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BBC Advertising appoints Alistair McEwan as SVP Asia & ANZ
MUMBAI: BBC Advertising has appointed Alistair McEwan as SVP commercial development Asia & ANZ.
McEwan will be responsible for the delivery of profitable advertising sales revenues from the Asia-Pacific region on BBC World News, BBC.com, BBC World Service, Top Gear, BBC Good Food and BBC Worldwide Channels.
Reporting to BBC Advertising EVP Carolyn Gibson, McEwan will also remain part of the ANZ leadership team under BBC Worldwide ANZ managing director Jon Penn, and join the Asia leadership team under EVP & GM Asia David Weiland.
He will play a strategic role in integrating the regional advertising teams and optimising opportunities across BBC Worldwide and BBC Global News Ltd’s portfolio, while building the business’ profile across Asia-Pacific. He will also provide sales and business leadership to his senior management team of sales vice presidents, whilst further developing the capabilities of the high calibre sales team across the region.
This builds on the announcement last September that BBC Worldwide is boosting its ad sales team in Asia to make the most of growth opportunities in the region. VPs John Williams and Katy Xu will continue to run sales and day to day line management of their teams in ASEAN & India and Greater China & North Asia respectively, while both reporting to McEwan. The current ANZ Ad Sales and Brand Partnerships team will continue to report to McEwan.
The role takes effect on 1 July, 2015 and McEwan will work from both the Singapore and Sydney offices.
Gibson said, “For this expanded, strategic role, which is responsible for the whole of BBC Worldwide and BBC Global News Ltd’s portfolio across the region, we were looking for someone who can lead and integrate the teams and drive new commercial opportunities. With his knowledge from working in markets across Asia and ANZ, as well as a mix of print, TV and digital experience, Alistair will be an excellent asset to the BBC Advertising leadership team.”
McEwan added, “Asia-Pacific is a dynamic and very important region for BBC Worldwide, where we are increasingly building audiences with our world-class content and services in both mature and fast growth markets. I’m incredibly excited by the scope of business opportunities across the region, fostering new and existing partnerships and leading a highly talented sales team.”
A key area of focus for McEwan will be driving opportunities around BBC.com and BBC World News. Sustained investment has resulted in an enhanced offering across TV, radio and online, run from a new 24-hour newsroom in London and supported by an extensive network of bureaux and correspondents around the world.
McEwan joined BBC Worldwide in July 2013 as VP for BBC Advertising ANZ. In 2014 he was appointed director of advertising sales & brand partnerships where he has been leading a cross media commercial department for BBC Worldwide ANZ, responsible for multi-channel advertising and sponsorship revenues for the portfolio of media brands and platforms in Australia and New Zealand. Additionally he has been managing the BBC Worldwide joint venture interest with Bauer Park Publishing for Top Gear Australia magazine and its website.
He joined BBC Worldwide from multi-screen media and marketing agency Modaliti and prior to this he was National Group Advertising Director at News Ltd. Before moving to Australia in 2010, he was international advertising director at The New York Times, with his first 12 years in media being with Paris based newspaper the International Herald Tribune where he worked in various commercial roles in Singapore, Johannesburg, London and Paris.
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Lessons from global media markets on building enduring content franchises
Rose Audio Visuals COO and CFO Mitesh Patel.
MUMBAI: The global media landscape has undergone a fundamental shift. Success today is no longer defined by a single hit show. It is defined by the ability to build intellectual property (IP) that travels, evolves, and compounds over time.
At Rose Audio Visuals, this shift is central to how we think about content pitching and creation. We are no longer in the business of just making shows. We are in the business of building IP ecosystems.
From Hits to Franchises
Globally, the most successful content is designed to extend beyond its first outing. It travels across: Seasons, Platforms (TV → OTT → Digital), Formats (series → spin-offs) Shows like Stranger Things and Money Heist are not just successful series they are multi-layered franchises with global recall, fan engagement, and long-term monetisation. The key learning is simple: If content cannot scale beyond one season or one platform, it remains a project not a franchise.
Local Stories, Global Impact
One of the most powerful global trends is the rise of culturally rooted storytelling. Platforms today reward local authenticity combined with universal emotion. Stories that are deeply regional are no longer limited by geography they are amplified by it. Consider the global impact of Squid Game or India’s own Sacred Games. The takeaway is clear: The more authentic the story, the greater its potential to travel if the emotion resonates universally.
Monetisation Begins After the First Window
A critical global learning is that the true value of content is not realised at launch, it is realised over time.
Strong franchises unlock multiple revenue streams: Licensing, International remakes, Brand integrations, Digital extensions , Events and immersive experiences
Global players like The Walt Disney Company have mastered this approach, turning content into long-term ecosystems that extend far beyond the screen.
The first window is just the beginning. The real value lies in what follows.
At Rose Audio Visuals, we increasingly evaluate projects not just on commissioning value, but on their long-term franchise potential.
The Rise of Creator-Led Franchises
An important global shift is the emergence of creator-led IP ecosystems.
Creators today are not just content producers they are building full-scale franchises across platforms, formats, and businesses.
A powerful example is MrBeast. What started as YouTube videos has evolved into: Multiple content formats, Global audience scale , Brand extensions and businesses, High-impact experiential content This is a fundamentally different model digital-first, audience-owned, and infinitely scalable.
This model is still in its early stages in Indian but it represents a massive opportunity.
The next wave of Indian content franchises may not come from traditional studios alone but from creators who think like media companies.
Balancing Data with Creative Instinct
Streaming platforms today are deeply data-driven. Data helps Identify emerging genres, Predict audience behaviour , Inform commissioning decisions However, global experience shows that data alone does not create hits. Data informs scale, but storytelling creates impact.
Talent is the Foundation of Franchises
Enduring franchises are rarely accidental they are built through long-term creative partnerships. Globally, there is a clear focus on nurturing Actors, Writter, Show runner and director. Franchises are not built on scripts alone they are built on creators. This is an area where we continue to invest deeply building long-term relationships with talent rather than project-based collaborations.
Multi-Platform Thinking from Day One
Content consumption today is inherently multi-platform. A successful show must be designed not just for its primary platform, but for: Short-form extensions, Social media amplification, Digital-first engagement. Every show today needs a second life beyond its original format.
India: A Market at an Inflection Point
India today stands at a unique moment in its content journey.
We are seeing significant opportunity in Regional markets (Telugu, Tamil, Marathi and others) Emerging formats such as micro-dramas, Scalable, franchise-driven fiction IP
India does not lack stories. What we have historically lacked is structured franchise thinking something that is now beginning to evolve.
The Way Forward
The biggest lesson from global markets is this: The future belongs to companies that do not chase hits, but systematically build franchises. Because while hits may deliver immediate success, franchises create long-term value, recall, and compounding growth.
At Rose Audio Visuals, this belief shapes how we develop, greenlight, and scale content across platforms.
For content companies today, the question is no longer “Will this show work?” It is: “Can this become a franchise?”
A Personal Note
Having worked across content, business, and strategy, one thing has become increasingly clear to me, the most valuable companies in our industry will not be those that create the most content, but those that create content that endures.
Building a franchise requires patience, conviction, and a long-term lens something that the industry is only now beginning to fully embrace.As we continue this journey at Rose Audio Visuals, our focus remains simple: to move from volume-driven creation to value-driven storytelling. Because in the end, stories may start conversations but franchises build legacies.
