iHeartMedia, Inc. and Clear Channel Outdoor Holdings, Inc. (CCOH) Announce Agreement On Material Terms To Fully Separate CCOH as Independent, Standalone Company Upon Completion of iHeartMedia’s Restructuring
William Eccleshare to Become Chief Executive Officer of the New Standalone CCOH
San Antonio, TX, [December 21, 2018] – iHeartMedia, Inc. (PINK: IHRTQ) (“iHeartMedia”) and Clear Channel Outdoor Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: CCO) (“CCOH”) announced that they have reached an agreement on the material terms to fully separate CCOH’s business from iHeartMedia, which currently owns 89.1% of CCOH’s outstanding common stock.
The separation is expected to occur in conjunction with, and is subject to, iHeartMedia’s emergence from its ongoing restructuring process. The material terms of the separation are outlined in CCOH’s Form 8-K, which was filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on Monday, December 17, 2018.
Effective upon iHeartMedia’s emergence, William Eccleshare will become Chief Executive Officer of CCOH. Mr. Eccleshare, who currently serves as Chairman and CEO of Clear Channel International (CCI), has deep experience in creating value for advertisers across the out-of-home industry. He joined CCI in 2009 and went on to lead Clear Channel Outdoor, including full operational responsibility for CCI and Clear Channel Outdoor Americas (CCOA), before assuming his current role, in which he is responsible for overseeing CCI’s business operations in 22 countries across Asia, Europe and Latin America. Mr. Eccleshare will be based in London and will also continue to lead CCI as part of his new role.
Scott Wells will continue to lead CCOA as CEO, driving innovation and a customer-centric focus at the business. He will report to Mr. Eccleshare.
Until the company exits the restructuring process, Bob Pittman and Rich Bressler will continue their current leadership roles for CCOH, with Mr. Pittman as CEO and Mr. Bressler as President and Chief Financial Officer.
Mr. Eccleshare will also be a member of the new Board of Directors of CCOH, which will be announced prior to the separation.
“Today’s announcement is recognition that while iHeartMedia and CCOH are both very strong in their respective areas – iHeartMedia is America’s number one audio company and CCOH is one of the world’s largest outdoor advertising companies – their key constituencies have little strategic overlap. We believe that the separation of the two businesses makes strategic and financial sense, and will allow each company to better achieve their individual missions,” said Bob Pittman, Chairman and CEO of iHeartMedia, Inc. and current CEO of Clear Channel Outdoor Holdings, Inc. “Although both businesses are powerful advertising platforms, they each have valuable but different touch points within the advertising community and pursuing separate, highly-targeted strategies will unlock their full potential as freestanding companies.”
“William Eccleshare has a long, successful track record at CCOH, and throughout his career in the advertising industry, and has played an instrumental role in driving growth across CCOH’s business, especially in digital,” said Mr. Pittman. “Scott Wells will continue his successful leadership of CCOA, fostering deep relationships with advertising partners and growing the company’s offerings in exciting areas such as programmatic. With these strong leaders and CCOH’s creative, innovative and dedicated team, the future standalone company will be very well positioned for future growth and success.”
CCOH’s current leadership and Board of Directors will remain in place until iHeartMedia exits its restructuring process, at which time the new executives and Board will assume their responsibilities.
iHeartMedia Announces Post-Emergence Board of Directors
New Board’s Range of Highly Relevant Knowledge and Experience Will Be Critical In Ensuring Company’s Future Success
New York, NY and San Antonio, TX – November 6, 2018 – iHeartMedia, the leading audio company in America which has a greater reach in the U.S. than any other media outlet, announced today the members selected to serve on its Board of Directors upon its emergence from Chapter 11.
Subject to confirmation of the Company’s Plan of Reorganization, the post-emergence Board will consist of the following Directors, all of whom possess highly relevant knowledge and experience critical to positioning the company for future success:
- Bob Pittman, Chairman of the Board of Directors: Mr. Pittman is the current CEO and Board Chairman of iHeartMedia. Mr. Pittman was formerly COO of AOL Time Warner, Inc. after serving as President and COO of America Online, Inc. Mr. Pittman also served as the CEO of MTV Networks and was the cofounder and programmer who led the team that created MTV.
