Warren Dias is a seasoned digital and broadcast TV media professional with a 25-year career in commercial roles.

Throughout his career, Dias has often been at the intersection of media and technology: a combination that has become his true passion. Currently, he leads the UK Advertising group at Netflix where he and his team are introducing innovative advertising solutions and creating new opportunities for UK advertising clients on the Netflix platform. This exciting venture aims to transform the UK’s video advertising ecosystem.

Dias’s extensive experience in media and advertising includes client leadership, team building, and forging strategic partnerships with prominent companies such as Google, Microsoft, NBCUniversal, Yahoo!, Channel 4, and ITV. His roles have taken him to San Francisco and Seattle, where he gained valuable insights into different cultures and unique US tech environments.

Outside of work, Dias lives in West London with his wife, Rachel. He is an avid traveller, tennis player, and movie enthusiast — interests that align perfectly with his role at Netflix!

As the GVP, Head of Advertising and Partnerships at Warner Bros. Discovery, UK & Ireland, Katie Coteman is responsible for managing ad sales, partnerships and digital sales for D2C and linear channels. This includes Discovery Channel, TNT Sports, Eurosport, TLC, ID, Really, Quest, Quest Red, Animal Planet, Food Network, DMAX, HGTV, Cartoon Network, Boomerang, as well as the company’s SVOD service, discovery+.

Joining Discovery in 2011, Coteman has overseen a significant change including the launch of Quest, TLC and Quest Red. She was also instrumental in integrating Scripps, which brought Food Network into the portfolio of Discovery’s channels. As part of this acquisition, Discovery struck a deal with UKTV that further expanded the network with Really and HGTV. Back in 2018, Coteman also played a pivotal role in the launch of Discovery’s first free streaming product, Quest OD.

In 2022, Coteman and her team introduced an ‘Ad-Lite’ offering for discovery+ customers in the UK and Ireland. The move to this proposition opened brands to omnichannel solutions that reach highly engaged, passionate superfans. With over three-quarters of consumption of discovery+ through Connected TV, now one of the largest SVOD streamers in the UK, the team is now able to offer a premium environment with the scale advertisers have been looking for.

Most recently, the team has been integrating TNT Sports and the Warner Kids channels into the Sales offering. Coteman’s focus for this year is to continue to build WBD Ad Sales as a key partner for agencies and clients in the UK & Ireland.

Although Ben McOwen Wilson was appointed the MD, EMEA, of Google Play in 2022, our judges thought that he still merits a place on our list for his overall contribution – and current influence – on the UK’s OTT industry.

McOwen Wilson was formerly Managing Director of YouTube UK, where he was responsible for all business operations and strategy, and Regional Director for YouTube in Europe, Middle East and Africa. His remit included working with some of YouTube’s largest global sports, news and traditional media partners as well as many of the platform’s most-recognised endemic creators – aka “YouTubers”. He had previously led YouTube’s growth in various roles across EMEA for the past 10 years.

Prior to YouTube, McOwen Wilson was MD of ITV for six years, where he oversaw the launch and growth of the broadcaster’s digital and new media businesses. During his tenure, he co-created, and was chairman of, Project Kangaroo – the proposed VOD joint venture between BBC, Channel 4 and ITV. He also launched FreeSat, the UK’s free satellite television platform.

Previously a partner in a strategy consulting firm, McOwen Wilson has 25 years experience in the field of media, entertainment, and the internet, including a stint as CEO of UEFA New Media.

ITVX was a step change in ITV’s digital ambitions and Deep Bagchee as the company’s first Chief Product Officer was instrumental in the success of the new streaming service. ITVX racked up 3 billion streams in just its first year between December 2022 and December 2023 and won many industry awards including Best On Demand Service at the Edinburgh TV Awards in 2023. 

Bagchee helped define and deliver the new product including a much improved design, 20 new FAST channels, a much more integrated live experience to play to the strengths of the broadcaster and improved distribution and discovery on 3rd party TV platforms and OEMs.

ITVX’s progress has continued at pace, with the recent rollout of improved personalisation, a launch of the service on Playstation and the introduction of Pause Ads. What Bagchee achieved over the last two and a half years was an improvement in the product development process in order to make faster progress at ITV while also ensuring the company and stakeholders had clarity on how the roadmap was evolving. 

Before ITV, Bagchee was Chief Product Officer at The Economist Group where he worked on improving The Economist’s digital subscription offering and re-launching Espresso, a product targeted at newer and younger customers at a lower price point. Before that he was SVP of Product and Technology for CNBC where he led the digital transformation of CNBC’s digital offerings and technology over a 3 year period that helped CNBC deliver content to a record 115 million unique users in March 2020 at the start of the Covid pandemic. 

Jonathan Thompson is Chief Executive of Everyone TV, a joint venture owned and supported by the BBC, ITV, Channel 4 and Channel 5 which runs free television in the UK.

Thompson oversaw the development and launch of the UK’s newest streaming service, Freely, which brings together live and on demand content from the UK’s biggest broadcasters, all in one place, for free. Built into new smart TVs and delivered over wi-fi, Freely will play a crucial role in securing the on-going success of free TV in the UK.

Led by Thompson, the Everyone TV team is also responsible for overseeing the UK’s two other free TV platforms, Freeview and Freesat, which together serve over 16 million homes.

A former Director of Strategy for both Ofcom and Channel 4, he has extensive experience working in the broadcasting sector and the regulatory environment.

Sri Hari (Hari) serves as the SVP of Sales at Amagi, leading the company’s business expansion efforts in the EMEA region. Since joining Amagi in 2011 as the inaugural member of the technology-sales team, Hari has played a pivotal role in driving Amagi’s global growth, with a particular focus on EMEA in recent years.

