Top television executive Toni Skaife has been appointed Chief Partnerships and Negotiation Officer in the latest key signing for the ABC’s Content division.
The General Manager Content Production and Business Affairs and General Manager Melbourne working across Network 10 and Paramount+, Skaife joins a host of impressive executives including Mike Fitzpatrick (Triple M), Ben Latimer (Nova), Susie Jones (Netflix), Rachel Okine (Stan) in the division headed up by former Netflix executive and ABC Chief Content Officer, Chris Oliver-Taylor.
For the past seven years, Skaife has headed up commercial negotiations, partnerships, and internal productions at Paramount ANZ across its Australian scripted and non-scripted content slate. Prior to that, she led a team of Ten’s content production and business affairs executives.
Skaife says she is committed to sustaining and growing a diverse and strong Australian production industry. “It’s an honour to be joining the ABC and to be offered this brilliant opportunity to work with Chris Oliver-Taylor and the Content team in this newly-created role,” she said.
“I have an immense respect for our national broadcaster and the sheer quality and volume of content that is delivered on a daily basis. As an advocate of homegrown talent, stories and content I couldn’t be more excited to commence the next chapter of my career in this way – with a clear strategic objective to expand content partnerships that aim to serve all Australians and to be a part of the very talented Content team at the ABC.”
As the Content division’s Chief Partnerships & Negotiation Officer, some of her key priorities will be driving international partnerships to support new content initiatives, developing rights strategies and leading commercial content deal negotiation locally and abroad.
ABC Chief Content Officer Oliver-Taylor said: “Being able to bring Toni to the ABC and utilise her deep Australian and international experience for the benefit of Australian audiences is a real coup. The ABC will always evolve to suit our audience needs and the complexity of the ABC’s vast content output across screen, audio and digital needs significant leadership. Joining the ABC’s Content Leadership Team, Toni is the perfect person to help our continued transformation to a digital first organisation for the benefit of all Australians.”
Skaife starts in her new role in May.
About Toni Skaife
Toni is a senior executive with almost 30 years of experience in the industry. Most recently she has headed up commercial negotiations, partnerships, and internal productions at Paramount ANZ across its Australian scripted and non-scripted content slate.
Prior to this, she was the Head of Production and Business Affairs, also at Network 10, all of which started with a short three-year stint in Sport production managing the likes of the Melbourne Cup Carnival, The Bathurst 1000 and in 2000 for NBC as the Broadcast Manager for the Sydney Olympic Games, having taken a brief sabbatical from 10.
Toni is a proud Charles Sturt University Theatre Media graduate. She furthered her studies (in Media Technology and Law) at Macquarie University. She attended executive education programs at Melbourne Business School, Columbia Business School University and the AIDC.
