By Connie Thiessen
Colette Watson is set to retire as president of Rogers Sports & Media.
Watson will depart the company in mid-May, but will continue to serve in an advisory capacity through this fall.
She had been in the role since 2022, following Jordan Bank’s exit from the company.
“Colette has been a part of the Rogers fabric for over 35 years,” said Sarah Schmidt, vice president of communications, in a statement supplied to Cartt’s sister publication Broadcast Dialogue. “She has helped shape everything from content and channel line-up to the policies that govern them. She’s led Rogers Sports & Media making blockbuster deals and critical investments to build Rogers into a sports and entertainment powerhouse. We wish Colette all the best in her upcoming retirement.”
The seasoned executive, who has spent the bulk of her career with Rogers, previously stepped away from the company and her role as senior vice president of Television and Broadcast Operations in 2020.
Watson was initially hired as vice president of Rogers Television and head of the Ottawa Rogers bureau in 1990, moving into the senior vice president role in 2014. Her accomplishments over her more than three decades with the company include renegotiating Rogers’ NHL broadcast rights renewal, helping secure OMNI Television’s 9(1)(h) licence, successfully lobbying the CRTC to allow vertically-integrated companies to move funds to over-the-air TV from community television, and returning Citytv to profitability.
She also served as the president and general manager of CPAC (Cable Public Affairs Channel) from 2019-22.
Screenshot of Colette Watson at a CRTC hearing
