Channel 4 appoints Ruth Brougham as streaming business director
Channel 4 (C4) has appointed Ruth Brougham as streaming business director as its posts bumper streaming audience numbers for last month.
In the newly created role, Brougham will join C4’s executive team and report to chief operating officer Jonathan Allan.
Brougham, who will be based in Leeds and was most recently head of digital banking at Virgin Money, will help to set and lead C4’s streaming operations, product team and roadmap as it seeks to become a genuinely digital-first public service streamer by 2030.
This is a key part of C4’s ‘Fast Forward’ strategy, unveiled earlier this year, to accelerate its transformation away from traditional broadcasting to a more contemporary digital model.
Brougham will work with Kiran Nataraja, who, in her recently expanded role as director of streaming and content strategy, has editorial leadership of C4 streaming.
The team also includes Alexandra Wall, head of streaming editorial, who reports to Nataraja and recently spoke to C21 about the pubcaster’s approach to curation and personalisation on streaming.
Brougham appointment comes as the latest data from audience measurement body BARB shows C4’s streaming audience in June was up 30% on the same month last year. C4 operates a free streaming service and has more than 30 million registered streaming users.
C4 put its strong streaming performance in June down to new shows such as The Fall: Skydive Murder Plot, Dance Moms and The Gathering as well as hits such as Married At First Sight Australia, Big Bang Theory, Celebrity Gogglebox, Made In Chelsea, Hollyoaks and Taskmaster.
The broadcaster also streamed live England football internationals against Iceland and Bosnia & Herzegovina last month ahead of UEFA Euro 2024.
Nataraja said: “Our strong performance in June, with success across a wide range of titles, demonstrates the clear editorial and content approach set out in our Fast Forward strategy. Despite the tough competitive landscape with UEFA Euro 2024, audiences continued to flock to Channel 4 streaming last month as a destination to discover innovative new commissions, alongside well-loved brands.”
