-By Staff Report

Introducing the MW-50, a list recognizing media innovators, across all disciplines, who drive revenue, establish standards, create new models and generate buzz.

Taking the top spot, Rino Scanzoni, chief investment officer of GroupM, has moved the marketplace, striking the first TV upfront deal with NBC Universal that caused the industry to reexamine its use of program ratings, and move towards using commercial ratings as standard currency.

Rounding out the top five are Tim Armstrong, President, Advertising and Commerce, North America and VP, Google; Mike Shaw, President, Sales and Marketing, ABC; Mike Darnell, President, Alternative Programming, Fox; and Jeff Gaspin, President/CEO, NBCU TV Group. Vogue editrix Anna Wintour landed at No. 7.

Representative of the industry’s continued evolution to drive digital platforms, tied at No. 18, Comcast’s Charlie Thurston and Time Warner Cable’s Joan Gillman are changing the cable operator landscape by leading the charge toward individual targeted ads directly to digital set-top boxes. Time Inc.’s John Squires (No. 24) has kept busy evolving the publishing giant’s print brands, adding social networking and mobile content.

The list was based on extensive research and interviews with industry experts. Mediaweek editors tracked momentum by evaluating a variety of criteria:

Executives’ oversight of properties and/or departments;

The traction execs boasted in areas such as advertising revenue, program ratings, audience growth and media accounts;

The worth of media buyers’ accounts and big deals, in terms of mergers and acquisitions, partnerships and sponsorships;

Digital stats, which include the creation of new or advanced digital products, and the integration of traditional and new media;

The overall impact execs had on their industry, in terms of setting new industry standards or best practices.


Click here for the entire report as well as the video interview with No. 1 pick GroupM's Rino Scanzoni