Discovery Networks has named Arthur Bastings, who was worked at the TV giant before, as EMEA MD five years ago, takes on the role of president and managing director for Discovery Networks Asia-Pacific.
He replaces Arjan Hoekstra, who left Discovery after a year and a half “due to a divergence of views about the strategic plan for the region.”Filling in for Hoekstra during the search for his replacement was Discovery’s president for Latin America Henry Martinez.
Arthur Bastings moves from Millicom, a telco and media firm that serves the African and Latin American markets, where he was responsible for Africa and financial services with a focus on mobile and ICT convergence.
He moves into the role on 1st September.
The president of Discovery Networks International, Jean-Briac Perrette, said: “The Asia Pacific region encompasses two thirds of the world’s population and thus represents one of the biggest growth opportunities for our company. Arthur has a remarkable combination of experience in Asia, strong strategic thinking, and a proven track record of growth and building strong teams. His deep knowledge of Discovery and familiarity with the Asia market will give him a great head start in accelerating DNAP’s expansion,” said Perrette.
In Bastings’ career, he has worked at Turner and MTV, and during his earlier career, at advertising agency JWT as a planner in London.