Drawing upon his extensive expertise in the broadcast and streaming media ecosystems and a deep understanding of Amagi’s products and their industry applications, he has consistently delivered enhanced productivity, scalability, and cost-efficiency for Amagi’s customers. One of his notable achievements includes spearheading the sale and deployment of the world’s first cloud playout system in 2013, establishing Amagi as a pioneering force within the industry.

Hari is at the forefront of FAST (Free Ad-Supported Streaming TV) ecosystem development in EMEA, providing invaluable support and guidance to customers in business strategy and planning, technology and operational design, distribution, and ad sales.

With a comprehensive background spanning over two decades in the software technology industry, he has held diverse leadership positions encompassing strategy and planning, business development, software engineering, and sales. This multifaceted experience equips him with the skills to effectively guide customers in expanding their businesses and implementing operational efficiencies.

Leah Hooper Rosa leads WBD’s streaming business in Europe, Middle East, and Africa where she is responsible for the operations and growth of Max, which is now available in 20 countries in Europe across the Nordics, Iberia and Central and Eastern Europe, with further launches planned for France, Poland, Netherlands, Belgium, and Monaco in June.

In Europe, Max combines HBO Max’s can’t-miss programming, Discovery’s engaging real-life entertainment with world-class sports from Eurosport to create a complete viewing experience for the whole household on a single product. Max launched in the U.S. in May 2023, and Latin America and the Caribbean in February 2024, with further launches planned for Asia-Pacific later this year.

Hooper Rosa joined Discovery in 2015 where she worked on business development including digital revenue growth and scaling of Dplay, its first streaming product, in the Nordics. She rose quickly through the ranks to become SVP Global DTC Strategy and played a leadership role in the launches of discovery+ in regions including India, Europe, and the U.S.

Previously Hooper Rosa was at Foxtel in Australia over a seven-year period, rising to Head of Strategy, Content where she developed the company’s content strategy and investment portfolio. She began her career as a Researcher for Seven Network and the Australia Broadcasting Corporation.

Hooper Rosa has an MBA from the University of Technology Sydney where she also gained a Bachelor of Business and Arts degree in International Studies, Marketing and Italian.

Tim Sewell has been the CEO of Yospace since 2002, transforming the company from a provider of user-generated content platforms for mobile — pre-dating even YouTube — to the world’s leading provider of SSAI technology. During his 22-year tenure, Yospace has become the go-to solution for seamless ad integration in video streaming, revolutionising how ads are delivered in the streaming age and pioneering an improved viewer experience.

Sewell’s work positioned Yospace as a first-to-market leader, a milestone that significantly influenced the advertising methods used in the VOD and OTT sectors. This breakthrough innovation has been widely adopted by top-tier broadcasters globally and, under his leadership, propelled Yospace to a successful acquisition by RTL Group in 2019. Today, as the industry surges towards an all-streaming future, Yospace is leading the charge and continually innovating to push the boundaries of TV advertising.

As Yospace marks its 25th year, it is also celebrating a decade of long-term partnerships with leading UK broadcasters including Channel 4, ITV and STV. Its SSAI has been a central cog to each broadcaster’s advertising offering as streaming has become a critical focal point of their businesses.

Beyond the UK, Yospace also has long-term relationships with innovative broadcasters across the world, from TV4, Telia, TV2 Denmark, TV2 Norway, Allente, M6, RTL, and Deutsche Telekom in mainland Europe; Nine, Seven, and Optus in Australia; DIRECTV, Fox, and Warner Bros. Discovery in the USA.

The innovations that Yospace, with Sewell at its helm, is spearheading globally will have a profound impact on OTT advertising in the UK as leading broadcasters prepare for an all-streaming future with advertising revenues at their heart.

Liz Bales serves as CEO of the British Association for Screen Entertainment (BASE), and the Digital Entertainment Group International (DEGI) with a remit to harness the common goals of member companies and deliver against an international vision for sector growth through co-created local insights and initiatives.

Bales and the team at BASE/DEGI have pioneered cross sector initiatives in multiple territories with measurable impact on audience and revenue growth. A focus on community and collaboration has forged powerful partnerships and created innovative solutions to sector challenges and opportunities.

Passionate about board competencies and adept at navigating behavioural dynamics to influence change, Bales is currently spearheading an expansion of services, significantly extending the reach and relevance of the organisations and providing incremental value to members navigating the complex change environments of the global Film and TV Sector.

Bales was previously an Executive at NBC Universal with legal responsibility for content acquisition and IP management. Her background as a commercial lawyer informs current accountability across projects, governance and compliance.

Jenn Batty is the Director of Content Partnerships for Samsung’s free ad-supported streaming TV (FAST) service, Samsung TV Plus. Available for free on Samsung devices, no subscription, no sign-up, thousands of movies and TV shows, available live and on demand– Entertainment for every day, at home or on the go!

Launched in Europe in 2019, and now featuring over 1,500 channels scross 16 European markets, covering entertainment, news, sports , movies and more. Batty’s business remit has since expanded to include the Middle East with the upcoming launch of STVP. Samsung’s FAST service not only entertains but provides a next generation TV experience for advertisers.

She has played a key role in developing FAST business across Europe, launching the first ever live sports FAST channel featuring live matches from Spanish La Liga, Italian Serie A and French Ligue 1, with DAZN and has worked to forge strategic partnerships across Europe, including ZDF Studios, Altice Media, WarnerBros Discovery Italy, FIFA, Sony Pictures Entertainment, BBC Studios, ITV Studios and more.

Prior to Joining Samsung, Batty held senior roles across multiple regions including North America, Asia and Europe, always at the forefront of programming and channel development.