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14/04/2008
BBC New Media Boss Appointed CEO Of Kangaroo
Ashley Highfield, the BBC's Director of Future Media and Technology, is to leave his post to become CEO of Kangaroo.
Mr Highfield has been appointed as CEO of Kangaroo - the working title for the new video on-demand service, which is set to launch in the UK in 2008.
BBC Worldwide, ITV and Channel 4, the three broadcasters which own the new venture, appointed Mr Highfield.
Mr Highfield will head up the commercial three-way joint venture and will take over from Lesley Mackenzie, who has been managing the project as interim CEO.
As well as overseeing the rollout of the new service, he will lead negotiations with third party content owners and the future distribution of the service on other platforms.
Mr Highfield was also a member of the BBC's Executive Board on which the broadcaster said that he had been "pivotal" in transforming the BBC for the digital age.
During his tenure at the Corporation, he has overseen the launch of the BBC iPlayer, which has had over 42 million requests to view programmes in the first three months of the year.
The BBC also said that the popularity of bbc.co.uk has grown under Mr Highfield's leadership and was now ranked as the third most popular website in the UK, with an average of 20 million people a week visiting the site.
Commenting on his new post, Mr Highfield said: "This is a fantastic opportunity. Kangaroo is a historic partnership with a combination of innovative technology and terrific content and I'm looking forward to transforming the way audiences watch television."
John Smith, Chief Executive of BBC Worldwide, said: "I'm delighted we've appointed Ashley as the CEO of Kangaroo. His knowledge in the digital media field is world class and he'll being tremendous strategic and operational expertise to successfully take the venture forward."
The joint venture's launch is subject to approval by the BBC Trust and each broadcaster's board.
(KMcA/JM)
Mr Highfield has been appointed as CEO of Kangaroo - the working title for the new video on-demand service, which is set to launch in the UK in 2008.
BBC Worldwide, ITV and Channel 4, the three broadcasters which own the new venture, appointed Mr Highfield.
Mr Highfield will head up the commercial three-way joint venture and will take over from Lesley Mackenzie, who has been managing the project as interim CEO.
As well as overseeing the rollout of the new service, he will lead negotiations with third party content owners and the future distribution of the service on other platforms.
Mr Highfield was also a member of the BBC's Executive Board on which the broadcaster said that he had been "pivotal" in transforming the BBC for the digital age.
During his tenure at the Corporation, he has overseen the launch of the BBC iPlayer, which has had over 42 million requests to view programmes in the first three months of the year.
The BBC also said that the popularity of bbc.co.uk has grown under Mr Highfield's leadership and was now ranked as the third most popular website in the UK, with an average of 20 million people a week visiting the site.
Commenting on his new post, Mr Highfield said: "This is a fantastic opportunity. Kangaroo is a historic partnership with a combination of innovative technology and terrific content and I'm looking forward to transforming the way audiences watch television."
John Smith, Chief Executive of BBC Worldwide, said: "I'm delighted we've appointed Ashley as the CEO of Kangaroo. His knowledge in the digital media field is world class and he'll being tremendous strategic and operational expertise to successfully take the venture forward."
The joint venture's launch is subject to approval by the BBC Trust and each broadcaster's board.
(KMcA/JM)
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