December 10, 2009

CableFAX: 18. Bonded Insurance: Matt Bond

Matt Bond
Title: EVP, Content Acquisition, Comcast
Age: 47
Education: BS, BA, Marketing and Finance, U of Denver; JD, U of CO

Why Him? We’re moving Matt Bond up the 100 hierarchy to recognize the significant power he wields in the anticipation of the Comcast-NBCU deal, which seems a certainty at our press time. No more will he need to worry about negotiations with NBCU cable nets, allowing him to focus more on everyone else. Sorry, everyone else. Bond’s blunt negotiating style is well known, and it’s safe to figure a larger, more diversified Comcast will increase his influence. In addition, Bond spearheads Comcast’s huge OnDemand Online authentication initiative. For that and other reasons, Comcast is well served by Bond, who drives the hardest bargain possible to get the best deal.

Worth Watching: As Bond continues to strike authentication deals with programmers, the trick will be executing across systems in ’10 — especially considering the interplay between Hulu and Fancast as Comcast looks to integrate Hulu partner NBCU.

Year Ahead:

No telling how Bond’s job might change as Comcast becomes a significant content player, but something tells us he’ll continue as the MSO’s top negotiator.