Network Ten's high-profile hire of Y&R Brands chief executive Russel Howcroft as executive general manager will see the ad man take a broader on-screen role with The Project, but he would not discuss the broadcaster’s current ratings slump.
"2013 is a new year," Howcroft told AdNews when asked about Ten’s troubled audience performance in 2012.
The popular Gruen Transfer panelist will retain his seat on the ABC TV show as well as take an expanding on-air role with Ten’s nightly news and current affairs gab-fest, The Project.
“You’ll have to talk to the ABC about Gruen but I’ve appeared on The Project and I hope I will be doing a bit more of that,” he said. The ABC has confirmed Howcroft’s new role at Ten would not prevent him appearing on future series of The Gruen Transfer.
Howcroft claimed he had not been searching for alternatives but said it was “not often in one’s life an opportunity like this presents itself so you have to go for it”.
“TV is the best brand builder, fame builder and sales creator and still the most powerful media. I can’t wait to get into the bowels of it.
I’m a big believer in what traditional media is able to do. Particularly for smart advertisers, they can get incredible results being on TV – but it doesn’t mean we become a laggard in what is happening in the digital field,” he said.
The veteran adman, who spent years working with leading advertising agencies in London, said he remained upbeat about the future of the industry. “There’s an enormous amount of enthusiasm around the ad industry worldwide at the moment,” he said. “There’s no reason why it won’t grow because we’re entering this commercial content phase and are the best at doing this is the ad industry.”
Following Howcroft’s move to Ten, Y&R Brands ANZ chief financial officer Jason Buckley has taken on the additional duties of Sydney chief operating officer.
Buckley told AdNews Howcroft’s departure would not cause major upheaval for Y&R Brands. “Russel is still a non-executive chairman, which is a good place for him to be. We’ll still be focusing on building a better business with more clients, we’ll still be focused on the growth line,” he said.
This article first appeared in the 21 September 2012 edition of AdNews, in print and on iPad. Click here to subscribe for more news, features and opinion.
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