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Makarand Palekar joins TheOneAlliance as Senior VP, sales and affiliate relations
Prior to joining TheOneAlliance, Palekar was with ESPN-STAR Sports as sales head
Makarand Palekar has joined TheOneAlliance (MSM Discovery), the distribution company of Multi Screen Media (MSM) and Discovery Communications as senior vice-president, sales and affiliate relations.
Earlier, he was with ESPN-STAR Sports as sales head. Palekar has 13 years of industry experience, having joined ESPN-STAR Sports as a part of the start-up team.
He further adds, "Working with TheOneAlliance implies that I am getting into a new genre altogether. Now I will deal in the GEC (general entertainment channel) genre. At ESPN-STAR Sports, I was only handling three channels but now I will handle 21 channels as a part of a bouquet."
Palekar will be a key member of the senior management team and will be responsible for the organisation's revenue from analog and DTH platforms. He will also handle other processes and functions such as digitisation and channel placements.
Based in Mumbai, he will report to Rajesh Kaul, president, MSM Discovery. In fact, his association with Kaul, who has been a part of ESPN-STAR Sports in the past, was also one of the reasons which encouraged Palekar to join TheOneAlliance.
Welcoming Palekar on board, Kaul says that Palekar brings with him a rich experience of distribution and is a man behind many success stories in the past. He has excellent team management skills and the right combination of experience and expertise to guide the team to achieve greater heights.