Lord Sugar steps down from YouView

IT magnate and The Apprentice star Lord Sugar has stepped down from his role as non-executive chairman at UK connected TV platform YouView.

Sugar, founder of pioneering electronics brand Amstrad, will step down from his position at the broadcaster-backed IPTV service over the next few weeks, with a replacement chairman announced in due course.

He was first drafted in to replacement Kip Meek, who had resigned from the joint venture platform following a series of pre-launch hitches in 2011. The platform – which is backed by the BBC, ITV, Channel 4, Channel 5, telco TalkTalk and television infrastructure firm Arqiva – finally went on sale last summer.

“When I joined YouView in 2011, my brief from the shareholders was to use my experience in the electronics industry to get the product to market and into the homes of consumers. Having done that successfully, my job is complete and I will now focus my time and attention into my other businesses.

“I’d like to thank all those who are part of the YouView project, including its suppliers, staff and shareholders and I wish them every success for the future.”