CTAM Hires Vicki Lins as CEO

CTAM, the cable network and operator-focused marketing trade association, has hired Vicki Lins as its new president and CEO, succeeding John Lansing, who is now CEO at the Broadcasting Board of Governors. Lins, like Lansing before her, has long experience in cable circles, though Lins's experience is more in marketing for the advertising side of the business. Most recently she was executive vice president and chief marketing officer for United Way Worldwide and Clear Channel Outdoor. Before Clear Channel, she spent 15 years at Comcast and Canoe Ventures. Before Comcast, she headed marketing and communications for Adlink.

After Lansing -- who succeeded longtime CEO Char Beales two years ago -- left in August, the group hired Howard Fischer Associates to search for a replacement. Mark Greatrex, the Cox Communications chief marketing and sales officer who chairs CTAM's board of directors, said in a release: "Vicki is first and foremost a seasoned senior marketer with deep experience in media and technology businesses. In turn, she has worked closely with distributors, programmers, suppliers and agencies, and has a strong network of connections that puts her in an optimum position to build bridges and align CTAM members as we move forward together. The selection committee uniformly agreed that she will bring new energy and perspective to help CTAM positively position the collective brand, strengthen the pay-TV business model, and market best-in-class consumer experiences.”

Lins, in the release, said: “I’m excited by the prospect of returning to the industry in this dynamic and fast-paced business environment, and to build on CTAM’s highly-regarded successes. In addition to the programs and products CTAM develops, I believe the organization is well-positioned to elevate and amplify the innovative consumer experiences that CTAM members provide today and are developing for the future."

CTAM's mission lately has been to trumpet the value of TV everywhere, or online viewing tied in with pay-TV subscriptions. 

Kent Gibbons

Kent has been a journalist, writer and editor at Multichannel News since 1994 and with Broadcasting+Cable since 2010. He is a good point of contact for anything editorial at the publications and for Nexttv.com. Before joining Multichannel News he had been a newspaper reporter with publications including The Washington Times, The Poughkeepsie (N.Y.) Journal and North County News.