Jordan Banks named new president of Rogers Media
July 29, 2019 by David Brown
Jordan Banks, the former head of Facebook Canada, is taking over as president of Rogers Media, replacing the retiring Rick Brace. The change was announced Monday afternoon and takes effect Sept. 9.
Banks started his career in law, first with Goodman LLP and then the NHL Players Association. He spent seven years as managing director of eBay Canada in the early 2000s, and was briefly CEO of JumpTV before joining Facebook in 2013 as global head of vertical integration. He was named managing director of Facebook Canada in 2010, leaving the company in 2017.
Brace has led Rogers Media since 2015. Under his leadership, the company expanded its Sportsnet brand thanks in large part to its ownership of NHL broadcast rights, although the broadcast business has endured rounds of layoffs in recent years.
Rogers also exited the publishing business with the sale of its remaining magazine titles earlier this year. Last week the media division reported quarterly revenues of $591 million, down 3% from a year earlier.
Despite the challenges, Rogers Media remains a $2 billion business with assets including the TV network Citytv, specialty channels including FX and OLN, as well as Omni Television, 56 radio stations across five provinces, The Shopping Channel and Toronto Blue Jays.
According to a statement from Rogers, Banks will "focus on driving growth across sports and local in a digital world."
"Rick is a seasoned business leader who measurably reshaped our media business for the future, and I would like to thank him for his many accomplishments," said Rogers president and CEO Joe Natale in a statement. "Jordan is a globally respected and transformative digital executive who will build on Rick's legacy to drive future growth."
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