MUMBAI: CNN-IBN, the TV18 Broadcast owned English news channel, has appointed Vishal Bhatnagar as National Revenue Head, with immediate effect. He was earlier SVP & Regional Head-North & East, CNBC-TV18 and CNBC Awaaz.

The move is a part of the leadership re-alignment now underway at Network18 News Media, the client facing ad sales unit, which manages the advertising interests of the news and factual entertainment channels at Network18 Group.

As is known, Network18 News Media spearheads the group‘s effort towards consolidating and optimising revenue growth across its six news & factual entertainment channels (CNBC-TV18, CNBC Awaaz, CNN-IBN, IBN7, IBN-Lokmat and History TV18) spanning the full spectrum of general news, business news, regional news and factual entertainment.

Ad sales for the ETV regional news network, subject to regulatory approvals for the acquisition, will also form part of this stable. While acting as a centralised sales agency, Network18 News Media also reflects the group‘s focus on individual brands via dedicated teams and revenue leaders aligned to each channel.

Commenting on the larger re-alignment, Network18 News Media CEO Sanjay Duasaid, "We believe that our brands are well-placed to build further on their leadership, both in terms of innovative client solutions as well as a strong network proposition. Each of our leaders has a proven track record and strong leadership acumen and we‘re confident that this alignment is the beginning of a new phase of growth for us."

Bhatnagar brings with him over 18 years of rich experience in sales across media and has been with the Network18 Group since 2004. He holds degrees in management and commerce from the International Management Institute (IMI) and the University of Delhi.