Amazon Taps ViacomCBS Exec Kelly Day for New Role Overseeing Prime Video International
Digital media veteran Kelly Day is exiting ViacomCBS to join Amazon as VP of Prime Video International, a newly created role overseeing the ecommerce giant’s streaming video business in global markets.
Day will join Amazon in early January 2022, reporting to Mike Hopkins, senior VP of Amazon Studios and Prime Video. She will lead Prime Video’s business and video offerings available outside the U.S., including subscription VOD, transactional video sales and rentals, and Prime Video Channels.
Most recently, Day has served as president of streaming for ViacomCBS Networks International after she had been president of Viacom Digital Studios for over two years. Day first joined Viacom in late 2017 after more than four years at AwesomenessTV, the youth-focused media company that Viacom subsequently acquired in 2018 under her leadership and made part of VDS.
Day is “accomplished executive in the international streaming space,” Hopkins wrote in a memo Tuesday to Amazon employees. “Her insights and expertise on the future of television, the evolution of online business models and the disruption of traditional businesses through emerging technology will help us to be the number one entertainment hub for our customers.”
Prior to Viacom and Awesomeness, Day worked in various roles at Discovery and AOL and served as CEO of venture-backed video company Blip Networks prior to its sale to Maker Studios (now part of Disney).
Read Hopkins’ memo announcing Day’s new appointment:
Hello Team –
In June, I shared the news of some changes to our global organizational structure, and that we would be bringing in a leader to oversee our international business. Today, I’m pleased to announce that Kelly Day, an accomplished executive in the international streaming space, will be joining our team in early January as Vice President, Prime Video International. In this newly created role, Kelly will provide single-threaded business leadership for PVS in our existing and new locales worldwide, reporting directly to me.
Kelly will oversee PV’s business and video offerings available in each country and region, including our SVOD, TVOD and Channels businesses. She will work with the regional leaders and country directors to create PV’s local content strategies, and she and her team will be key stakeholders in the development and launches of Amazon Original shows and movies, which will continue to roll up under Jen Salke and James Farrell. In short, Kelly will play a vital role in defining the PV business around the world.
Kelly comes to us from ViacomCBS, where she was President of Streaming for ViacomCBS Networks International (VCNI). She led the division’s streaming business globally, with oversight of the international roll-out of Paramount+. Kelly also managed the expansion of Pluto TV, following its successful launches in Latin America, France, Spain and Italy. Prior to that, she was COO of VCNI, working closely with key stakeholders to accelerate the digital transformation of VCNI’s business with a focus on strengthening the company’s digital and streaming operations. Before her roles at VCNI, Kelly served as President of Viacom Digital Studios (VDS), where she was credited with making ViacomCBS a global leader in digital content and distribution. Under her leadership, VDS created thousands of hours of premium digital content across Viacom’s global entertainment brands. She expanded their mission and business model through acquisitions of both AwesomenessTV and VidCon.
As I’ve said before, global expansion is a key driver of PV growth and essential to the success of our business. I couldn’t be prouder of all we’ve accomplished in building and scaling PV globally. I look forward to the opportunities that Kelly’s leadership will bring. Her insights and expertise on the future of television, the evolution of online business models and the disruption of traditional businesses through emerging technology will help us to be the number one entertainment hub for our customers.
Please join me in welcoming Kelly to the team.
Mike
