MUMBAI: Confirming news that has been doing the rounds for a while now, Star has announced that its long serving COO Steve Askew has resigned from the company. Replacing Askew as chief operating officer is Laureen Ong, whose appointment is effective June.

A company release issued today cites the reasons for Askew's departure as personal.

Star chief operating officer Laureen Ong

Ong joins Star from National Geographic Channel where she was the founding president of the network, having spearheaded the 2001 launch of NGC.

Prior to launching National Geographic Channel, Ong served for two years as vice president and general manager of WTTG-TV in Washington where she was the first Asian-American woman to lead a top 10 market affiliate. Ong also helped launch SportsVision in Chicago, where she served for seven years eventually becoming executive producer and VP broadcasting for the World Series-winning Chicago White Sox baseball team (in which she continues to hold an ownership stake).

Speaking about Askew's exit Star CEO Paul Aiello said, "Steve has been with Star for over 10 years and has played a key leadership role in virtually every aspect of our operations. He has been an instrumental force in shaping the company and growing it from a relatively small broadcaster into the industry leader it is today. We thank Steve for his tremendous contributions and wish him all the best in his future endeavors."