Six days ago, United States Traffic Network (USTN) continued to swiftly move far away from financial difficulties that crippled the entity’s ability to pay such partners as Entercom the millions of dollars it owed by giving the radio company an equity stake in the broadcast traffic company.
This followed the March 14 announcement from USTN that it had completed a management-led buyout of the company.
Now, USTN has named a veteran network radio executive with leadership roles at Westwood One and Shadow Broadcast Services/Metro Networks as its new COO.
Taking the role is Richard Marks, most recently COO at Focus 360, a national radio network and digital sales company.
Marks has been in the role since 2013, when he shuttered a consultancy he launched in 2008 that advised such entities as the Connecticut School of Broadcasting and Bay Broadcasting of Panama City Beach, Fla.
He exited Metro/Shadow in 2000 as an SVP.
Now, Marks will work directly with USTN Chairman/CEO Ivan Shulman “in rebuilding the brand and creating action plans that deliver rapid growth, as well as improve overall performance and increase revenue.”
Shulman said, “Richard’s deep industry knowledge and experience in the broadcast media and traffic sector makes him the ideal strategic addition to the team.”
Marks added, “I look forward to leveraging my expertise working with a wide range of broadcast media companies to help USTN and will work to make smart, strategic moves for the company to ensure a steady foundation that will allow for scalable growth well into the future. Ivan and his team are reinventing the way we think about the traffic business, and I am pleased to be a part of the next chapter.”
