Jeremy Darroch has said he plans “to stick around” as chief executive of Sky, as he outlined areas of focus for the pan-European pay-television broadcaster following its takeover by US media company Comcast.
According to the Digital TV Europe website, Darroch said he is “looking forward to leading Sky into the future”, adding that a focus is being placed on building its pay-television operations through a range of distribution methods. Darroch was speaking during Comcast’s Q3 results call.
OTT platforms are one area Sky is keen to focus on, with the broadcaster also eyeing an increased digital-terrestrial presence in Italy through its agreement with Mediaset.
On the subject of further expansion, Darroch said OTT would allow Sky to take in “new territories to broaden our growth”.
Darroch also said Sky would seek to cut back its commitment to second-tier sports rights, “whether or not they’re delivering value”.
Comcast announced earlier this month it had completed the acquisition of Sky shares held by 21st Century Fox and that its offer for Sky had become unconditional. As a result, Comcast is the majority owner of Sky and now holds more than 75 per cent of Sky’s issued ordinary share capital.