- Jay Rasulo: Mr. Rasulo was formerly an executive at Walt Disney Company from 1986 through 2015, having spent his last five years at Disney as the CFO and Senior Executive Vice President. During his tenure at Walt Disney, among other roles, he served as the Chairman of Walt Disney Parks & Resorts. Mr. Rasulo is a graduate of Columbia University and received his MA & MBA from the University of Chicago.
- Gary Barber: Mr. Barber served as the Chairman and CEO of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Inc. (MGM) from 2010 through March 2018. Prior to his role at MGM, he was the co-founder of Spyglass Entertainment, which he founded in 1998. Mr. Barber received his undergraduate and post graduate degrees from the University of Witwatersrand in South Africa.
- Rich Bressler: Mr. Bressler is the current President, COO and CFO of iHeartMedia. Before joining iHeart, Mr. Bressler was a Managing Director at THL. Prior to joining THL, Mr. Bressler’s experience included serving as Senior Executive Vice President and CFO of Viacom, Inc., as Chairman and CEO of Time Warner Digital Media, and as Executive Vice President and CFO of Time Warner Inc.
- Brad Gerstner: Mr. Gerstner is the Founder and CEO of Altimeter Capital, an internet, software, and travel focused investment firm founded in 2008. Prior to launching Altimeter, Mr. Gerstner was the Co- founder of three internet search start-ups. Mr. Gerstner received his MBA from Harvard Business School.
- Sean Mahoney: Mr. Mahoney is a private investor. He currently serves as a director at two public companies, Aptiv plc and Arconic Inc., and at post-bankruptcy Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. His prior board service includes Delphi Automotive plc and Formula One Holdings. Mr. Mahoney was a partner at Goldman, Sachs & Co., where he headed the Financial Sponsors Group, and Vice Chairman, Global Banking, at Deutsche Bank Securities. Mr. Mahoney is a graduate of the University of Chicago and Oxford University (which he attended on a Rhodes Scholarship).
- Kamakshi Sivaramakrishnan: Ms. Sivaramakrishnan is the founder and CEO of Drawbridge, a company focused on designing quantitative algorithms for numerous areas, including computational advertising. Prior to founding Drawbridge, Ms. Sivaramakrishnan was a Senior Research Scientist at AdMob which was acquired by Google in 2010. Ms. Sivaramakrishnan has her Ph.D. from Stanford University.
“We are excited about both the depth and range of our new Board members,” said Pittman. “We know our ability to draw on the experience of this unique combination of leaders in their respective fields will give us an unparalleled competitive advantage as we build our next level of growth.”
iHeartMedia’s current Board of Directors will remain in place until the company emerges from Chapter 11, at which time the new Board will assume its responsibilities.
Steve Mills Named iHeartMedia’s Chief Information Officer
Steve Mills Named iHeartMedia’s Chief Information Officer
NEW YORK, N.Y. – October 5, 2015 – iHeartMedia, Inc. announced today that Steve Mills has joined the company as its Chief Information Officer. Mills, previously Chief Information Officer at Motorola Mobility, will report to Richard J. Bressler, iHeartMedia, Inc.’s President, Chief Operating Officer and Chief Financial Officer.
In this new role, Mills will oversee all aspects of the information technology structure for both iHeartMedia and Clear Channel Outdoor, working closely with all its businesses and divisions to ensure the alignment and optimization of the company’s overall technology systems with the business priorities of its multiplatform assets, which include 858 broadcast radio stations reaching more than 245 million consumers monthly; iHeartRadio, iHeartMedia’s free leading all-in-one digital music and streaming radio service with more than 70 million registered users, 600 million app downloads and 87 million monthly digital uniques; more than 75 million social media followers across the network; nationally-recognized marquee live events; and Clear Channel Outdoor’s digital platform, which now offers over 950 digital billboards across 37 U.S. markets.
