The National Cable Television Cooperative said it's hired Judy Meyka, a cable-industry veteran, as executive vice president of programming, overseeing all programming negotiations.
Frank Hughes, the NCTC's longtime senior vice president of programming, will become SVP of member services, a newly formed role. The Lenexa, Kan.-based programming and hardware buying consortium said he will lead a team to work with the 950+ member companies to identify mutual strategic priorities, increase the participation level of members in NCTC contracts and help assist members with strategies to optimize their rights under existing programming agreements.
Meyka has most recently been a consultant in the industry, but in prior years worked at Adelphia Communications, AT&T Broadband and MediaOne. NCTC said that in addition to negotiating the various renewals, NCTC will increase its focus on advanced video and over-the-top related rights for members.
The changes were announced by NCTC CEO Rich Fickle, a former AT&T Broadband executive who joined the NCTC last June.
The co-op also said chief financial officer Corey McCarthy will take on the additional role of SVP of business development. His initial priority in the new role will be to help focus NCTC's collective purchasing abilities in the areas of hardware and software for the benefit of members.
The "Hardware" department within NCTC has been renamed the "Technology Solutions Team" to expand its purview to encompass a variety of solutions related to TV Everywhere, IP VOD and high-speed data opportunities, the co-op said. The direction and strategies will be driven largely by a newly formed advisory group comprised of top chief technology officers within the membership.
NCTC said it is close to completing agreements providing members multiple partner solutions for TV Everywhere on a cost-effective basis. More than 100 member companies representing more than 1 million subscribers have expressed a desire to launch such services this year, it said. On deck are additional efforts around home gateways, device management, data network optimization and DOCSIS 3.0 infrastructure.
Jeff Nourse, SVP of legal affairs, will also assume responsibilities for regulatory oversight which will include working closely with the American Cable Association, the co-op said. Working more closely with ACA allows NCTC to take better advantage of opportunities to help influence existing regulations that in some cases impose significant burdens on smaller operators, it said in a release.
NCTC also said it has made upgrades to its s web presence and online tools for members, an expansion of supplier participation at NCTC events and greater focus on helping suppliers with marketing to members, according to the co-op.
