Larry Namer is an entertainment and media entrepreneur who, along with Alan Mruvka, founded E! Entertainment Television, a company now valued at over $3.5 billion, and Movies USA Magazine.
Contents |
Namer attended Abraham Lincoln High School, graduating in 1966. He then attended Brooklyn College, graduating in 1971 with a degree in Economics.
After graduation, he immediately secured a position as an assistant cable splicer for what was then called Sterling Manhattan Cable. That company was acquired by Time Incorporated and was the flagship for what would eventually become Time Warner Cable. As part of the Time Inc Video Group, Manhattan Cable became the model of large urban cable and the proving ground that cable could do much more than simply provide good TV reception to rural America. The group was responsible for not only making Time Inc cable the largest cable company in the US at that time, but also for starting the pay TV business with the launch of Home Box Office(HBO), kicking off the wave of cable networks that developed after HBO started using satellites for national distribution to other cable systems.
After several years as a technician where he constantly progressed to higher levels, he became the Vice Chairman of the Cable TV division of the Electrical Workers Union. By age 25, he became the Director of Operations at Manhattan Cable in charge of all operations departments, including construction, installation, engineering, service, etc., and a year later was given sales and marketing. In 1979, he became Director of Corporate Development and was charged with building businesses derived from non-entertainment uses of the cable TV systems. Namer is widely credited for pioneering the use of cable TV for data communications and telephony.
In 1981, the urban cable scene exploded in the US and big cities began issuing cable TV franchises. Many insisted that the new cable systems be built underground. Thus, Namer found himself a very rare asset in that Manhattan Cable was the only major city system that had been built underground versus on telephone poles. At 31, he was recruited by Cable America to become VP/General Manager of Valley Cable TV in Los Angeles and build what was the first two way interactive cable system in the US. It was at Valley Cable where he broadened his skills and became very interested in the programming area and was very active in creating an award-winning program department that received national recognition. Valley Cable was the first cable system to receive Emmy nominations and in 1982 was named the national model for local cable programming by Forbes magazine. Valley Cable was the first cable system to offer pay per view and interactive local programs where politicians could address their constituencies, establish a two way dialog, and get immediate feedback. Cable America sold the system in 1984 and Namer chose to stay in Los Angeles and pursue an entrepreneurial career.
Next, he and friend Alan Mruvka created a plan for a TV network named Movietime, that would eventually become E! Entertainment Television. The original hosts on the channel Included Academy Award-nominated actor Greg Kinnear, Julie Moran (who went on to become the first women to host Wide World of Sports and then Entertainment Tonight) and Katie Wagner (went onto host Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous). Namer and Mruvka eventually sold their stake in the company, which is now owned by Comcast, and today valued at over $3.5 billion and available in over 120 countries.
In 1989, he was awarded the President's Award from the National Cable Television Association.
While remaining on the Board of E!, he started a media company in Russia. The company promoted or produced several hundred rock concerts (including David Bowie, Sheryl Crow, Three Tenors, etc) but was most recognized for bringing the soap opera Santa Barbara to Russia. Santa Barbara not only became the number one show in the country for a decade, but was a huge sociological vehicle that made a huge impact on Russian citizens.
Additionally, Namer has played a significant part in launching several other TV networks around the world and pioneering interactive television, serving as a primary consultant to Microsoft. In recent years, he has become recognized as an industry expert on new technology and how it fundamentally is changing the business of world media and entertainment.
After E!, Larry Namer created and launched several successful companies in the United States and overseas, including Steeplechase Media, Comspan Communications, Comspan Russia, and his most recent venture, Metan Development Group.
Namer’s latest venture, Metan Development Group (Metan) was created to develop and distribute entertainment content and media specifically for Mandarin speaking audiences in China and abroad. Namer’s partners on this venture are entertainment industry veteran Martin Pompadur and Amerilink founder Jean Zhang.
Metan created Hello! Hollywood!, a weekly entertainment news series tailored to Chinese audiences, offering up the latest in celebrity and lifestyle news, and covering the most glamorous red carpet events and award shows. Since its launch in summer 2009, the series is now available on over 40 television stations reaching more than 250 million households throughout China. Metan also launched the series' premier content on 10 of China’s top online portals in January 2010, adding 360 million Chinese netizens to its program reach.