“Steve has a proven track record delivering extraordinary results for some of the most well-known mobile and telecommunications companies,” said Bressler. “At a time when iHeartMedia, Inc. is placing increasing emphasis on technology solutions – everything from programmatic advertising to data collection and analysis -- Steve’s expansive background in driving new innovation via social networks, Big Data and apps makes him a perfect match for our company as we continue to transform and expand our technology framework to benefit both our businesses and our partners.”
“I’m thrilled to be joining a company with the unparalleled brand and scale of iHeartMedia,” said Mills. “I’m looking forward to using my expertise to expand iHeartMedia’s position as the nation’s leading multiplatform media company.”
Mills has over 30 years of experience in information technology, enterprise systems and software engineering. In addition to his role as Chief Information Officer for Motorola, Mills also previously served as Chief Information Officer of leading cloud hosting solutions provider Rackspace Hosting as well as executive positions at T-Mobile, BearingPoint, and Intelligent Technologies. Mills holds a PhD in Computer Science from Southern Methodist University.
Sara Morris Joins iHeartMedia’s Government Affairs Team
Sara Morris Joins iHeartMedia’s Government Affairs Team
April 16, 2015 – New York, NY – iHeartMedia, Inc., one of the leading global media and entertainment companies, announced today that telecommunications policy expert Sara Morris has joined its Washington, D.C.-based Government Affairs team as Senior Director, Government Affairs reporting to Jessica Marventano, Senior Vice President of Government Affairs. Morris will also work alongside Dan Dukes, who was recently promoted to Senior Director, Government Affairs for iHeartMedia, Inc.
Morris has nearly three decades of experience in telecommunications-related policy and legislative processes on a bipartisan and bicameral basis. Morris joins iHeartMedia from the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), where she served as Director of its Legislative Affairs division, representing the FCC before Republican and Democratic offices and committees in both the Senate and House of Representatives.
Prior to the FCC, Morris served as Deputy Director and Telecommunications Policy Analyst in the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Office of Congressional Affairs; as a Government Affairs policy analyst at Paul, Hastings, Janofsky & Walker LLP; and oversaw the administrative support operations for the House Energy and Commerce's Subcommittee on Telecommunications and Finance under then-Rep. Ed Markey (D-MA).
“Sara has been at the intersection of telecom policy and its politics for many years and is a seasoned hand and resource for many. Her expertise, deep knowledge of the telecom field and ability to bridge the differences across the aisle make her a unique and welcome addition to our team,” said Marventano.
iHeartMedia, Inc. Announces First Closing of Sale of Select Portfolio of Radio Towers to Vertical Bridge for $369 Million
iHeartMedia, Inc. Announces First Closing of Sale of Select Portfolio of Radio Towers to Vertical Bridge for $369 Million
Company Also Finalizes Lease Arrangement To Continue To Use Those Towers To Broadcast Its Radio Stations
April 8, 2015 – New York, NY – iHeartMedia, Inc. (OTCBB: IHRT), one of the leading global media and entertainment companies, announced today that the first closing of the sale of a select portfolio of its tower assets to Vertical Bridge has occurred. Initial closing proceeds were approximately $369 million prior to fees and customary adjustments for prorated items. Additional closings are expected to occur.
As previously announced, there will be no impact on the company’s broadcast capabilities and operations; the company has entered into a lease with respect to the sold tower assets that will ensure the ability of its broadcast operations to continue without interruption. The company also reiterated that investors should expect incremental lease expense as a result of the transaction.
“We are very pleased that this transaction has closed, and will continue to seek other opportunities to efficiently operate our portfolio of assets while maximizing liquidity,” said Richard J. Bressler, President, Chief Operating Officer and Chief Financial Officer of iHeartMedia, Inc.
“We are excited to have completed this closing with our new partner, iHeartMedia, and are looking forward to a longstanding and successful relationship. Many of these assets are located in metropolitan and hard-to-site areas that we will make accessible to all of our wireless and broadcast clients,” said Alexander L. Gellman, CEO and Co-founder of Vertical Bridge.
