December 12, 2007

Gaining Insight

Name: Michael Willner
Title: Vice Chairman/CEO of Insight
Age: 55

Why Him? Ah, if only the credit markets had been different. If the markets were better, chances are Insight would be part of Time Warner Cable now or some other company. Instead, Willner and his team, including his well-respected president/COO Dinni Jain, are pushing ahead with a smaller company—around 640,000 subscribers after Comcast takes over about half of Insight's subscribers following its decision to sever the Insight Midwest joint venture. Given Insight's strong financials and subscriber gains, we're guessing Insight will be back on the block—and perhaps even more expensive—once the credit markets stabilize. Despite the smaller size, Willner remains focused on results and continues to take on duties outside his CEO title. He's stepping into the big shoes of longtime Cable Center chairman Bill Bresnan, who is ending his chairmanship after more than a decade. And he's a frequent visitor to Capitol Hill, testifying yet again in October about cable's preparedness for the digital TV transition. You can count on him to have a hand in just about everything in the industry.  AM


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