NATPE Nominates First Mobile Maven

In a nod to the expanding delivery outlets for TV content, the National Association of Television Program Executives is looking to add both a computer and mobile-phone content executive to its board of directors.

Russ Kagan, managing director of Proteus Telitas (U.S.), and Blair Westlake, VP, media/entertainment/technology, for Microsoft, have been nominated to join the board. It is the second Microsoft board member, according to a NATPE spokesman, but the first from the cell phone side, which is increasingly adding video services to its menu.

In fact, NATPE is devoting a day of its convention, dubbed Mobile++, to new forms of mobile content delivery as well as TV/computer convergence.

The other new NATPE board nominees are Rich Battista, CEO Gemstar-TV Guide International; Robert Chua, Founder/Chairman, The Interactive Channel Company; Peggy Green, President, Zenith Media USA; Mark Itkin, Executive VP Worldwide, William Morris; David Katz, senior VP, strategic planning, CBS Entertainment; Rebecca Segal, senior VP, Sky Network (U.S.); and Ed Wilson, President, Fox TV Network.

Making room for the new faces will be outgoing board members Peggy Kelly, Universal McCann; Dennis Williamson, Belo Corp.; Gilles Meunier, Paris Pictures; Katherine Oliver, New York City Mayor's Office of Film, Theater and Broadcasting; Sean Perry, Endeavor Talent Agency; John Reardon, Tribune Broaodcasting; and Anthony Vinciquerra, Fox Networks Group.

John Eggerton

Contributing editor John Eggerton has been an editor and/or writer on media regulation, legislation and policy for over four decades, including covering the FCC, FTC, Congress, the major media trade associations, and the federal courts. In addition to Multichannel News and Broadcasting + Cable, his work has appeared in Radio World, TV Technology, TV Fax, This Week in Consumer Electronics, Variety and the Encyclopedia Britannica.