Nexstar Taps Hopkins To Be Distribution SVP

Nexstar Media Group on Monday named Keith P. Hopkins senior vice president of distribution, a new position at the company.

In this role, Hopkins will work with Nexstar Chairman, President and CEO Perry Sook and EVP-General Counsel Elizabeth Ryder overseeing strategic local content distribution initiatives and affiliate relations for the company’s broadcast and digital operations in 100 markets across the United States. The appointment is effective Sept. 1 and Hopkins will report directly to Sook and Ryder.

Prior to joining Nexstar, Hopkins was VP of affiliate sales and marketing for Tribune Media where he negotiated complex carriage agreements with multichannel video programming distributors (MVPDs) and new emerging platforms for all of Tribune’s owned or operated television stations, as well as WGN America.

Before that, he was senior director, affiliate sales and marketing for the Pac-12 Networks, where he was on a team that led the global distribution development efforts for the Pac-12 national, regional and digital networks and executed carriage agreements with Dish Network, AT&T U-verse, NCTC and Google Fiber, among other MVPDs.

Earlier in his career, Hopkins was a national account sales manager at NBC Universal/Comcast Corp.

In his new role, Hopkins will work with Sook, Ryder and other Nexstar corporate personnel to negotiate carriage agreements with Nexstar’s distribution partners, to advise on network affiliation contract negotiations including over-the-top services, to manage contract and regulatory compliance, to execute action plans aimed at achieving operational goals, and to build on the company’s relationships with networks, distributors, and syndicators.

In addition, he will be responsible for identifying new revenue opportunities. Commenting on the appointment, Sook said: “With our expanded scale, including 170 television stations in 100 markets across the United States, the successful negotiation of valuable distribution agreements remains a key strategic priority. With continued long-term progress against our revenue diversification initiatives, retransmission fee revenue and other non-core television revenue now accounts for more than 50% of our total revenue and our prospects for growth from this revenue stream remain strong and visible. We believe Keith is the ideal candidate to complement Elizabeth and I as we further build this revenue stream.

“Keith’s expertise in local, regional and national programming distribution makes him well-suited to manage our content delivery and monetization initiatives. In addition, his leadership qualities and industry knowledge will help the company create new revenue streams through emerging technologies and distribution platforms. Elizabeth and I look forward to working with Keith as Nexstar continues to execute our well-defined strategy for sustained growth through the negotiation of distribution agreements that reflect the full value of our strong local programming, content offerings and audience reach, while serving the unique needs of our network and distribution partners.”