Channel 4 has appointed Rak Patel as its new chief commercial officer.
Patel will oversee Channel 4 Sales, the commercial arm of the broadcaster, with the ambition of growing advertising revenue.
In addition, Patel is tasked with driving the commercial elements of Channel 4’s Fast Forward strategy as it seeks to position itself as a “digital first” broadcaster.
Patel, currently EMEA head of sales at Spotify, will begin his new role in January and report to CEO Alex Mahon.
Chief revenue officer Veriça Djurdjevic announced her departure in July, though she remains at the broadcaster until the end of the year.
In January, Channel 4 unveiled its Fast Forward strategy, which centres on three pillars: digital growth and transformation; diversifying revenue streams; and restructuring the business to become “leaner”.
Moreover, it announced a number of job losses and confirmed it will move out of its London headquarters.
Channel 4 has not yet released its 2023 financial results, but in 2022 it posted revenue of £1.14bn, down 2% from 2021’s record £1.16bn. A third of its revenue did not come from linear advertising.
The broadcaster has continued to lean into its streaming audience as linear viewership has declined. According to C4, Viewing figures from June, for example, had risen 30% year on year while it registered 3% growth across streaming and linear combined to reach 4bn viewer minutes.
Mahon said: “Rak joins at a time of incredible commercial opportunity for Channel 4. Our streaming audience is growing ahead of the market, while our overall audience across linear and streaming expands.
“I know he will bring a world-class focus on driving forward our Fast Forward strategy, while evolving vital relationships with clients and agencies, alongside innovations to harness digital opportunities.”
Patel added: “Channel 4 has pioneered an approach which empowers and embraces the culture around us. With a truly progressive Fast Forward strategy, embracing an agile and genuinely digital-first public-service streaming approach by 2030, the commercial opportunities for brands to share their stories is boundless.
“I couldn’t be more excited to join the incredible Channel 4 team to help accelerate the commercial enterprise and support our advertisers, agencies and partners on the exciting journey ahead. I’d like to thank Spotify for the last seven years and wish them continued success. It has always been an honour to be part of the band.”
Patel joined Spotify in 2015. Before that, he worked at the Financial Times, Microsoft and Auto Trader, and began his career at Emap.
The role of chief commercial officer at Channel 4 has been vacant since Jonathan Allan, who held the post during 2018-2020, was promoted to chief operating officer.
