New CEO appointed at Network TEN

TEN has a new CEO -its sixth in four years, following a restructure at the network.

Hamish McLennan has stepped down from both Executive Chairman and Chief Executive Officer roles. He joined the network in March 2013.

“The strategic arrangements announced on June 15, including the proposed investment by Foxtel in TEN and the transformative agreement with MCN, mean that my role is complete,” he said.

Paul Anderson who has been with TEN since March 2003 has been appointed Chief Executive Office, effective today. He was promoted to the role of Chief Operating Officer and has held the Chief Financial Officer role.

“I’m extremely honoured to be offered this opportunity by the Board and I look forward to continuing to work with the very talented team at TEN to build on the improvements we have seen over the past year or so and execute our strategy, which remains unchanged,” he said.

“TEN has ratings and revenue momentum, as demonstrated by the 15% audience growth our primary channel achieved in the first half of the 2015 ratings year and the exceptionally strong revenue growth we have seen in recent months.

“At the same time, the transition to MCN is progressing smoothly and has been very well received by the market.”

Non-Executive Director David Gordon becomes Chairman effective today. He has been a Director of TEN since April 2010.

“The Board thanks Hamish for his contribution during what has been a challenging period in TEN’s history. He has led a strong and talented management team to effect a turnaround in the Company’s performance,” he said.

“Hamish will work with myself and Paul Anderson on a seamless transition and he will continue to advise and assist the company until the end of the year.

“TEN is in an important and exciting phase, as we continue to build our revenue on the back of strong audience growth since mid-2014 and transition our sales activities to Multi Channel Network (‘MCN’); and maintain our clear focus on growth and efficiencies.

“The board was delighted to have such a strong internal candidate as Paul and we were unanimous in appointing him as Chief Executive Officer. He is a 12-year veteran at TEN, well-respected internally and externally, and is the ideal person to lead the TEN team.”

McLennan added, “Paul has been a great partner to myself in the dual role of COO and CFO of the company and has been an integral member of our leadership team. I have greatly valued his help and support in developing the plans for the significant resurgence TEN is now experiencing.”

The restructure follows a proposed investment in TEN by Foxtel which sees the TEN Board reduced in size to six directors. The Board will then comprise two independent directors (one of whom will be Chairman), one representative of Foxtel and three representatives of existing major shareholders.

TEN will undertake a selection process for a new Chief Financial Officer.