72 | THE BRITISH ARE COMING
Herb Scannell
Title: President, BBC Worldwide America
Years in Cable: 27
Education: Boston College
Why Him? BBC Worldwide America saw record primetime ratings this year among 25-54 year-olds, up 37% year on year. Ad sales climbed a stunning 40% across TV and digital despite the economy, The network is now in 70 homes, and BBC.com averages 58 million users a month, 21 million of them from North America. That’s not too shabby for Scannell’s first full year on the job. To boot, digital sales of BBC programs grew by 45.7% in the last financial year. The former Viacom exec is steering BBC America into its first original U.S. productions, with a raft of new shows slated for 2012.
World Party: BBC America’s airing of “Dancing with the Stars” continues to shine. This year the show twirled into four new markets: Armenia, South Korea, Indonesia and Vietnam bringing the total to 35 countries.
Year Ahead: Originals in the U.S. and ‘Dance’ fever around the globe bode well. ?