Brian Sullivan Becomes COO of Fox Networks Group

Brian Sullivan has been elevated to president and chief operating officer of Fox Networks Group (FNG), succeeding Randy Freer, who exited last month to serve as Hulu’s CEO.

Sullivan will have a broad operational role across FNG and directly oversee revenue and distribution for the Fox Television Group, FX, FOX Sports and National Geographic Partners. He will also continue to lead FNG’s digital consumer group. Sullivan will continue to serve as a Hulu board member, along with Peter Rice and Dana Walden.

“Brian is an incredibly talented executive and has been instrumental in leading the direct to consumer efforts across our brands,” said Peter Rice, the president of 21st Century Fox and chairman and CEO of FNG. “Brian’s track record at Sky and his proven expertise in building digital video consumer products has made him an invaluable part of our senior leadership team, and I look forward to working with him to continue to focus and operationalize our revenue, distribution and D2C efforts.”

Sullivan added: “Fox Networks Group’s exceptional portfolio of brands continues to have an unrivaled reach and influence around the world at a time of dramatic transformation for our industry. I look forward to my expanded role as I continue working with FNG’s leadership to grow our business and drive consumer choice in the emerging TV ecosystem.”

Michael Biard, the president of distribution, and Joe Marchese, the president of ad revenue, will now report to Sullivan. At the same time, the advertising revenue group is being reorganized and Danielle Maged, executive VP of global solutions, will now report to Marchese. FNG Europe and Africa President Jan Koeppen and FNG Latin America President Carlos Martinez will report jointly to Sullivan and Rice.

Sullivan has led the digital strategy for all the group’s network brands since 2015, serving as president and COO of Fox Networks’ digital consumer group. He began his career working at Showtime Networks, then moved to Sky in the U.K. and Germany. At Sky in the U.K., he held many roles, eventually becoming managing director of the customer group. He also served as CEO of Sky Deutschland.