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Michael S. Willner spent his entire career in the cable television industry. He co-founded Insight Communications in 1985 and served as its CEO, a director and vice chairman of the board until the company was sold to Time Warner Cable in February, 2012.

As a young boy in Miami, Florida, Michael had a fascination with the television business at a very early age. He often rode his bicycle to the local NBC affiliate after school where the staff allowed him to help out in the studio while they produced and aired a live children's puppet show and the local news. Michael began his career in 1974 as the program director and news reporter for a small suburban New York cable system after graduating from the Boston University College of Communications. Soon after, he shifted his focus to general management and eventually became the chief operating officer of Vision Cable Communications, a cable company owned by a division of Newhouse Newspapers.

After starting Insight Communications, Michael quickly developed his hands-on style of management as CEO. He is a firm believer in open, honest communication. He personally ensured that employees and customers were always well-informed and had input and influence over important Company decisions. This commitment led to a secondary career - that of a leading man in a number of Insight television commercials in which he comfortably played himself with a great sense of self-deprecating humor.

Michael also became very active in industry affairs and has been one of cable's most active and effective ambassadors on Capitol Hill, testifying regularly before Congress on industry issues and pending legislation. He has served two consecutive terms as chairman of the National Cable & Telecommunications Association (NCTA), the cable industry's trade lobby and currently served on its executive committee for many years. Michael also served as chairman of the board of the Cable Center from 2007 through 2011. He served on the executive committee of CableLabs; on the board of directors of C-SPAN, and the Walter Kaitz Foundation.

A recipient of the NCTA's 2004 Vanguard Award for Distinguished Leadership and a 2005 inductee into the Broadcasting & Cable Hall of Fame, Michael has yet to achieve his greatest goal of winning an Emmy for his leading role in Insight's commercials.

« Reports indicate Comcast and NFL Network close to an agreement | Main | Malware infected Windows 7 RC on the loose on P2P »

CableFax Breaking News -- Comcast and NFL Reach Agreement

CableFax just reported that Comcast and The NFL Network reached an agreement.  Here's the text of the announcement.

QuoteComcast and the NFL have reached a long-term deal for NFL Net and settled all outstanding legal disputes. As expected, the net will move to Comcast’s digital classic service from its sports tier. A full launch will occur by Aug 1, reaching nearly 2/3 of the company’s total digital sub base, Comcast said.

Comcast subs also will get access to the NFL’s RedZone Channel when it is created. The channel shows live peeks of Sun games. Financials weren’t released. The WSJ pegged the deal at about 50 cents/sub, down from the 70 cents NFL originally sought.

“We are delighted to have come to an agreement with the NFL,” said Comcast CEO Brian Roberts. “Our goal has always been to provide our digital customers with access to the NFL’s unique content and, working together, we have struck the right balance between value and distribution on a variety of viewing platforms.”

Posted at 09:52 AM in Public Policy, Rates, Sports |

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