Programmatic

NZME appoints GM at The Alternative Commentary Collective

New Zealand Media and Entertainment has appointed Mike Lane to General Manager – The Alternative Commentary Collective (ACC), with a mandate to cement The ACC as New Zealand’s leading sports entertainment brand.

Renowned for its irreverent, unique and widely popular take on all things sport, the vast array of content is continually expanding and now requires dedicated leadership.

NZME Head of Content Mike McClung says: “Mike Lane has been a part of the ACC since its inception just over five years ago. He’s been the brains behind a whole host of ACC initiatives and from his role as the Content Director for Radio Hauraki has grown the association between Hauraki and the ACC.”

The ACC has launched a swathe of new sports podcasts on iHeartRadio like Mad Monday with Dai Henwood, Ben Hurley and Chris Key, The Agenda panel show with the likes of Matt Heath and James McOnie, The BYC Cricket Podcast with Jason Hoyte, Paul Ford and Dylan Cleaver, The Noob Squad gaming podcast and have recently added the Between Two Beers long form interview podcast to the stable.

Lane says: “Being a digital first product there is pretty much no limit in what we can do and how far we can go when covering sport in NZ, whether it’s commentary, podcasting or live events we plan to be at the forefront of sports entertainment and fundamentally that’s what sport is – entertainment.”

The ACC also has an ambitious programme to accelerate the growth of its live commentary and events portfolio.

Lane continues: “The Mad Monday’s Dai, Ben and Chris plan to cover the NRL Grand Final on SKY and iHeartRadio after successfully commentating the State of Origin earlier in the season and we’ll be all over the Blacks Caps summer of cricket including the much-anticipated tour of Australia.”

NZME’s Chief Revenue Officer Paul Hancox says the ACC’s ambitious growth plans would deliver a raft of exciting new opportunities for NZME’s commercial partners.

“The ACC’s innovative approach to sports coverage and commentary has really captured the imagination of sports fans right around New Zealand. Mike is a commercial and content genius who’s constantly identifying opportunities to connect customers with our growing audiences. Mike also knows how to get the most out of what is already an unbeatable line-up of Kiwi sports broadcasters and commentators.”

Lane’s appointment is effective immediately.

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