Shorts channel hires Koene to replace Musa

Short films channel Shorts TV has hired Jan Pieter Koene to head up its EMEA operation, replacing former boss Alan Musa who announced his departure for Nickelodeon/Comedy Central last month.

Koene has worked at various channels and channel operators including Fox Sports, Chellomedia’s Film1/Sport1 and Discovery Networks.

Carter Pilcher, chief executive of Shorts International said: “Jan Pieter’s extensive background in pay TV channel distribution and marketing is perfectly suited to lead the ongoing channel development and expansion.”

Shorts is currently carried by operators in the Netherlands, Belgium, France, Luxembourg, Romania, Eastern Africa, and Turkey, reaching eight million homes in all.

The US channel ShortsHD is available to 20 million homes through AT&T and DirectTV.

Parent company Shorts International is co-owned by Shorts Entertainment Holdings and Liberty Global.