Former Discovery Exec Takes Top Job at qubo

NEW YORK, October 24: Rick
Rodriguez, whose ten years at Discovery Communications included stints at
Discovery Kids and the Travel Channel, has been tapped as the president and
general manager of qubo, the Spanish- and English-language kids’ service that
airs on NBC, i network and Telemundo.

The multiplatform network has also appointed Kerry
J. Hughes as SVP of advertising sales and sponsorships. Rodriguez will be
initially based in Los Angeles while Hughes will be based out of qubo’s offices
in New York.

Rodriguez will be responsible for strategic and
day-to-day operational oversight of qubo. While at Discovery Communications, he
oversaw the creation of the Discovery Kids network, first in Latin America and
later throughout the rest of Discovery’s international markets as EVP of
content. From 2003 to 2004, Rodriguez served as EVP and GM for the Travel
Channel. He left Discovery in July 2004 to form the Los Angeles-based Island
Dreamer Enterprises, a television production company and consulting firm. There
he successfully managed the launch of Discovery Kids en Español and Discovery
Travel & Living for the U.S. Hispanic market, as well as the launch of
Discovery’s HD Channels in Europe and Asia.

Launched in September 2006, qubo is a
multi-platform entertainment destination owned by ION Media Networks (51
percent), NBC Universal, Scholastic, Corus Entertainment and Classic Media/Big
Idea. It broadcasts in both
English and Spanish on NBC on Saturday mornings, on the i network on Friday
afternoons and on Telemundo on weekend mornings. It will eventually evolve into
a 24/7 broadcast destination.