By Richard Pagliaro | @Tennis_Nu | Wednesday, September 25, 2024
Photograph credit score: Fred Mullane for Tennis Channel Fb
Tennis Channel has chosen a well-known face as its new chief.
Simon’s account has been appointed interim president of TC, Tennis Channel introduced right this moment.
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Simon joined the community as CFO in 2005 and has held numerous management positions at Tennis Channel lately.
Right here is the announcement from Tennis Channel that was issued this afternoon:
Sinclair, Inc. has named Tennis Channel’s Invoice Simon as interim president of the community. Simon has served in a prime management function since becoming a member of the channel as CFO in 2005, having served as EVP, COO and CFO lately. He has been straight concerned in the important thing selections which have guided the community over the previous twenty years and can oversee all elements of the community’s operations.
Simon takes over about three weeks after TC’s dad or mum firm Sinclair fired its longtime CEO Know Salomon.
Sinclair fired Solomon from his function as an advisory board member for Dr. Phil McGraw’s Advantage Avenue Media firm, a Wall Avenue Journal Report earlier this month.
In accordance with the journal, Sinclair executives noticed Solomon’s work at Dr. Phil’s new media firm as “a rising distraction.”
In the meantime, sources near Solomon declare he held comparable advisory board roles throughout his TC tenure and that this was not a difficulty till Sinclair started searching for a purpose to take motion.
Tennis Channel grew its viewers throughout Solomon’s tenure, although it has not been worthwhile since its inception beneath founder Steve Bellamy.
Media large Sinclair is reportedly making an attempt to dump the Tennis Channel and Solomon’s firing could possibly be a part of a streamlining course of in preparation for a sale.
In an interview with interview with SportsBusiness Journal Sinclair COO Rob Weisbord downplayed Solomon’s function over the previous 18 months, saying Simon and an govt crew ran day-to-day TC operations whereas Simon was “the spokesperson for the community.”
Weisbord instructed SportsBusiness Journal that whereas Solomon was “the face of the community,” an govt crew successfully ran the community. Weisbord stated a senior administration crew of Simon, Senior Vice President of Manufacturing Bob Whyley, Senior Vice President David Edges, Senior Vice President of Worldwide Programming Andy Reif, Senior Vice President of Nationwide Sports activities Gross sales Irv Schulman and Vice President of Advertising Christina Tesauro ran the community, suggesting that Solomon’s function has diminished over the previous 12 months and a half.
“When Sinclair writes a examine to an worker, we anticipate 100% of the main focus to be on what we pay them and never on a number of issues,” Weisbord stated. “We have to deal with the property that we personal.
“Ken was actually the face of Tennis Channel, but it surely takes a village to run a community.”
Sinclair COO Weisbord additionally stated SportBusiness Journal that the corporate has “by no means publicly acknowledged” that Tennis Channel is on the market.
Regardless of this assertion, Sinclair is reportedly seeking to promote TC. Final 12 months, the corporate launched PickleballTV in an effort to capitalize on the home progress of pickleball.
“We have had some incoming inquiries. If we will get the next worth for an asset, we’re all the time open to taking a look at it,” Weisbord stated. “Proper now, we’re not centered on a sale — if that occurs, nice — however we’re centered on proudly owning this operation and being actually optimistic about increasing tennis.”
Weisbord additionally factors out that Tennis Channel Worldwide is now accessible in eight international locations and Sinclair sees that as a supply of potential worldwide progress, though none of these eight markets are as giant as the USA.
In 2016, Sinclair Broadcast Group acquired Tennis Channel for $350 million.
Three months earlier than the 2016 sale, The Wall Avenue Journal reported that Tennis Channel’s former majority house owners, Apollo International Administration, Bain Capital Ventures, Battery Ventures, CCMP Capital and Columbia Capital, have been in gross sales talks with Sinclair at an asking value of “greater than $500 million.”
Whereas the ultimate sale value was effectively under that, Sinclair Tennis Channel did present a considerably bigger media platform.
When Sinclair acquired TC, executives anticipated the extra publicity and branding alternatives throughout a number of platforms, which might result in elevated promoting income for each Tennis Channel and Tennis Channel Plus, the community’s subscription channel.
“In Sinclair, we have now discovered the proper possession companion to take the Tennis Channel model and our sport’s rising fan base to the subsequent degree,” former Tennis Channel CEO Ken Solomon stated in a 2016 assertion. “Sinclair’s distinctive scale and place within the media ecosystem will facilitate vital distribution progress towards parity with our aggressive set and broaden our model’s property and distinctive worth because the go-to vacation spot for all issues tennis within the U.S. and past.”
Tennis Channel has additionally been capable of profit from promoting income from betting outlets, though some viewers have been pissed off by TC’s repeated push of odds earlier than and through matches as an annoying lure for punters.
Tennis Channel was launched on Could 15, 2003 by founder Steve Bellamy. The channel has added well being, health, journey and popular culture programming to its tennis broadcasts, hoping to succeed in a wider viewers with out alienating the loyal viewers who nonetheless come to TC to look at tennis.