(ATR) The IOC’s Olympic Channel now has a head of news and a commercial chief.
Stephen Hannon has filled the news position. He joined the Olympic Channel from SNTV, the sports news agency jointly owned by IMG Media and the Associated Press.
The IOC tells Around the Rings that Hannon "will help to bring all the news and topical info around Olympic sports and the wider Olympic Movement together".
In his 14 years at SNTV, Hannon held positions as senior producer, news editor and editor. He steered coverage of major events, including the Olympics and FIFA World Cups. Before that, he worked at UK news provider ITN as a sports producer.
Matthew Collier has been appointed head of commercial at the Olympic Channel and IOC Television & Marketing Services SA.
The IOC said he is responsible for the "strategic direction and commercial management of the Olympic Channel including sponsorship, advertising and digital distribution".
Before joining the IOC, Collier worked for ESPN for over 10 years. He was based in London as commercial director and previously held a senior management role within ESPN. He was responsible for developing revenue driving strategy & business development across the Europe, Middle East and Africa, region.
The Olympic Channel team now has more than 45 employees, drawn from 18 different countries.
Recruitment for a head of global digital marketing is currently underway.
Further appointments are expected in the coming weeks and months ahead of a possible launch later this year.
Earlier this month, ATR reported that preparations for the Olympic Channel were "progressing well". But it is unlikely to launch before the Rio 2016 Games.
In-depth discussions with the IAAF have yet to take place about the contribution the No.1 Olympic sport can make to the content of the IOC’s multi-million dollar initiative. The corruption and doping scandal engulfing the athletics body and restructure under Sebastian Coe’s presidency has contributed to delaying talks.
The Olympic Channel digital production team is now fully staffed, with a marketing and branding strategy defined. Channel executives have received more than 200 proposals for the first round of commissioning – essentially pitches for content and programming ideas.
The social media and distribution strategy and partnership is under development with "major digital and social media leaders", according to the IOC.
Reported by Mark Bisson
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