National Geographic Partners Closes Deal, Announces Senior Leadership Team
21st Century Fox Social Impact
21st Century Fox and the National Geographic Society have completed the transaction to form National Geographic Partners, a new media company combining the National Geographic television channels with the remainder of the Society's commercial assets, including National Geographic magazine, National Geographic Studios, and more. On November 16, the company announced the appointment of its senior leadership team.
"Upon completing the transaction to form National Geographic Partners, we are thrilled to bring these incredibly talented executives to the senior leadership team," said Declan Moore, CEO of National Geographic Partners. "National Geographic is one of the world's most trusted brands, delivering unique and compelling storytelling of science, discovery and wonder to consumers for over a century. We're excited to officially begin our journey to bring a new and integrated National Geographic experience to people worldwide, and I look forward to partnering with Ward Platt and working with Susan Goldberg, Courteney Monroe and Jeffrey Schneider to share the National Geographic mission with an even larger audience."
Platt, who currently serves as COO of Fox International Channels, as well as CEO of National Geographic Channels International, will join as Chief Operating Officer of the new venture. He will act as Moore's partner in driving the global revenue of the large portfolio of businesses.
Susan Goldberg will continue to serve as Editor-in-Chief of National Geographic magazine and will add the title of Editorial Director, responsible for all of the publishing activities under the new venture, including digital journalism, magazines, books, maps, children and family, travel, and adventure. Jeffrey Schneider, who is currently Executive Vice President of Business and Legal Affairs for National Geographic Channels, will become EVP of Business and Legal Affairs for National Geographic Partners.
Courteney Monroe, currently CEO of National Geographic Channels U.S., will now serve as CEO of National Geographic Global Networks, overseeing all National Geographic channels, as well as National Geographic Studios, the in-house television production studio responsible for the network's Emmy-nominated series Brain Games and the Emmy-winning series Explorer, among many other projects. Monroe will work closely with Fox Networks Group Chairman and CEO Peter Rice to position National Geographic Channels as a global leader in premium science, adventure, and exploration programming.
21st Century Fox first announced the expanded partnership between the two entities in September, after 18 years of jointly operating the National Geographic Channels. The company now owns 73% of National Geographic Partners, and the Society, which remains an independent nonprofit, owns the balance. The new company will have a shared governance structure, and both entities will have equal representation on the board of directors. The deal, valued at $725 million, pushes the Society's endowment to more than $1 billion, enabling the organization to nearly double its investment in an array of science, research, and education programs.
Plans include the creation of the National Geographic Grosvenor Center for Education, dedicated to improving the geographic skills of high school students, and the establishment of Centers of Excellence in Cartography, Journalism and Photography, which will develop and fund innovations in exploration, mapping and story-telling.
"This expanded partnership, bringing together all of the media and consumer activities under the National Geographic umbrella, one of the most treasured names in the world, creates vast opportunities and enables this business to be even more successful in a digital environment," said James Murdoch, CEO of 21st Century Fox. "We believe in the Society's mission of bringing the world to audiences through science, education, and exploration... We're very excited and honored to work with the Society's extraordinary explorers, scientists, and visual storytellers to propel their incredible work to audiences around the globe."
