I have great faith in the management teams in place at Nickelodeon, TV Land and Spike TV, and am confident that these networks will continue their outstanding performance and maintain the extraordinary bonds with their audiences that have made them so successful. I’m grateful to have had the opportunity to lead such an exceptional team, which has built some of the strongest brands in our business.”
Scannell led Nick to 10 straight years as the number one cable network and expanded business into consumer products, movies and digital media.
He was instrumental in building a vibrant consumer products division, growing it from $100 million in retail sales to what is now the third largest licensing company in the world, with over $4 billion in retail revenues in 2005.
Also during Scannell’s tenure, Nickelodeon opened a new animation studio in Burbank, CA; launched its feature film division, which has released 14 movies grossing over $1 billion and netting Academy Award nominations; launched Noggin/The N, Nicktoons and Nick GAS channels; and most recently positioned Nickelodeon as the kids online leader with the launch of its TurboNick broadband platform and the acquisition of Neopets.
Cyma Zarghami to lead MTVN Kids and Family Group
Under the restructuring, Nickelodeon Television president Cyma Zarghami will assume leadership of a newly formed MTVN Kids and Family group, which will include Nickelodeon Television, Nick at Nite, Nick Online, Nick Movies, Noggin/The N, Nicktoons Television, Nickelodeon Games and Sports (Nick GAS), as well as Nickelodeon’s magazine and recreation divisions and Nickelodeon’s new digital businesses, including Neopets.
Additionally, TV Land, which previously operated under the Nickelodeon Networks brand, will join Spike TV and Comedy Central under president Doug Herzog, with TV Land president Larry Jones reporting into Herzog. Jones will continue to lead Nick at Nite with a dual report into Zarghami.
“Cyma’s creativity, vision, passion for her audience and incomparable track record make her the best person to lead our Kids and Family group. She has consistently proven herself to have the foresight, management expertise and consumer expertise we’ll need to continue our strong momentum at the Nickelodeon networks and take them to the next level of multiplatform success,” said McGrath.
“Having worked with Cyma throughout her career at Nick, I am happy and proud that Cyma will be carrying Nick forward to its next era of success,” said Scannell.
“What has made Nickelodeon successful, in addition to an extraordinary team of people, is the notion that Nickelodeon’s brand is greater than the sum of its parts. It will be the coordination of all our parts that will allow us to take kids and family entertainment to the next level and bring our great content to all distribution platforms. It is an exciting time for the Nickelodeon brand, and we are well positioned to go everywhere our audience goes,” Zarghami said.
“It has been an absolute pleasure and a privilege to have worked with Herb over the years, and I will miss his creative and strategic thinking. I’m sure his next endeavor will also be a great success,” she added.
Tag: Herb Scannell
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MTV Networks’ Herb Scannell quits; top level management changes made
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MTV acquires virtual pet company NeoPets for $ 160 million
MUMBAI: It is a kids marketeers dream acquisition. MTV Networks, owner of youth and kids cable channels MTV and Nickelodeon, has acquired NeoPets Inc., the owner and operator of Neopets.com, the world’s largest and fastest growing youth community on the Internet.
The buyout, worth a reported $ 160 million, is clearly aimed at extending the Viacom unit’s strengths in children and youth programming to the Internet.
The announcement was made yesterday by Herb Scannell, vice-chairman, MTV Networks and president, Nickelodeon Networks.
Neopets is a global online entertainment network whose members create and care for “virtual pets” that inhabit a mythical land called “Neopia.” To date, more than 25 million members worldwide have created Neopets accounts in ten different languages, generating more than five billion pageviews per month. Both Nielsen//NetRatings and comScore Media Metrix consistently rank Neopets.com as one of the top-10 “stickiest” sites on the Web. Pertinently, 79 per cent of its 25 million users are under the age of 17.
Membership in Neopets.com has grown from approximately 90,000 in April 2000 to more than 25 million in May, 2005. Significantly, the site’s explosive growth rate has been “viral” – meaning that the impetus for this dynamic growth has been word-of-mouth from user to user, rather than commercial advertising.
“NeoPets is a smart, creative and innovative company that with Doug Dohring’s leadership has become one of the most popular and fastest growing sites on the Web. NeoPets users are passionate about the site and its unique offerings, and that is exactly the kind of connection with audiences that MTV Networks cultivates and values,” said Judy McGrath, chairman and CEO, MTV Networks. “This property is a perfect fit for MTV Networks, and its acquisition is an important move for us as we aggressively move forward as a multi-platform entertainment company, dedicated to serving our audiences across all the platforms that they use and love.”
“NeoPets, like our brands at MTV Networks, is a tremendously successful creative-driven company that is focused on serving its target audience with great content,” Scannell commented. “The combination of NeoPets and Nick.com gives us a one-two punch leadership position in the online entertainment space among kids and young adults. The hidden value of NeoPets is the fact that over 60 per cent of its audience is over age 13, which aligns with the audiences of many of our MTV Network brands.”
NeoPets Chairman and CEO Doug C. Dohring, as well as the NeoPets senior management team, will continue in their roles following the completion of the acquisition, and will manage the company from its base in Glendale, California. Dohring will report into Jeffrey Dunn, president, Nickelodeon Film and Enterprises.
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Herb Scannell, Bill Roedy are MTV Networks vice chairmen
MUMBAI: Viacom has announced that Herb Scannell and Bill Roedy have been appointed as vice chairmen of MTV Networks.
The London based Roedy is currently responsible for MTV Networks’ International operations. He will continue to manage that business, which will be a key driver of MTV Networks’ growth moving forward. Additionally Roedy, will oversee his division’s investments and expansions into multi-media platforms, where international markets will play a vital role in the company’s global multi-platform strategies. Roedy will also continue to lead global public affairs initiatives.
Under his leadership, MTV Networks has pioneered a localised approach to building a global network. This includes more uniquely programmed networks and web sites around the world than any other entertainment company and reaches an estimated one billion people. Through his extensive travels and advocacy for social responsibility, Roedy leads the company’s efforts to promote issues important to audiences around the world, including HIV/Aids.
Scannell will continue to manage the overall businesses of Nickelodeon, Nick at Nite, TV Land, Noggin/The N, and Spike TV. How he will assume additional responsibility for overseeing the development of several new channels and multimedia offerings for MTV Networks in the US. These will target and serve emerging and specialised audiences.
He will also take on responsibility for key MTV Networks’ corporate functions, including business development, HR and creative services.