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Banijay Entertainment has reshaped its international sales operation after merging with All3Media, announcing a leadership line-up to manage a catalogue now exceeding 250,000 hours of programming. Cathy Payne will lead the combined unit as the company reorganizes distribution and sales across the newly enlarged group.
Leadership revealed for Banijay Rights
Payne has named five senior executives to run the sales function under the Banijay Rights banner. Their responsibilities span global territories and commercial specialisms as the company integrates the two businesses.
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- Matt Creasey — Senior Executive Vice President, World excluding EMEA
- Stephen Driscoll — Senior Executive Vice President, EMEA
- Rachel Job — Executive Vice President, Content
- Shaun Keeble — Senior Vice President, Monetisation
- Andy Dickens — Executive Vice President, Communications & Marketing
Earlier reporting also noted that Job will take a central content role within the new structure.
Departures and redundancies
The reorganisation comes with notable exits. Several long-serving sales executives are leaving, including Simon Cox, Claire Jago, Maartje Horchner and Chris Stewart.
Two familiar All3Media International figures are absent from the new list: EVP Formats Nick Smith and EVP Press & Marketing Rachel Glaister. Industry reports indicate both have accepted voluntary redundancy as part of the consolidation.
Integration drive and financial targets
Banijay has been running a staff consultancy process in recent weeks to align the merged teams. Management has repeatedly stated the integration will focus on “eliminating duplication” in distribution and sales.
The company is targeting synergies of €50M ($56.8M) within 12 months of closing the deal. All3Media International CEO Louise Pedersen left the business soon after the merger was announced, and Payne assumed responsibility for the unified sales operation.
Leadership perspective
Payne framed the changes as a step toward growth and improved service for content partners. She said: “We are entering this next chapter with an extraordinary catalogue, first-class team and a broad reach of expertise. Uniting the strengths of both businesses, we have created a distribution powerhouse with the scale and capabilities to deliver growth for the group and even greater value for our producers, partners and clients around the world.”
Deputy CEO Jane Turton praised Payne’s leadership and the newly assembled team. Turton said: “Cathy is an outstanding leader. She is passionate about the business and is known and respected by everyone in the market. With huge energy and deep knowledge, she has assembled an exceptional team to work with her producers and the vast and growing client base. Banijay Rights is positioned at the heart of the group, with a very clear ambition to continue to grow the revenues generated from rights’ exploitation across multiple platforms and all markets around the world.”