Guggenheim Securities, LLC arranged the debt financing for Vertical Bridge Holdings, LLC in this transaction.
About Vertical Bridge Holdings, LLC
Vertical Bridge Holdings, LLC is a privately-owned real estate investment trust focused on the ownership of wireless communication towers in the U.S. The company owns, operates and manages telecommunications towers, rooftops, and site locations across the country. Vertical Bridge was founded in 2014 by Digital Bridge Holdings, LLC as well as certain key executives from Global Tower Partners, and is headquartered in Boca Raton, Florida. For more information, please visit www.verticalbridge.com or contact Erica Robertson at: 561-406-4032.
Joseph Robinson Becomes President of New iHeartMedia Ventures Group
Joseph Robinson Becomes President of New iHeartMedia Ventures Group
NEW YORK, NY - March 24, 2015 - iHeartMedia today announced that Joseph Robinson has been promoted to President of iHeartMedia Ventures, working to develop high-value strategic opportunities with media, technology, and content companies. Robinson, who has over 20 years of investment and management experience, will be reporting to Rich Bressler, President, COO and CFO of iHeartMedia, Inc.
As the company's Executive Vice President of Strategic Development, Robinson was instrumental in both evaluating and executing strategic acquisitions and equity partnerships and alliances in emerging, high-growth digital and technology companies that had important strategic links to iHeartMedia.
"Joe has played an invaluable role in helping iHeartMedia explore new digital and technology opportunities for both consumer-facing and internal initiatives," said Bressler. "I'm delighted that Joe is expanding his role with us; his new leadership position will be instrumental in our continued success as a 21st century media company one that is both relentlessly forward-looking on the technology front and focused on using iHeartMedia's cross-platform assets in creative ways that help redefine the future of consumer media and entertainment."
"As iHeartMedia pushes new technology and data-driven initiatives, I'm excited to be the bridge between our company and others that can provide solutions to these continuing needs," said Robinson. "iHeartMedia appreciates and values innovation, not only in our own company but in partners as well. I'm excited to expand my outreach to all of those who are building the future."
iHeartMedia Ventures will enable iHeartMedia to be nimble and to choose best in class solutions and technologies while retaining and supporting core teams and knowledge. Additionally, because of its size and multi-platform asset base, iHeartMedia can help accelerate the companies it invests in and partners with by promoting and deploying portfolio company products across its vast network making a significant difference to young companies trying to break into established markets.
"Joe has a proven track record of spotting innovators and cutting-edge products that can enable our vision of the future," said Bob Pittman, Chairman and CEO of iHeartMedia, Inc. "I've worked with Joe for almost ten years, and I'm excited about his expanded role and the impact it can have on accelerating our new products, technologies and our entrance into data-driven solutions for our consumers and marketing partners."
Prior to joining iHeartMedia, Robinson founded Halo Venture Partners, a venture investment company focused on digital media, advertising and media-related technology companies. Robinson's investments include Scout Media, a sports social network sold to Fox in 2005, UGO Networks, a male targeted advertising network, which was sold to Hearst in 2007 and InterWorld, Inc., a publicly traded e-commerce solutions provider.
iHeartMedia, Inc. Announces Sale of a Select Portfolio of Its Radio Towers to Vertical Bridge for $400 Million
iHeartMedia, Inc. Announces Sale of a Select Portfolio of Its Radio Towers to Vertical Bridge for $400 Million
Company Converts to Lease Arrangement To Continue To Use Those Towers To Broadcast Its Radio Stations
December 11, 2014 – New York, NY – iHeartMedia, Inc. (OTCBB: IHRT), one of the leading global media and entertainment companies, announced today the sale of a select portfolio of its tower assets to Vertical Bridge for up to $400 million. The transaction is subject to due diligence and other customary closing conditions.
