Endemol looks to digital expansion with Valkin hire

by Staff Brand Republic 04-Jul-08, 09:20

LONDON - Endemol UK, the TV production group behind hit shows such as 'Big Brother' and 'Deal or No Deal', has appointed Adam Valkin as global head of digital media with a mandate to build and acquire new digital businesses.

Valkin, a former partner at venture capitalist firm Arts Alliance, has a 12-year career in digital media during which he founded: Lovefilm, the online DVD rental business; PlayerX, the mobile games group; and Blinkbox, an online film site.

Valkin, who has a degree from Harvard, joined Arts Alliance in 1999. Before that he worked for Barnes & Noble, the US booksellers, in new product development and marketing and was previously a product marketing manager at Firefly Networks, the software company that was sold to Microsoft in 1998.

The move is the first appointment of Ynon Kreiz, the new Endemol chief executive who joined the company in May.

It signals Kreiz's ambitions to expand Endemol's online and mobile initiatives, ahead of reports that he stands to earn a potential $100m over three years should he meet aggressive earnings targets.

Many of Endemol's shows, such as 'Big Brother' and 'Deal or No Deal', have been well supported by mobile and online media. The company has also produced pure online content such as The Gap Year, a series of Bebo, the social networking site now owned by AOL.