Imagine Communications names new CEO

TV technology outfit Imagine Communications has named Tom Cotney as CEO of the company, effective immediately.

Tom Cotney

Cotney replaces Charlie Vogt, who is joining the company’s owner, The Gores Group, as a senior advisor to continue to drive M&A and business development activities at Imagine. The two executives will work closely to continue the momentum and growth at Imagine Communications while also ensuring a smooth leadership transition, according to the company.

Cotney has served as general manager of the communications sector at IBM Global Services and has been a CEO and board member for a number of privately held companies. Cotney will also join the board of directors of Imagine.

“Over the past four years, Imagine has transformed the media industry by becoming the first company to deliver on its vision of an all IP/cloud network for playout and master control. I want to acknowledge and personally thank Charlie for his leadership in driving this massive transformation and placing Imagine’s technology at the forefront of the industry. Sharing our vision of where the industry is heading, Tom is uniquely qualified to build on this momentum and I welcome him in his new role,” said Alec Gores, founder, chairman and CEO of The Gores Group.

“I am excited about the opportunity to lead Imagine to the next level. Business models in transformation have become the norm in almost every company today. I can’t thank Charlie and the team enough for building Imagine into one of the market leading, long-term players in this industry,” said Cotney.

“Imagine Communications could not be better positioned than we are today to take market-share across the ad management, playout, networking and distribution markets, particularly as we continue to guide the industry transition to IP and the cloud We are pacing to have our best quarter of the year, and Friday we signed a strategic Advertising Management System contract to accelerate the emerging ATSC 3.0 multi-services market. I look forward to supporting Tom Cotney is his new role in an advisory capacity at The Gores Group and believe he will be able to fuel Imagine’s continued expansion and innovation,” said Vogt.