Univision Expands Distribution Team

Univision Communications Inc. announced the expansion of its distribution sales and marketing team with four executive appointments: Rob Thun has been named executive vice president of business operations; Renee Plato will serve as senior vice president of digital distribution; Sarah Madigan, has been elevated to senior vice president of business affairs; and Carlos Alimurung becomes vice president of digital distribution.

Thun and Plato will be based in New York and report to Tonia O’Connor, president of distribution sales and marketing. Also based in New York, Madigan will report to Thun and Alimurung will report to Plato. The appointments are effective immediately. 

Univision’s distribution sales and marketing team is responsible for the distribution of all the company’s digital services including its UVideos Digital Network, announced at Univision’s upfront presentation last month, genre-specific broadband channels, and the expansion of the company’s content portfolio across all platforms in partnerships with its existing and new distributors.

These include recent deals with Hulu, DISH Network, AT&T and Verizon, as well as becoming the first Hispanic media company to bring video content to Xbox LIVE.

Thun joins Univision from AT&T where he was SVP of content for AT&T’s U-verse TV service. Thun, who holds a master’s degree in business administration from UCLA and a master’s degree in accounting from USC, has worked in the cable industry since 1998. Prior to AT&T, he was VP of national accounts, sales strategy and business development at Fox Cable Networks.

Plato comes to Univision from ABC, Disney and ESPN Media Networks where she was VP of digital distribution. Before joining The Walt Disney Co., Plato held positions within Sony’s Global Digital Distribution Group and at Universal Music Group in Toronto, Canada.

In her new role, Madigan will be critical in executing Univision’s TV Everywhere efforts, securing broad distribution for digital assets, including UVideos, on all platforms; and launching new, genre-specific broadband channels. She most recently was VP of business affairs for Univision’s distribution sales and marketing team. Prior to Univision, Madigan was VP of distribution business and legal affairs at BBC Worldwide America, as well as an associate in the media and entertainment group at Greenberg Traurig where she represented a wide range of broadcast and cable networks. She earned a JD degree from Boston College Law School.

Alimurung moves to VP of digital distribution from the office of the CEO at Univision. Before joining Univision, Alimurung was head of home entertainment strategy for LG Electronics. Prior to seeking a career in media, Alimurung worked for nine years at Marakon, a boutique management consulting firm.