The former chief executive of radio group GCap Media Fru Hazlitt is to join ITV plc as managing director of commercial and online. It means the departure of Ben McOwen Wilson, ITV’s director of online and interactive, who becomes the latest high profile name to leave the commercial broadcaster. A series of structural changes in commercial and online have already seen the departure of Dominic Cameron, ITV’s director of online for the past two years.
Hazlitt, whose previous positions also include chief executive of Virgin Radio, managing director, Yahoo UK and European commercial director, Yahoo Europe will unite ITV’s airtime and online businesses. The company’s strategic review has highlighted the need to exploit properties and brands more effectively.
The new role of managing director, commercial and online combines the roles previously occupied by Rupert Howell (managing director, brand and commercial) and McOwen-Wilson. Both Howell and McOwen Wilson leave ITV in the summer. Peter Fincham will continue to have editorial control of ITV output across all platforms, including online.
McOwen Wilson joined ITV in 2006 as its first director of strategy before moving to the then ITV consumer division as COO. He was appointed director of online and interactive in 2008, building ITV.com, the interactive and telephony business and video on demand activities via the ITV Player. His work with former BBC Future Media chief Ashley Highfield lead to the development of Project Kangaroo, where he became chairman, before the project was thwarted by the Competition Commission.