In February, 2011 Metan teamed up with Tencent, owner of China's largest Internet service portal QQ.com, to create special entertainment news coverage direct from Hollywood surrounding The 83rd Annual Academy Awards, tailored specifically to Mandarin-speaking audiences. This first ever viewing event was watched by an audience of 3.2 million Mandarin-speaking viewers in China.
Metan also joined forces with global nonprofit WildAid to distribute a special series of celebrity PSAs designed to raise awareness to reduce the demand for threatened and endangered species products and to increase public support for wildlife conservation worldwide.
Currently, Metan is adapting several formats of popular Western TV shows for localized versions, as well as developing the original sitcom Return to Da Foo Tsun, daily health and wellness series Everyday Lohas (Life of Health and Sustainability) and feature film titled Moon Flower of the Flying Tigers.
In May 2011, Metan entered an exclusive partnership with Fusion TV to deliver action sports and adventure travel content to China.
In June 2011, Metan launched the new division Metan International Talent Management (MITM) that will represent projects and secure product endorsement deals with actors, writers and musicians in China and worldwide. MITM will also work with Western talent specifically in the Chinese market. International author and journalist Annie Wang is the first artist signed to MITM who will represent Ms. Wang’s interests and projects across all media globally.
In June 2011, Metan also entered a long-term strategic partnership Sino Thinker International Culture Communication Co. Ltd. (Sino Thinker) to produce live entertainment, cultural, fashion and sporting events in China. The LXD (The Legion of Extraordinary Dancers) by film producer John Chu marks the first joint project produced by Metan and Sino Thinker. The LXD debuted in China on June 24 at Master Center, Beijing, as part of the Mini Live 2011 New Products Launch.
Global TV Veteran Larry Namer to Receive “Aaron Spelling Award” at 4th Annual Investment Seminar & Global Independence in Beverly Hills
Los Angeles, DATE -- E! Co-founder and President/CEO Metan Development Group Larry Namer will be honored on September 10, 2011 at the 4th Annual Investment Seminar & Global Independence Day.
The fourth annual event will host dignitaries and business leaders from more than 196 countries, including the Honorable Antonio Villaraigosa, Mayor, City of Los Angeles.
Part of the event is a Global Awards Ceremony honoring 20 individuals for their outstanding contributions to international business, philanthropy and entertainment. Larry Namer will receive the “Aaron Spelling Award” for his pioneering work in the areas of television, domestically and globally.
“I’m delighted to be honored with such a prestigious award that bears the name of the most influential producer and creative mind in television history,” said Namer.
An accomplished entrepreneur with over 40 years professional experience, Mr. Namer is the co-founder of E! Entertainment Television, a company now valued at over $3.5 billion USD, and the creator of several successful companies in the United States and overseas.
Among those companies are Comspan Communications that pioneered Western forms of entertainment in the former Soviet Union, including the syndication of the popular soap opera Santa Barbara, which ran for 10 years in the region, and Steeplechase Media that served as the primary consultant to Microsoft’s MiTV for developing interactive TV applications. In recent years, Mr. Namer has become recognized as one of the world’s leading experts on new technology and how it is fundamentally altering the business of international media and entertainment. Among the companies that have enlisted his expertise are Microsoft, Paul Allen’s Digeo, World Digital Media Group (a joint venture of Radio Shack), EchoStar and Sirius Radio network.
Mr. Namer’s latest venture, Metan Development Group (Metan) was created to develop and distribute entertainment content and media specifically for Chinese speaking audiences in China and abroad. Namer’s partners on this venture are entertainment industry veteran Martin Pompadur and Amerilink founder Jean Zhang.
Metan’s most notable projects include Hello! Hollywood!, a weekly entertainment news series tailored to Chinese audiences, offering up the latest in celebrity and lifestyle news, and covering the most glamorous red carpet events and award shows. Since its launch in summer 2009, the series is now available on over 40 television stations reaching more than 250 million households throughout China. Metan also launched the series’ premier content on 10 of China’s top online portals in 2010, adding 360 million Chinese netizens to its program reach.
Additionally, he serves as Senior Advisor, Strategic Development to Eurocinema On Demand, the only 24/7 on demand foreign film channel now available in 36 million homes via cable and satellite in North America.
About Metan Development Group - Launched in 2009, Metan Development Group LLC (Metan) is a venture created to develop and distribute entertainment content and media specifically for international markets. The company's founders are entertainment industry veteran Martin Pompadur, E! Entertainment Television co-founder Larry Namer and Amerilink founder Jean Zhang. www.metanmedia.com