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Score 88 - Review Imminent: WarnerMedia shuffles leadership, hires two CMOs amid focus on SVOD service

Variety reports it reorganized its executive leadership. The most notable shifts are as follows:  

• Bob Greenblatt now oversees HBO, TNT, TBS, Otter Media and truTV as the company's first chairman of WarnerMedia Entertainment and Direct-to-Consumer.
• CNN president Jeff Zucker expanded his duties and will now oversee CNN Worldwide, Turner Sports, Bleacher Report and the AT&T Regional Sports Networks as chairman of WarnerMedia News & Sports.
• Otter Media CEO Tony Goncalves expanded his duties to help Greenblatt develop the direct-to-consumer service.

The company also hired Molly Battin as chief corporate marketing and brand strategy officer, effective June, to oversee corporate brand strategy, brand management, coordinated portfolio marketing, agency management, cross promotion planning, media production and presentation services (per Multichannel). She most recently served as EVP and global chief communications and corporate marketing officer for Turner, where she also served a number of other leadership positions.

In addition, WarnerMedia tapped Chris Spadaccini as CMO for the Entertainment business, effective June, to replace incumbent Michael Engleman. Spadaccini spent the last 20 year at HBO, where he served positions like marketing EVP, oversaw numerous campaigns and promoted famous productions like Game of Thrones.

Note: We are having trouble confirming Spadaccini's email. We believe it is chris.spadaccini@timewarner.com and will let you know as we learn more.

Lower-level shifts include corporate communications & events manager Mary Johnson (April), brand communications designer Mirra Jones (April), account coordinator Brianna Alexander (June) and Entertainment campaign management & operations director Steve Verde (April). Know that truTV is slated to lose almost all of its marketing staff in a round of layoffs.

These personnel shifts push WarnerMedia up to "Review Imminent" status on the TracyLocke, which has handled creative for WarnerMedia since 1999.

It would be in your best interest to focus pitches on WarnerMedia's SVOD service, which will launch in beta in September. The service is a priority going forward, so CEO John Stankey has big plans for it. He Dune: The Sisterhood.

Of course, the SVOD service will not see WarnerMedia ignore all of its other offerings. For example, it just created in partnership with Eleague.

All of these initiatives should see WarnerMedia's spend declines reverse themselves, so sellers should reach out for imminent revenue. The company spends highly year round to promote upcoming content (click StatSocial reports there is a male skew across the portfolio, though.

Please view digital display spend (courtesy of here. Know that the brands also typically use outdoor, print, radio, sponsorship, earned media and experiential.