Scripps Networks Names Deanna Brown President of its Interactive Group

Scripps Networks has named Deanna Brown to the newly created position of president of its Interactive Group. She will be in charge of the company's portfolio of Web sites (including the popular HGTV.com and FoodNetwork.com sites), which include around a dozen broadband video channels devoted to such topics as kitchen and bath design, gardening, crafts and healthy eating. According to the company, those sites attracted an average of over 13 million unique visitors per month last year, and doubled their advertising sales revenue in each of the past two years.

According to Scripps, Brown has over 20 years' experience as a strategic business executive, and has broad expertise in media, entertainment and technology. She was previously general manager of Yahoo! Media Group's Lifestyles business unit, where she repositioned healthy.yahoo.com and launched food.yahoo.com. She also served as VP and general manager of AOL's Life Management division, where, according to Scripps, she led numerous initiatives, including launching a diet and fitness area, a bill-pay product and a coupon offering, and was responsible for the relaunch of AOL's Food, Finance, Research & Learn, Home and Real Estate verticals. She also developed several interactive brands at Conde Nast, Scripps says, and served as president of Brill Media Holdings. Brown will report to Scripps Networks president, John Lansing. [itvt] emailed Scripps' SVP of new ventures, Channing Dawson--who for many years now has been the executive most closely associated with the company's interactive multiplatform TV efforts--inquiring how his roles and Brown's will intersect at the company: "I have wanted to snare Deanna for a long time, so when the head of our Interactive Group moved over to run our business development, I jumped at the chance to invite her in, and she accepted," he wrote. "As president, interactive, she will oversee our Web, broadband and Internet TV efforts, including syndication and non-linear distribution. In my role I will advise her and the executive committee on advanced media strategy, distribution, content development and advanced advertising, but I report to the president of the company and have no direct relationship to Deanna."

Originally Published: April 16, 2007 in [itvt] Issue 7.26 Part 1

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