The transaction is expected to close in Q1 2015. There will be no impact on the company’s broadcast capabilities and operations; at closing, the company will enter into a lease with respect to the sold tower assets that will ensure the ability of its broadcast operations to continue without interruption. The company also advised that investors should expect incremental lease expense as a result of the transaction.
“This is a great example of how we continue to optimize our balance sheet and maximize liquidity -- and how we continually review our entire portfolio of assets to ensure we operate them in the most efficient way possible and invest our resources in the highest return opportunities,” said Richard J. Bressler, President and Chief Financial Officer of iHeartMedia, Inc.
“We are excited to add this high quality tower portfolio to our existing assets,” said Alexander L. Gellman, CEO of Vertical Bridge Holdings, LLC. “We are looking forward to a strong partnership with iHeartMedia. In addition to being a premier broadcast portfolio, these sites already have many broadband telephony and data tenants and the capacity and potential to add many more. With this latest transaction, Vertical Bridge now has approximately 2000 revenue producing sites that are owned or under definitive agreement.”
About Vertical Bridge Holdings, LLC
Vertical Bridge Holdings is a privately-owned real estate investment trust focused on the ownership of wireless communication towers in the U.S. The company owns, operates and manages telecommunications towers, rooftops, and site locations across the country. Vertical Bridge was founded in 2014 by Digital Bridge Holdings, LLC as well as certain key executives from Global Tower Partners and is headquartered in Boca Raton, Florida. For more information, please visit www.verticalbridge.com or call Traci Clancy at 561-948-6367.
Gayle Troberman Named iHeartMedias Executive Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer
Gayle Troberman Named iHeartMedia’s Executive Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer
Advertising and Creative Visionary Will Develop Strategies to Connect Company’s Multiple Brands Even More Closely To Consumers
Troberman Will Bring Her Marketing Expertise, Creativity and Experience to Work With Brand Partners Across Radio, Digital, Outdoor, Mobile, Social and Live Event Platforms
New York, NY – October 15, 2014 – iHeartMedia Inc., one of the leading global media and entertainment companies, announced today that visionary advertising and media executive Gayle Troberman is joining the company as Executive Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer.
In this newly created role, Troberman will work with all of iHeartMedia, Inc.’s businesses to connect them more closely to consumers, helping integrate the company’s brands, products and platforms even more deeply into consumers’ daily lives. She will also bring her marketing expertise, creativity and experience to developing a marketing innovation agenda that fully leverages the company’s extensive range of content, experiences and technologies to bring brands together in new ways with consumers of all of the company’s businesses, including Clear Channel Outdoor, one of the world’s largest outdoor advertising companies; iHeartMedia’s 859 radio stations in more than 150 markets; and iHeartRadio, iHeartMedia’s digital radio platform. Troberman will report to iHeartMedia, Inc.’s Chairman and CEO Bob Pittman.
Troberman, a highly respected marketing industry veteran, joins iHeartMedia from IPG Mediabrands, where she served as Chief Marketing and Ideas Officer. Prior to this position, Troberman spent 16 years at Microsoft as Chief Creative Officer where she was responsible for the company’s portfolio of brands and global advertising campaign across consumer and b to b products including Windows, Office, Bing, and XBOX. She was also an early internet innovator, creating the industry’s first branded entertainment division at MSN, where she developed many of first online video series and pioneered the premise that with the Internet, brands, agencies and media companies could collaborate in entirely new ways, breaking down the barriers between marketers, creators, engineers and consumers. Troberman joined Microsoft from Manning Selvage and Lee, where she served as Vice President, Consumer Marketing and focused on applying consumer public relations principles to a broad range of technology brands and products before they developed paid media and advertising strategies.
“We’re delighted that Gayle is joining us at such a pivotal moment for iHeartMedia – just as we renamed our company to take full advantage of our position as a one-of-a-kind, multi-platform media company with unparalleled reach and impact,” said Pittman. “As EVP and Chief Marketing Officer for our entire company, Gayle will help us connect even more deeply to the hundreds of millions of consumers monthly who rely on us for the best music, personalities, entertainment, news, events, information and more, everywhere they want to find it -- and as importantly, she will be able to reach across all of our companies and brands to provide fresh, out-of-the box thinking to our teams and our clients that will help them co-create and innovate together in new ways to garner the biggest possible ROI from radio, digital, outdoor and events.”
