As Broadcasting & Cable reported Tuesday, Don Browne, Telemundo chief operating officer since May 2003, has been named president, succeeding president and CEO Jim McNamara, effective April 8.
NBC Universal made it official Wednesday, saying McNamara's contract was up and he was exiting to "pursue outside production interests."
The COO position will remain vacant for now, and may not be re-filled. The CEO position is definitely going away, part of a companywide (NBC Universal) move to excise the CEO title at its various divisions.McNamara has been running the Miami-based network since 2000.
After NBC acquired Telemundo for $2 billion in 2001, the GE and NBC execs were clearly impressed with McNamara and kept the Panamian-born executive in place.
Under his watch, Telemundo has ramped up original, U.S.-based production and improved its ad sales and programming performance.
However the network has struggled to chip away at Univision and faces new competition from Univision’s spin-off, Telefutura.
Now, it will be up to Browne to foster ratings and revenue growth.
Browne’s NBC roots run deep. He joined Telemundo in 2003 from NBC’s Miami owned-and-operated station WTVJ, where he served as president and GM. Prior to that, Browne worked for NBC News.
