Emap Appoints New Digital Development Director For Radio
Emap Consumer Media has created the new position of digital development director for radio, appointing Jonathan Turpin to the role.
Turpin has a wealth of experience and insight into the launching and running of digital businesses, having held the CEO role at the Fish4 group alongside a series of commercial, development, management and strategy roles at the BBC and AOL.
The role is one of three new posts – one for each ECM division of radio, specialist and lifestyle – created as part of the move towards a stronger multi-media future.
The new recruit will work alongside Dee Ford, group MD of Emap Radio, and Travis Baxter, MD of the Big City network, to develop radio’s digital strategy.
Turpin began his career at management consultants Arthur D Little before spending six years at the BBC, initially as a senior analyst and then strategy development manager for BBC Television and then as business development manager for BBC Worldwide and commercial director for beeb.com.
He spent six years at the Fish4 digital businesses where he was chief executive and has spent the last year as head of portal implementation at AOL Europe.
“Digital will play an ever increasing role in revenue generation across the whole of radio: be that improving the offerings across our station websites or looking for the next growth opportunity in distribution or personalised consumption,” said Dee Ford.
“We’re delighted to welcome Jonathan to our team and look forward to further strengthening our digital position.”
Dharmash Mistry, MD of ECM and Emap Performance, added: “I am delighted that we are bringing in new proven digital talent, such as Jonathan, to the Emap group. His role will be fundamental in developing significant new digital initiatives leveraging our radio assets: be it focused on local services; personalisation or other potential on-the-go interactive forms of access and distribution.”
The recruitment process for the two other digital development director roles across lifestyle and specialist is still under way.
The new roles will also look at ways of stretching existing brands across different platforms such as the recent Closer Radio proposal for the new national digital multiplex (see 4 Digital Group Reveals Digital Multiplex Bid), and also provide stimulus, encourage and filter digital investment ideas.
The company last month announced the creation of the new roles, saying that the new positions would help develop and execute the digital strategy and deliver the profit and loss digital targets across the radio, specialist and lifestyle businesses (see New Digital Director Roles At Emap).
Emap: 01733 568 900 www.emap.co.uk