“iHeartMedia is the ultimate, live creative playground,” said Troberman. “No other company can match iHeartMedia’s incredible reach and range of live platforms, talent and content. It’s a media company, it’s an entertainment company and it’s the biggest creator of live content across speakers, screens and stages. At iHeartMedia, there’s so much opportunity to create entirely new brand experiences that excite, engage, and humanize marketing -- and that’s what excites me about joining forces with this incredible team.”
Clear Channel Becomes iHeartMedia
Clear Channel Becomes iHeartMedia
Reflects iHeartRadio Momentum and How Consumers and Advertisers Engage Seamlessly Across The Company’s Diverse Live Media Platforms – Broadcast Radio, Digital, Mobile, Social, TV, Outdoor and Events
Company Continues to Be Built on the Strengths of Most Powerful Local Broadcast Radio Station Brands, Franchises and On-Air Personalities
Clear Channel Outdoor Retains Clear Channel Brand, Continuing to Transform Global Out-of-Home Industry as Integral Part of Company
New York, NY – September 16, 2014 – Clear Channel announced today that it has become iHeartMedia, reflecting the company’s success in becoming a one-of-a-kind multi-platform media company with unparalleled reach and impact.
The newly named company includes a wide range of advertising-supported, consumer-focused media businesses, including 859 radio stations in over 150 markets, with more than 245 million listeners a month -- the largest reach of any radio or television outlet in America; iHeartMedia Digital, with its more than 90 million digital monthly uniques; Premiere Networks, which syndicates 90 radio programs and services to more than 5,500 radio affiliates; the Total Traffic and Weather Network, reaching almost all U.S. commuters; 20,000 live music events, all of which generate massive consumer engagement on social media platforms and the largest of which are even televised; its related companies, including Katz Media Group; as well as Clear Channel Outdoor, one of the world’s largest outdoor advertising companies.
“iHeartMedia reflects our commitment to being the media company that provides the most entertainment to the most engaged audiences wherever they go, with more content and more events in more places on more devices,” said Bob Pittman, Chairman and CEO of iHeartMedia, Inc. “We have massive consumer reach and influence across our platforms because we know how to program the live content people want to hear, see and share right now, we are the largest mobile media company in existence -- more than 60 percent of our broadcast usage is out of home, compared to just 30 percent for other mobile devices – and we deliver more live programming than any other media company today, built on the national and local on-air personalities who are the heart of our powerful broadcast radio franchises. Combined with Clear Channel Outdoor’s reach of over half a billion people worldwide across 30 countries and five continents, it’s clear that no other company can match our reach or broad spectrum of media platforms.”
Clear Channel Outdoor Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: CCO) will retain the Clear Channel brand. As it continues to transform the global out-of-home industry, Clear Channel Outdoor’s brand and products will become an even more important part of iHeartMedia’s future.
“Although we are changing the parent company’s name, Clear Channel Outdoor is built into the fabric of our multi-platform company,” said Rich Bressler, President and Chief Financial Officer of iHeartMedia, Inc. “With its continued growth into digital and mobile, Clear Channel Outdoor has tremendous momentum as a leader in the out-of-home advertising industry, and is a more integral part of our company than ever. We’re pleased that the Clear Channel brand, with its long history and respected heritage, will continue on in our Outdoor business.”
iHeartMedia reflects both the success and the cultural impact of the iHeartRadio business formed three years ago and the evolution of the company’s major local radio station brands and franchises to include mobile, social and events. iHeartRadio has become the dominant national consumer brand among the company’s assets with almost 70 percent consumer brand awareness and record-breaking digital growth, reaching 50 million registered users faster than any digital music service, and even faster than Twitter, Facebook and Pinterest. The company’s 859 radio stations have led the way for the entire media business, becoming even more relevant in the lives of their listeners by expanding how they connect with listeners live and in-the-moment in mobile and across its network of social platforms.
