Television
April 17, 2007
Warner Bros. Television Group Establishes New Digital Media Sales Team
(April 17, 2007 - Burbank, CA) — The Warner Bros. Television Group has established a digital media sales team devoted specifically to multiplatform domestic advertiser sales for both the broadband and wireless marketplaces, and has named veteran Warner Bros. executive Rich Sutton to the newly created post of Senior Vice President, Digital Media Sales, it was announced today by Bruce Rosenblum, President, Warner Bros. Television Group (WBTVG).
Sutton will report to Michael Teicher, Executive Vice President, Media Sales, WBTVG, who was named to head media sales last October, with the mandate to align new media and traditional advertising sales for the Television Group under his leadership.
Also joining the new transmedia unit are Angela Gaspar, who will report to Sutton in her role as Vice President, Digital Media Sales, and Mary Ann Branco, who will serve as Account Executive, also reporting to Sutton. Sutton will be based in New York City, with Gaspar and Branco in Burbank, Calif.
The digital media sales team was founded to provide advertisers with a one-stop, comprehensive, multiplatform approach for media planning and spending. The group will be responsible for brokering Internet and mobile advertising related to all content from WBTVG’s television production arms—Warner Bros. Television, Warner Horizon Television, Telepictures Productions and Warner Bros. Animation—as well as Studio 2.0, WBTVG’s new digital production venture headed by Rich Rosenthal. Studio 2.0 was established in 2006 to work closely with Madison Avenue in producing original live-action and animated shortform programming, with advertisers as full partners in the creative process. Additionally, this unit will collaborate closely with the television sales team on strategic marketing initiatives across all platforms, including television, Internet and mobile.
The group will handle ad sales for the Studio’s highly successful websites for “The Ellen DeGeneres Show,” “The Tyra Banks Show” and “Extra.” Additionally, the digital media sales team will handle inventory for the off-network broadband launch of the country’s #1 comedy, “Two and a Half Men,” when it debuts in national syndication this fall. Stations that buy the broadcast rights to “Two and a Half Men” also obtain the right to stream five episodes of the series each week on their own websites.
“The formation of this new unit underscores WBTVG’s strategic and practical commitment to providing multiplatform opportunities for advertisers in this vitally important emerging business area,” said Rosenblum. "The digital future is here and we look forward to working with our advertising partners to craft new, forward-thinking and effective business models.”
“We’re thrilled to have Rich, who has served Warner Bros. so successfully during his career at Warner Bros. Online and Warner Bros. Domestic Cable Distribution, running the day-to-day activities of this exciting new group and heading up our digital media sales efforts,” said Teicher. “With Angela and Mary Ann in place, we have a dynamic team with a great sales skills set and experience in all facets of media sales.”
Prior to being named to the Digital Media Sales unit, Sutton served as Senior Vice President, Sales and Sponsorship, Warner Bros. Domestic Cable Distribution (WBDCD). In that role, he created branded entertainment programs for a variety of companies, including Bank of America, DirectTV and AOL. Additionally, he was an integral part of the launch team for In2TV, the Studio’s broadband television service. Prior to joining WBDCD, Sutton served as Senior Vice President for AOL Time Warner’s Global Marketing Solutions, spearheading cross-divisional efforts with key Fortune 100 C-level executives. Before joining the Global Marketing Solutions group, Sutton led Warner Bros. Online to the top revenue-share position among online entertainment properties during his tenure. He was also responsible for forging ground-breaking cross-media relationships with American Greetings, Ralston Purina, VISA and many others. Sutton is the recipient of numerous online ad awards, including a CASIE for Warner Bros.’ work with Ogilvy on the IBM account. In 2006, he published the book "Best Practices in Branded Entertainment" for the Association of National Advertisers.
Immediately prior to her promotion, Gaspar served as Director, Sales and Business Development, Warner Bros. Digital Distribution, where she created and sold original shortform branded content within the digital space for clients which included Unilever, REAL Networks, Sprint and Microsoft. Additionally, she oversaw digital licensing and media sponsorship sales for Warner Bros. Online, creating custom programs for Honda, General Electric and Toshiba. Before joining Warner Bros., Gaspar was Manager, Advertising and Sponsorship Sales, for The Walt Disney Company’s Interactive Group. In that position, she led sales efforts for Disney’s Internet properties and established a strategic partnership with automaker Mitsubishi. Prior to Disney, Gaspar oversaw digital production development for Richard Edlund Films, the film production company headed by Academy Award®-winning digital effects supervisor Edlund.
Before joining the Studio, Branco served as Regional Manager, Sales Planning, at AOL from 2003-2006. She has also worked in media sales at Buena Vista Television and Sony Pictures Television in New York, as well as Sony Pictures Television International in Miami.
Warner Bros. Media Sales is the advertiser sales division of the Warner Bros. Television Group. It handles national commercial inventory for Warner Bros. Domestic Television Distribution and Warner Bros. Domestic Cable Distribution, and domestic advertising sales for the broadband and wireless marketplaces via its newly formed digital media sales unit.
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