21st Century Fox has announced that it has promoted Star India chairman and CEO Uday Shankar to president, 21st Century Fox, Asia, effective immediately.
In his new role, Shankar will lead 21st Century Fox’s (21CF) video businesses across all of Asia, including Star India and Fox Networks Group, and work closely with 21CF leadership on key strategic initiatives in the region.
He will continue to serve as chairman and CEO for Star India, a key driver of 21CF’s growth and one of India’s largest media and entertainment companies, comprising 60-plus channels across entertainment and sports and eight languages, as well as leading digital video platform Hotstar.
21st Century Fox executive chairman Lachlan Murdoch and CEO James Murdoch commented:
“Uday’s new role will enhance our strategic focus across all of Asia and enable us to further capture opportunities, building on the transformation Star India has driven in our most important growth market. Under Uday’s leadership, our India business has firmly established itself as a world-class asset with durable businesses across entertainment, sports, satellite distribution and OTT. His strategic vision has put 21CF at the forefront of content and distribution in one of the world’s fastest growing economies, and we are very fortunate to benefit from Uday’s expanded leadership at a global level.”
As Chairman and CEO of Star India, Shankar leads a company with market leadership in key geographies, demographics, and timeslots, and today reaches more than 700 million viewers in India and across the globe every week.