Anders Jensen, the CEO of leading Nordic streaming service, has stepped down from his position and is being replaced by Jorgen Madsen Lindemann with immediate effect as the company anticipates an economic downturn.
Madsen Lindemann is the former CEO of MTG, which is the previous parent company of Viaplay Group and also listed on Nasdaq Stockholm.
Viaplay released a statement to announce the company’s new leadership and said its short-term outlook for 2023 were down, along with its long term operational and financial guidance. During his tenure, Jensen spearheaded the streamer’s global roll-out, including in the U.S., and ramped up the output of scripted and unscripted originals.
Viaplay expects to close the second quarter with 7.7 million subscribers, with sales between $414 million and $395 million; and a negative EBIT between $23 million and $27 million.Advertising revenues are expected to be down between 12% and 16% on an organic basis during the second quarter, due to the sharp and rapid deterioration in the TV and radio advertising markets.
“The rising cost of living is resulting in lower D2C streaming and wholesale linear subscription sales, as well as higher churn levels following price increases,” said Viaplay.
“The outlook for the markets in which we are operating has shifted considerably and at a very rapid pace, and the execution of cost savings programmes has not been mitigating the effects from these conditions to a sufficient extent,” said Pernille Erenbjerg, chair of the board.
“The impact of the macroeconomic headwinds on the business require that we execute differently on our strategy. With more than 30 years of experience in the entertainment industry and leading Nordic and International businesses, we are confident that Jorgen has the right profile to lead this work,” Erenbjerg continued.
The executive also warned that the company will “evaluate the need for structural, operational, and capital allocation enhancements to the delivery of the strategy.“
Prior to becoming CEO of MTG, Madsen Lindemann held various senior leadership positions at MTG over 26 years, including head of the Nordic operations and international operations, and head of sports rights acquisition and production.
