Press Release from Starz Digital Media

New York, NY – September 7, 2011 – Starz Digital Media, the digital and on-demand licensing arm of Starz, elevated two key executives with the promotions of Mara Winokur to the position of senior vice president, digital media, business development and strategy at Starz Media, a position that makes her the new head of the division, and David Katz, to vice president, digital media with new and expanded business responsibilities. The announcement was made by Ed Huguez, executive vice president, affiliate sales and marketing for Starz.
 
Winokur, who served previously as vice president, digital media and business development, will oversee the entire Starz Digital Media division and the digital initiatives supporting its various film, television and digital-only content properties.  Winokur and her team will manage digital distribution, licensing, syndication, content and vendor partnerships with a wide array of partners and distributors ranging from traditional cable/satellite/telco multichannel video affiliates to internet/mobile distributors to game and social media developers/publishers to consumer electronics partners. The video content they distribute and market ranges from theatrical features to short-form animation from each of Starz’ various business units including: Starz Entertainment (pay television), Anchor Bay Entertainment (home entertainment), Manga Entertainment (Japanese Anime) and Film Roman (animation).

Starz Digital Media’s David Katz was also promoted to vice president, digital media from his previous position serving as executive director.  Katz’ new position expands his role by including responsibilities for product development, partner relationships, and global multiplatform marketing across all business models. He will continue to oversee the creation, development, and execution of Starz Digital Media digital extensions and extractions, including originals, apps, and games, by leveraging proprietary and licensed Starz content and distributing it to Internet and mobile partners.

“Starz Digital Media is in very capable and creative hands with Mara and David and I congratulate them on their respective promotions,” said Huguez. “The Digital group has been a source of great energy, solid business performance, and terrific innovation through its development of leading edge properties, such as the ‘Spartacus’ Facebook game. Media properties, such as these, build synergy with our originals and create ancillary revenue opportunities for the company.”

Prior to joining Starz Digital Media, Winokur was the Senior Director of Digital Business Development at EMI Music Entertainment.  In this role, Winokur led the team responsible for evaluating business proposals; structuring and negotiating deal terms; and executing agreements in the online and mobile spaces.  She also analyzed developing digital trends and advised on new product strategies and business models. Before her position at EMI, Winokur was a Director of New Technology Business Development at Sony BMG Entertainment.  Winokur has also worked in New Media Strategy at The McGraw-Hill Companies, Strategic Alliances at Palm, Inc., and has consulted with several Silicon Valley companies. Winokur received her MBA with honors in Strategy and Finance from the University of Chicago’s Graduate School of Business and her BA in Communications and Psychology from Stanford University.