Paramount, Disney and ITVS alum Maria Kyriacou elected to chair ProSiebenSat.1 supervisory board
Maria Kyriacou and Bert Habets
Former Paramount, Disney and ITV Studios exec Maria Kyriacou has been appointed as chairwoman of the supervisory board at German media giant ProSiebenSat.1.
The internationally experienced media executive was elected to the supervisory board with an approval rate of over 98% following the company’s annual general meeting yesterday.
Kyriacou succeeds Andreas Wiele, who had previously announced he would not stand for re-election after serving a three-year term.
In addition, shareholders confirmed the reappointment of supervisory board members Dr Katrin Burkhardt and Simone Scettri, whose terms had been up for re-election.
Kyriacou, who was suggested as ProSiebenSat.1’s new chair last month, has 30 years of leadership experience in the global media industry, having previously held senior roles at Paramount Global, Disney and ITV Studios.
She began her career as senior VP of digital media distribution at Disney in 1995, a role she held until 2010 when she became MD of global entertainment at ITV and president of international at ITV Studios in 2016.
In 2020, she joined ViacomCBS as president of international (Australia, Israel and the UK), before becoming president of Paramount’s international broadcast and studios operations from 2023 until March last year.
Kyriacou, who currently serves as a non-executive director at publishing company Informa, said: “I sincerely thank our shareholders for their great trust. Working closely with the supervisory board and the executive board, my ambition is to accelerate our transformation journey, provide fresh momentum and contribute the perspective I’ve gained through my international career.
“The company has a clear strategy, with a strong focus on its core business, entertainment, putting Joyn at the centre of this strategy. ProSiebenSat.1 can inspire, inform, as well as entertain and I am excited to help seize these opportunities together.”
Bert Habets, chairman of the executive board and group CEO of ProSiebenSat.1 Media, said: “I would like to take the opportunity to thank Andreas Wiele on behalf of the entire executive board and also personally.
“He has consistently driven the necessary transformation of ProSiebenSat.1 and has always strongly supported our strategy. At the same time, I am very much looking forward to working with Maria Kyriacou. She brings nearly 30 years of leadership experience in the global media industry, with deep expertise in strategy, operations, and finance. With her drive and extensive expertise, she will be an excellent addition to the supervisory board and a strong support in its work.”
Earlier this month ProSiebenSat.1 confirmed it would be cutting 430 full-time jobs as part of the company’s strategy to focus on its core entertainment business.
This month has also seen Czech investment firm PPF, owner of Central and Eastern European broadcast group CME, offer to increase its stake in ProSiebenSat.1 – from 15% to 29.99% – following Italian media group MediaForEurope’s low-ball takeover bid for the German media giant.
During his speech at the AGM, Habets advocated for the company’s strategic direction, saying: “In the past year we have reached many important milestones for ProSiebenSat.1. We have laid a solid foundation to support the future growth of our entertainment business.
“Our challenges will remain big, but we have a clear strategy and will continue to deliver on executing it. I am confident that we are on the right track to achieving our goal: becoming the number one entertainment player in the German-speaking region.”
