TORONTO – Former Bell Media exec Phil King has been named senior vice president of distribution for Canada at Sony Pictures Television (SPT).
Based in Toronto, King (pictured) will be responsible for managing and growing SPT’s distribution activity across Canada, leading all film, television and formats licensing negotiations across broadcast and digital platforms, as well as the rapidly expanding SVoD market. In this role, he will also work closely with Sony Pictures Home Entertainment across transactional VOD.
King served as president of CTV sports and entertainment programming from 2010 to 2015, where he led the acquisition and production strategy for channels including CTV, TSN, Discovery Network, Bravo, Comedy, E!, Much Music, MTV Canada and Space; pay TV channels TMN and HBO Canada; and SVoD service Crave TV. He was also instrumental in the creation of popular Canadian productions including The Amazing Race Canada, Saving Hope, Orphan Black and MasterChef Canada. Prior to that, King was president and general manager of TSN from 2004 to 2010 after joining TSN in 1989 as a manager of audit.
King will report to Alexander Marin, SPT's EVP of distribution for Latin America, the Caribbean and Canada.
“Phil is a Canadian TV veteran with unmatched insight into this unique market, solid client relationships, and an extensive track record of success,” said Marin, in Monday's announcement. “Phil’s expansive background in media has given him a deep understanding of programmers’ needs, particularly at this time of digital transformation, which makes him the perfect choice to lead our distribution business in Canada.”
