VIACOM ACCELERATES AD SALES INNOVATION WITH INTERNATIONAL ROLL OUT OF VIACOM VELOCITY
Philip O'Ferrall to head rebranded, refocused international ad sales division
New York/ London, 8th October 2015 – Viacom is picking up the pace of ad sales innovation with the international roll-out of its market-leading Viacom Velocity initiative.
The international ad sales team within Viacom's international division, Viacom International Media Networks (VIMN), is being rebranded as Viacom Velocity International with immediate effect. This London-based sales team will offer Viacom's advertisers outside the U.S. the same type of content-led marketing innovations as those pioneered from New York under the Viacom Velocity brand.
In the U.S. Viacom Velocity is acknowledged to be at the leading-edge of broadcast industry innovations to improve advertising effectiveness. It has partnered with a range of clients to develop bespoke, content-led strategic marketing campaigns that go beyond traditional TV and online media buys and take full advantage of the massive and growing reach across TV, digital and social media of Viacom's brands including Comedy Central, MTV and Spike.
A range of products and services developed by the Viacom Velocity team in the U.S. will now be made more widely available to international clients including data-driven targeted advertising tool, Viacom Vantage, and ground-breaking social media analytics platform, the Echo Social Graph.
Philip O'Ferrall, currently SVP, Commercial Innovation for VIMN will head up Viacom Velocity International, reporting to Michael Armstrong, who as EVP, International Brand Development for VIMN, will now have management oversight of Viacom Velocity International in addition to his existing responsibilities for the development of new Viacom network brands outside the U.S. Both will liaise closely with the Viacom Velocity team in the U.S.
Bob Bakish, VIMN's President and CEO, commented: "Viacom Velocity has had appreciable success developing content-led commercial partnerships with our U.S. advertisers, connecting them more effectively with audiences of all ages who are engaging more deeply with our brands and content than ever before but doing so on a growing variety of platforms and devices. In Philip and Michael we are fortunate to have a leadership team who can build on this success internationally, combining solid sales experience with a deep understanding of how best to build digital and social media engagement for the benefit of our brands and our commercial partners the world over."
About Philip O'Ferrall
Philip O'Ferrall was appointed as SVP, Commercial Innovation for VIMN earlier this year, having served as SVP, Digital for VIMN since 2011 and for its predecessor, MTV Networks International, from 2007. In this role, O'Ferrall had oversight for all multiplatform properties for Comedy Central, MTV, Nickelodeon, BET, Paramount Channel and Spike outside of the U.S. Previously he has worked in a variety of commercial and strategic roles for a range of companies including TwoFour Group, Nokia and the Chyron Corporation.
About VIMN
Viacom International Media Networks (VIMN), a unit of Viacom Inc. (NASDAQ: VIAB, VIA), is comprised of many of the world's most popular multimedia entertainment brands, including MTV, Nickelodeon, Comedy Central, BET, Paramount Channel, Channel 5 in the UK, VH1, VIVA, COLORS, Spike, Game One and Tr3s: MTV, Música y Más. Viacom brands are seen globally in more than 3.2 billion households in approximately 170 territories and 40 languages via more than 200 locally programmed and operated TV channels and more than 550 digital media and mobile TV properties.
Notes to editors
The Viacom Velocity group in the U.S. was established by Jeff Lucas and his sales team in January 2014.
###
Follow NickALive! on Twitter, Tumblr, Google+, via RSS, on Instagram, and/or Facebook for the latest Nickelodeon and Viacom International Media Networks (VIMN) News and Highlights!
