Ad Sales President Close Will Exit MTV Networks at End of Year

By Jon Lafayette

Hank Close, president of ad sales for MTV Networks, is leaving the company at the end of the year.

In a memo, MTVN CEO Judy McGrath said it was Mr. Close’s decision to leave when his contract expires.

Mr. Close will not be replaced. Instead, the three senior ad sales executives will report directly to the presidents of their business groups. That means Sean Moran, executive VP of sales for the music and logo group, will report to Van Toffler; Jeff Lucas, executive VP for the entertainment group, will report to Doug Herzog; and Jim Perry, executive VP of the kids and family group, reports to Cyma Zarghami.

“For quite some time, Hank and the entire sales team has been committed to getting us even closer to our partners. We must continue and expand on that work by giving our clients access to all the strategic and brand resources we have across the company,” Ms. McGrath said in a memo to staffers Thursday. “To ensure that we're in the best position going forward, we will more closely align our ad sales structure with our powerful brands.”

MTV Networks will continue its centralized ad sales operation, which is responsible for strategy and operations. The company promoted Carolyn Everson to executive VP and chief operating officer for ad sales. She reports to MTVN Chief Operating Officer Rich Eigendorff. MTVN’s multiplatform unit Generator will report to Ms. Everson.

Also reporting to Mr. Eigendorff is Nada Stirratt, executive VP of digital advertising, who had reported to Mr. Close.

In the past few quarters, MTV Networks’ parent company, Viacom, has been cited by analysts as having domestic ad revenue growth that trailed most of its competitors.

The company has said that its rivals—including Time Warner and News Corp.—have older audiences and saw bigger audience gains when the broadcast networks were hurt by the Writers Guild of America strike.

In Ms. McGrath’s memo, ad sales performance was not an issue.

“Under Hank’s leadership, MTV Networks redefined our relationships with major marketers in every category—from Microsoft to Verizon and Rhapsody among many others. Hank realigned our sales organization to effectively deliver value to clients across our brands, fans and platforms. He birthed our digital sales organization, propelling us to a leadership position in the industry in terms of digital client offerings and revenue. Hank has also championed our industry-leading effort to maximize the commercial environment for viewers as well as marketers,” she said.

“Throughout his time here, Hank has led with vision and a fundamental understanding of new business models. No one has a better reputation in the industry for straight talk and integrity,” she said in the memo. “Hank will lead the sales organization through the end of the year to ensure a smooth transition. In the meantime, please join me in cheering Hank for his many stellar contributions to our business, our culture and our spirit over the past four years. He will be missed.”

Ms. McGrath also noted, “Just one of the things I will always treasure about Hank: At a holiday party last year, Hank and his band, the Unrehearsed, took the crowd by storm. He is a true music believer. It may be fashionable to be a wonk about technology, but Hank is a genuine music geek. I love his taste in tunes, his hand on a guitar, and I plan to be front and center at his upcoming gigs at the Red Lion bar in the Village.”