Tom Kuehle Joins Ascent Media Group as Senior Vice President, Digital Services

SANTA MONICA, Calif., May 8 /PRNewswire/ -- Ascent Media Group (AMG) has appointed Tom Kuehle as Senior Vice President, Digital Services. Formerly Vice President, Digital Content Services at Hewlett-Packard Company (HP), Kuehle is a leader in the digital transformation of the media and entertainment industries. He will now head product and business development for AMG's Digital Services Group, and spearhead corporate marketing and strategic development activities.

Kuehle's appointment builds on his longstanding working relationship with AMG and his deep knowledge of its products, services, technologies, and markets. Four years ago, while with HP, he was instrumental in building a highly successful and productive partnership between the two companies. The resulting strategic alliance, designed to deliver digital media services for major Hollywood studios and leading broadband portals, has enabled customers, including Sony Pictures Entertainment and Paramount Pictures, to meet growing consumer demand for entertainment content on broadband, mobile, and other digital outlets and devices. To date, the AMG and HP offering has processed more than 90,000 assets, delivered file-based titles to more than 50 broadcast, broadband, and mobile distributors worldwide, and archived more than 9,000 titles for its customers.

In his new position Kuehle will help AMG capitalize on new and existing market opportunities for its full spectrum of digital services. These services include the Viia suite of file-based media services as well as a combined service platform delivered jointly with HP.

"We're thrilled to bring Tom on board," said AMG's CEO, Jose Royo. "Working from the HP side, he has already played a vital role in the success of our digital media transformation. There are few executives in the industry who can match his combination of deep technological understanding, market insight, and leadership abilities. We look forward to leveraging his talents to the fullest as we expand and evolve our digital media services business."

While at HP, Kuehle played a central role in the development of the company's digital strategy, including leading the creation of their Digital Media Platform (DMP) business. As head of the DMP group for the past four years, he built and led a team of more than 75 and won the support of nearly every major Hollywood studio for the platform, which allows media companies to digitize, store, process, manage, distribute, and archive complex media assets securely and efficiently.

"My work with Ascent Media and the Hollywood studios has put me on the front lines of the digital transformation revolution, one of the most important and exciting parts of today's media and entertainment business," said Kuehle. "I'm thrilled to join Jose as a member of the Ascent team, and I'm looking forward to building on the success we've already achieved while moving aggressively to capitalize on the full range of new and existing market opportunities before us."

A graduate of Harvard University, Kuehle's career has included management consulting, technology development and sales, venture capital, and business incubation. He lives with his family in Southern California.

About Ascent Media Group

Santa Monica, California-based Ascent Media Group is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Discovery Holding Company NASDAQ: DISCA NASDAQ: DISCB, which, through its Creative Services and Network Services divisions, provides creative and technical media services to the media and entertainment industries. Through more than 75 facilities in California, New York, London, Singapore and other locations throughout the world, Ascent Media Group provides effective solutions for the creation, management and distribution of content to major motion picture studios, independent producers, broadcast networks, cable channels, advertising agencies and other companies that produce, own and/or distribute entertainment, news, sports, corporate, educational, industrial and advertising content. More information about Ascent Media Group is available at http://www.ascentmedia.com.