Ex-RTL Group boss Bert Habets named CEO of ProSiebenSat. 1 Media

Bert Habets

German broadcaster ProSiebenSat. 1 Media has appointed former RTL Group boss Bert Habets as its new group CEO, with incumbent Rainer Beaujean exiting the company.

Beaujean has resigned from his office by mutual agreement with the supervisory board and Habets, who has been a board member since May, will take over the role on 1 November.

Habets spent two decades at RTL Group, from 1999 until his unexpected exit in 2019, including as CEO, in which capacity he was responsible for the strategic direction and operational management of broadcast, TV production and digital business.

Based in the Netherlands, he launched the video streaming service Videoland, followed by the launch of other streaming services across RTL Group.

Habits served as CEO of RTL Nederland from 2008 to 2017, during which time he is credited with transforming the company from a traditional television broadcaster into an omnichannel media and entertainment company.

Last year, Habets was appointed as CEO of CEE-focused media firm Antenna Group, overseeing the free TV, pay TV, OTT, content, radio, digital, music, publishing and education divisions on all platforms for the group.

Meanwhile, the board had already decided in summer to extend the executive board contracts of Christine Scheffler and Wolfgang Link from January 1, 2023 by five years each until the end of 2027.

Scheffler will continue to be responsible for HR, compliance & sustainability, while Link remains responsible for the entertainment segment. Group CFO Ralf Peter Gierig will continue to be responsible for finance. Habets will be responsible for the commerce & ventures and dating & video segments, among others.

“I know well the challenges and opportunities that arise for media and digital companies in their transformation. I am therefore very pleased to bring this experience to ProSiebenSat.1 and to successfully drive this exciting company forward together with my colleagues on the executive board and the approximately 7,800 employees,” said Habets.