“iHeartMedia was created by the strongest broadcast radio stations in the country, and we will continue to build this company the same way – on the country’s strongest radio stations,” said Pittman. “We are especially excited because our digital platform extends the reach and impact for our wildly popular on-air personalities – and it’s a platform that only iHeartMedia provides.”
The new company is fueled by its ability to deliver the reach and scale of broadcast media with the relevance and emotional power of real-time programming, complemented by its culture-defining live events, which have amassed 15.4 billion social impressions. These include the iHeartRadio Music Festival, the biggest live concert event in radio history; the iHeartRadio Jingle Ball Concert Tour; the iHeartRadio Ultimate Pool Party; and the iHeartRadio Music Awards, which garnered more than 65 million votes via text messaging and led the week in the Nielsen social TV ratings.
““In a world where 2x ROI is judged as successful, Nielsen has shown that radio delivers 6x ROI on average. It’s because we combine the power and predictably of mass reach with the immediacy and relevance of live programming and the unique and powerful engagement that consumers have with their favorite radio stations and personalities,” said Pittman. “The opportunity for the new iHeartMedia is to use all of these industry-leading assets together in new ways -- extending our massive reach and cultural influence across radio, outdoor, digital, social and live events to make it easier for advertisers to deliver the most relevant, real-time messages across all our platforms at scale, amplified by social media and mobile, to get a superior ROI to other media.”
“We’re pulling together our powerful local and national brands and industry-leading platforms to make it easier for advertisers to tap into the range of content, audiences and experiences we deliver on devices, in cars, on stages and everywhere consumers want to find information and be entertained,” said Bressler.
Effective today, CC Media Holdings, Inc. (OTCCB: CCMO) will become iHeartMedia, Inc. In connection with the company’s new brand, the company’s ticker symbol will also change, effective September 17th. Of the company’s major businesses, Clear Channel Media and Entertainment will become iHeartMedia; other company brands, including iHeartRadio, Premiere Networks, Total Traffic and Weather Network, Katz Media Group and RCS, will retain their current names.
For more information, visit the iHeartMedia Fact Sheet.
About iHeartMedia
With 245 million monthly listeners in the U.S., 97 million monthly digital uniques and 196 million monthly consumers of its Total Traffic and Weather Network, iHeartMedia has the largest reach of any radio or television outlet in America. It serves over 150 markets through 859 owned radio stations, and the company’s radio stations and content can be heard on AM/FM, HD digital radio, satellite radio, on the Internet at iHeartRadio.com and on the company’s radio station websites, on the iHeartRadio mobile app, in enhanced auto dashes, on iPads and smartphones, and on gaming consoles.
iHeartRadio, iHeartMedia’s digital radio platform, is the No. 1 all-in-one digital audio service with over 345 million downloads; it reached its first 20 million registered users faster than any digital service in Internet history and reached 50 million users faster than any digital music service and even faster than Twitter, Facebook and Pinterest. The company’s operations include radio broadcasting, online, mobile, digital and social media, live concerts and events, syndication, music research services and independent media representation.
Clear Channel Takes Next Step in Expanding Digital and Technology Leadership
Clear Channel Takes Next Step in Expanding Digital and Technology Leadership
Brian Lakamp Becomes Clear Channel’s President of Technology and Digital Ventures
iHeartRadio Joins Clear Channel Networks Group Under the Leadership of Darren Davis
New York, NY – July 8, 2014 – Coming off the extraordinary success of the launch of iHeartRadio 5.0, Clear Channel, one of the leading global media and entertainment companies, announced today that it is taking another important step in its continuing transformation to a consumer-driven, technology-fueled company by naming Brian Lakamp its President of Technology and Digital Ventures.
