German media giant Bertelsmann appointed a new CEO last week, and Hartmut Ostrowski is keen to show he’s up to the task in the digital age. He will start in early 2008, and analysts and insiders expect him to restart company’s Internet strategy. Its companies Random House books, Gruner + Jahr magazines, and BMG music have all suffered with media going digital, and people expect Ostrowski to attack the online world more forcefully. Ostrowski won’t make acquisitions on the scale of MySpace, preferring smaller assets with substance and solid cash flow, says this BW story on him. But Ostrowski will look for reasonably priced acquisitions in areas such as broadband access or mobile TV.
In his current job running Arvato, Ostrowski is no stranger to the digital world. For example, Arvato provides the platform that EMI Music uses to sell tunes online In a joint venture with Warner Bros. Home Entertainment, Arvato also operates a video and movie download service called In2Movies.
Reuters: Ostrowski told an internal management meeting: “We are and will be able to master all the challenges of the digital age, Internet, mobile or whatever it will be in the future.”
Related: Warner-Backed German Movie Download Service Launches