Discovery said it is restructuring its operations in Europe, the Middle East and Asia, saying it needs to be more efficient as it pivots to direct-to-consumer businesses.
As part of the restructuring, Piotr Korycki, president of TVN in Poland, is leaving Discovery. He won’t be replaced. Kasia Kieli, who is Discovery’s president and managing director for EMEA will head the network herself.
Other changes in the region include James Gibbons becoming GM UK and Nordics, overseeing the Nordic Markets in addition to his previous assignment running the UK business. The Nordic business will be run by Nicklas Norrby, who had been running the business in Sweden. He reports to Gibbons.
Discovery’s Benelux business will be combined with Germany under Susanne Aigner, who becomes GM Germany and Benelux. Spain and France are combined under Antonio Ruiz, now GM Iberia and France.
Jamie Cooke will run Russia, CEEMCA, MEA and pay TV. He had been senior VP chief of staff for EMEA.
Leah Cooper becomes senior VP D2C growth & strategy international.
“We are working systematically to rationalize our operation and find synergies and efficiencies across our EMEA business,” said Kieli. “We have come a long way over the years and with this restructuring we have defined a clear path towards a leaner operating model, where we utilize the best competence across markets. By combining know how and leveraging our scale, we will be able to streamline decision making and operate with greater speed and focus towards future business opportunities.”
