David Zaslav releases encouraging first quarter results for Discovery Communications

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Zaslav, President and Chief Executive Officer of Discovery,   announced income for the TV giant  that was up by 22% to $1.4 billion from the same period in 2013.

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David Zaslav, President and Chief Executive Officer of informational TV giant Discovery Communications, whose current inventory of  television networks numbers more than 200,  including Animal Planet, the Discovery Channel and  TLC,  formerly known as  The Learning Channel, announced a very healthy first quarter set of figures for the group.

Discovery Communications  produced income in the first quarter amounting to  just over $1.4 billion, an increase of $255 million, over the first quarter a year ago, driven by a 51% increase in growth at  the group’s International Networks as well as 3% growth in their U.S.-based networks U.S. Networks.

Announcing the figures David Zaslav went on to emphasise that Discovery remains well positioned to “capitalize on the growing demand for pay-TV programming worldwide “ , with  a marked rise in demand anticipating to generate total sales for the group of $6.6 billion, bringing with it  a net income of $1.25 billion. In the likely event that Zaslav’s  projections proved to be accurate, discovery will show respective gains of 20% and 16% from the previous financial year.

Even in the short term, the tremendous results that Zalsav returned for Discovery Communications  in the first quarter of 2014 more than justifies the support that the board of the Liberty Media Corporation and Liberty Global, Inc., owners of the media giant displayed in January when they provided David  Zaslav with a new contract agreement that will see him manage the company until the end of 2019.

Under the terms of the agreement Zaslav will enjoy a  base salary was set at a fixed $3 million a year for the six-year duration of the agreement,  which will be strongly bolstered by  annual bonus targets. David seems certain to earn his bonus of $6.6 million for 2014,  and on current form, the $600, 000 increases that he will be paid every year until 2018, which is due to round off at $9 million in 2019 also look like something of a foregone conclusion.

Commenting on the first-quarter results, Dr. John Malone, Chairman of Liberty Media Corporation and Liberty Global, Inc supported the company’s decision  by stating that David has done a superb job,  building a strong management team that has expanded the company’s reach and relevance, increased its market share domestically and around the world, and created a bigger, stronger portfolio of brands.  “ We look forward to working with David to do more of the same over the next six years, ” Dr, Malone went on to add.

Since joining Discovery as CEO in January 2007, Zaslav and his management team have overseen a broad global expansion at the company by doubling the total number of Discovery networks around the world from 100 to nearly 200, growing global cumulative subscribers over 50% to 2.2 billion, and completing the company’s largest acquisition of SBS Nordics in 2013. Discovery’s channels are now distributed in more than 220 countries around  the world, making the media group the global leader in  international pay-TV programming. .

On the news of the excellent quarterly results stock in Discovery Communications shot up by 8% in pre-market trading.

David M. Zaslav graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree from Binghamton University, later earning a Jurus Doctor  law degree from the Boston University School of Law.

Zaslav began his professional career as an attorney with the legal practice of LeBoeuf, Lamb, Lieby and MacRae in New York.

David began his career in the entertainment business when he joined NBC 1989, where first caught the attention of the industry by driving dramatic developments within the company,  before leaving to join Discovery Communications Inc in 2007.