ABC creates chief financial officer role, appoints Peter Seymour

ABC has tapped Peter Seymour to serve in a newly created role as chief financial officer for the Disney/ABC Television Group.

The new position centralizes financial responsibilities for the various television channels managed by Anne Sweeney, president of the Disney/ABC Television Group, to whom Seymour will report. That includes the ABC television network, ABC Studios, ABC-owned television station group, ABC Family, Disney Channel, Disney XD, Radio Disney and Hyperion Publishing.

Disney, in a news release, said that Seymour would continue to oversee strategy development for the Walt Disney Company’s worldwide broadcasting and cable businesses and supervise its research, customer relationships and media planning. He has served as executive vice president of strategy and research for Disney Media Networks since 2008.

“The consolidation of these important functions into one role allows us to streamline decision making and align our strategic goals to better serve the evolving needs of our group,” Sweeney said in a statement.

The company described Seymour as a key player in the initiative to move ABC News to a digital format, efforts that led to ABC News’ relationship with Yahoo and ABC News’ plans for a 24-hour cable network joint venture with Univision Communications.

Prior to joining Disney Media Networks, Seymour spent nine years in Disney’s strategic planning unit, overseeing corporate development and working with the broadcasting, Internet, video games and technology units.

He serves on the board of the AETN partnership, which manages the A&E;, History, Bio and Lifetime networks. Seymour has a bachelor’s degree in economics and Asian languages and a master of business administration degree from Stanford University.

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