Bruce Campbell has been upped to evp, business development for NBC Universal, replacing Brandon Burgess, who resigned as evp, business development & International Channels at NBC Universal and will join Paxson Communications Corp. as ceo.
Campbell will report to Randy Falco, president, NBC Universal Television Networks Group, and continue to be based in New York City. As a result of these changes, Patrick Vien, president, NBC Universal Global Networks, now reports to Frederick Huntsberry, president NBC Universal Television Distribution & Universal Pictures Group International Operations. This structure puts all of NBC Universal's international platforms (with the exception of CNBC Europe and CNBC Asia) under one leadership team.
Vien has led the international channels group to profitability over the last two years, and orchestrated the launch of NBC Universal's two newest international channels. Das Vierte, the company's first free-TV network outside the U.S., premiered in Germany in September, and the fourth expansion of SciFi debuts in France in December.
"Bruce is a very talented executive with a great deal of strategic expertise and management skills," said Bob Wright, chairman/ceo of NBC Universal. "We are fortunate to have in Bruce an exceptional leader of the business development team, and I am delighted he is taking a greater leadership role in engineering new opportunities for our company's growth."
Campbell had served as svp, business development for NBC Universal, responsible for sourcing and executing acquisitions and strategic investments across all divisions of the company. He played an integral role in negotiating NBC's landmark $14 billion acquisition of Vivendi Universal Ent., NBC's $2.7 billion purchase of Telemundo and the recently announced restructuring of NBC Universal's investment in Paxson Communications Corp.
Prior to joining business development in May 2000, Campbell was corporate and transaction counsel for NBC, representing the company in a variety of transactions, including joint ventures with Polo Ralph Lauren, World Wrestling Ent. and ValueVision.
Campbell, a graduate of Princeton University and Harvard Law School, began his career at the Los Angeles law firm of O'Melveny & Myers LLP, specializing in mergers and acquisitions and securities law.
