Luff’s new regional management team for Emerging Business includes Dilek Doyan, distribution director, and Lee Hobbs, channel director. Luff reports to Kasia Kieli, executive vice president and managing director CEEMEA and is part of Kieli’s senior management team, which also includes Caleb Weinstein, senior vice president, general manager EMEA Distribution, and Paul Welling, senior vice president, head of Channels.

Luff brings to the position 16 years of experience in Pay TV and digital media in Australasia, Japan, UK, Central and Eastern Europe in various senior management roles. Having been with Discovery Networks for eight of these years, he has substantial international experience and has had great success in roles that have included general manager for Discovery Networks Australasia Pacific, president and representative director of Discovery Japan, SVP and general manager Animal Planet International, acting VP Distribution Discovery Networks UK, acting general manager Discovery Networks Central Europe and most recently as acting country manager for South East & North East Europe.

Commenting on his new appointment, Luff said: “The recent merger of our Central European and Emerging Markets’ operations into the new Discovery Networks CEEMEA business has called for the creation of the Emerging Business regional management team focusing on businesses in Africa, Middle East, Turkey, Mediterranean and Central Asia. I am both excited at this new opportunity and confident that we will continue to focus on the expansion of Discovery in South Africa and across the African continent through broader distribution with a view to creating greater local relevance for our valued viewers and partners.”

Emerging Business distribution director, Dilek Doyran, has been with Discovery Networks since 2008 and has more than 12 years of experience in Pay TV as a senior manager of multi-channel operations. Dilek will support the region from a distribution perspective aiming for growth and improved client service support. She says “The creation of the new regional management team will ensure that we work closer with distribution partners to develop a local approach which is in tune with the needs of our audiences and clients across the region.”

Lee Hobbs, Emerging Business channel director, will be responsible for the development of Discovery Networks’ programming and brands across Africa, Turkey, the Middle East and Central Asia, which includes day-to-day management of programming, media planning, marketing and PR. Hobbs has more than 13 years of experience and previously oversaw all consumer, trade and corporate communications in the region as director of Public Relations. Commenting on his appointment, Hobbs said: “Our mission is to deliver content to our viewers and partners that is compelling, intriguing and locally relevant. We will continue to focus on delivering this and building our audience in the region with breakthrough programming and marketing initiatives.

The Emerging Business team has responsibility of eight channel brands, including Discovery Channel, TLC, Animal Planet, Discovery HD Showcase, Discovery Science, Discovery World, ID: Investigation Discovery and Travel & Living.

In total, Discovery Networks CEEMEA has nine channel brands broadcast in 18 local languages, in 108 countries across three continents. Led by Kasia Kieli, executive vice president and managing director for Discovery Networks CEEMEA from Warsaw, Poland the operation includes offices in London, Moscow, Bucharest, Prague, Kyiv, Almaty and Budapest.