Corporate
December 6, 2006
Joshua A. Berger Named President & Managing Director, Warner Bros. Entertainment United Kingdom And Ireland
(December 11, 2006 – Burbank, CA) — Joshua A. Berger has been promoted to President & Managing Director, Warner Bros. Entertainment United Kingdom and Ireland, it was announced today by Barry Meyer, Chairman & Chief Executive Officer; Alan Horn, President & Chief Operating Officer; and Richard Fox, Executive Vice President, International, Warner Bros.
Berger, a 17-year company veteran, will continue to oversee all aspects of Warner Bros. Entertainment’s businesses in the U.K., working directly with both the in-country, regional and U.S.-based heads of Warner Bros. Entertainment’s various units, including theatrical production and distribution, television production and distribution, home video, digital distribution, new and emerging media, interactive games and consumer products. In addition, Berger is also charged with identifying and maximizing in-territory and cross-company opportunities among the various businesses falling under his purview, as well as exploring and exploiting new business opportunities unique to WBEUK. He also works closely with Time Warner to ensure that WBEUK and its parent studio are appropriately represented in matters regarding public policy in Europe. Berger is based in London and will continue to report through Fox to Meyer and Horn.
During his tenure at the helm of Warner Bros. in the U.K., the company has enjoyed strong theatrical and DVD performances (in particular with “Harry Potter” and “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory”); widened distribution of its television product across broadcast, cable and satellite networks; was the first studio to put movies online in the U.K.; strengthened it consumer products business (in particular with the Scooby Doo franchise) and significantly increased revenues. Berger has also been instrumental in leading industry efforts on the revised tax legislation for U.K. film production and in ongoing anti-piracy initiatives.
“Josh is a world-class executive and a real asset to our company, and this promotion is an official recognition of his many, many contributions to Warner Bros.,” said Meyer. “He’s spent his entire career at the Studio, and it’s really quite fitting that he was our first country manager and helped us to define an organizational structure and refine a business model that is allowing us to maximize our operations and profitability in key international territories.”
“Josh brings enthusiasm, expertise and excellence to all of his professional endeavors,” said Horn. “He and his team have done a great job handling our motion pictures in the U.K., and I look forward to many more successful years of working together on that front as well as all of our businesses.”
“Josh has provided invaluable leadership on many fronts for us in the U.K. and given his deep knowledge of the international marketplace, he has often provided terrific insight for me in other territories,” said Fox. “His combination of business acumen, savvy negotiating skills and a keen understanding of the market has served us very well in his leadership of our company in the U.K.”
“I am very grateful to Barry, Alan and Richard for not only giving me the chance four years ago to help create a new structure and approach for the company but also for giving me the support and tools to make it effective,” said Berger. “I’m extremely fortunate to work with a truly amazing team in London and together we have enjoyed real success and have exciting and innovative plans for the future. With the business ever-changing and ever more challenging, I look forward to continuing and expanding my role for the company that has been my home for the past 17 years.”
Prior to this promotion, Berger served as Executive Vice President & Managing Director, WBEUK. Before that, he was Senior Vice President & Managing Director, Europe, Middle East, and Africa, Warner Bros. International Television Distribution, overseeing the sales and marketing teams across five European offices, and in this post was additionally responsible for equity investments, strategic alliances, co-productions, channel development and new technologies.
Berger first joined Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. in 1989 as a Sales Executive for Warner Bros. International Television Distribution in Paris. He then served as Managing Director for Spain and Portugal and then relocated to London as Vice President of Business Development and Pay Television for Europe.
Berger’s first job in the entertainment business was working in the mailroom of the William Morris Agency in 1983. On a sabbatical year from college in 1986, he worked at Lorimar-Telepictures in New York, Los Angeles and London. During that period, he also worked for Reteitalia in Milan, the entertainment and television division of Silvio Berlusconi’s Fininvest.
Berger is currently on the board of directors of the global newspaper group Metro International S.A., a life member of the Council on Foreign Relations, a member of the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA), a member of the British Screen Advisory Council (BSAC), a member of the Young Presidents’ Organization (YPO), and an associate to the International Council of the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences (NATAS), and is a member of the “Rebuilding Childhoods” appeal board of the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (NSPCC).
Fluent in English, Spanish, French, Italian, and Portuguese, Berger graduated with honors in General Studies from Harvard University and has completed the Advanced Management Program at Harvard Business School.
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