“Our corporate focus on digital, increasingly leveraging technology to maximize our business, reflects the natural evolution of Clear Channel into a 21st century media company,” said Bob Pittman, Chairman and CEO of Clear Channel. “Creativity is also enabled by technology, and as advertisers’ interest in new and emerging technology options continues to grow, we intend to remain at the forefront of both innovation and creativity. Brian is perfectly positioned to help us – and our consumers, advertisers and content partners – as we continue to build Clear Channel’s digital roadmap for the future.”
In this new role, Lakamp will work closely with Pittman and Rich Bressler, Clear Channel’s President, to lead the overall technology platform and capabilities for all of Clear Channel, maximizing the impact across all of its technology businesses -- including its broadcast, digital radio, events and promotions and out-of-home businesses. He will also be responsible for developing the company’s overall place in the worlds of big data and programmatic buying. He will serve as the company’s corporate voice on major technology projects, oversee Clear Channel’s relationship with Silicon Valley and the tech community, and develop a corporate strategy that unifies all Clear Channel technology platforms for the benefit of both consumers and advertisers.
“Looking across Clear Channel’s diverse set of media businesses and its unparalleled reach, there are massive opportunities to utilize emerging technologies to unlock business value and offer unmatched possibilities for our advertisers, our audiences and ourselves around analytics, programmatic buying of targeted audiences, and beyond,” said Lakamp. “It has been an honor to lead our iHeartRadio team as we built the fastest growing digital audio service in the history of the Internet, and I am now excited to take on this broader technology role for the entire company."
Lakamp will report to Pittman, and reporting to Lakamp will be Jeff Littlejohn, Executive Vice President of Engineering and Systems Integration; Pete Gerrald, Chief Information Officer; Philippe Generali, President and CEO of Clear Channel’s RCS Worldwide division, the world’s leading producer of broadcast software; and Joe Robinson, Executive Vice President of Strategic Development.
“Digital is now at the core of Clear Channel and is key to all our operating businesses, and putting Brian -- someone with a proven technology and digital track record -- into the most senior level of the company with a clear mandate to keep us in the forefront of using technology to transform our business reflects the increasingly important role that technology is playing at Clear Channel,” said Bressler.
Under this new structure, iHeartRadio will become part of Clear Channel Networks Group, reporting to its president, Darren Davis.
Pittman added, “I'm proud of the incredible work the iHeartRadio group has done under Brian, and I am confident the momentum will continue to grow as they join the Clear Channel Networks Group under the leadership of Darren Davis given his successes in programming and experience in heading our Networks businesses.”
Davis will now be responsible for the entire business of iHeartRadio as well as Premiere Networks, the radio industry's leading network group; Total Traffic and Weather Network; and the 24/7 News Network.
Reporting to Davis will be Pablo Calamera, Chief Technology Officer of iHeartRadio Networks; Jerrell Jimerson, Senior Vice President of Product for iHeartRadio Networks; Brian Kaminsky, Executive Vice President of Operations for iHeartRadio Networks; and Steven Radley, Senior Vice President of Content for iHeartRadio Networks, all of whom were instrumental to the success of the new iHeartRadio 5.0 and the service reaching the 50 million registered user milestone faster than any other streaming music platform and even faster than Facebook and Twitter.
“I look forward to working with the immensely talented iHeartRadio team to build on the tremendous success of iHeartRadio by utilizing the full promotional and creative power of Clear Channel for iHeartRadio Networks,“ said Davis. “I’m excited to continue my collaboration with Brian in his new role to leverage new opportunities and maximize emerging technologies across Clear Channel’s national platforms and services."
About iHeartRadio
iHeartRadio, Clear Channel's digital radio platform, is the No. 1 all-in-one digital audio service, providing both custom radio and the leading live broadcast radio stations from all over the country and in all formats. With over 345 million downloads across multiple platforms, the easy to use iHeartRadio is available on almost 40 devices across web, mobile, tablets, automotive partners, smart TVs, gaming devices and more. iHeartRadio reached 50 million registered users in just three years – faster than any other digital music service and even faster than Twitter and Facebook – and reached its first 20 million registered users faster than any digital service in Internet history.