[Techtaffy Newsdesk]
Microsoft has hired Nancy Tellem, former president of CBS Network Television Entertainment Group, as Entertainment & Digital Media president.
In her role reporting to Phil Spencer, corporate vice president, Microsoft Studios, Ms. Tellem, among other things, will oversee the launch of a newly created production studio in Los Angeles that will develop interactive and linear content for Xbox and other devices.
Phil Spencer (Corporate vice president, Microsoft Studios): Whether you are voting for your favorite contestant on a TV show or playing a game, entertainment is becoming more personalized and social, driven by the Internet and new tools to interact with content.
Ms. Tellem has been a CBS executive since 1997, most recently as senior adviser to CEO Leslie Moonves, where she explored business and strategic opportunities — domestic and international — involving content partnerships, new production models, emerging media and technologies. As president of the CBS Network Television Entertainment Group, Ms. Tellem supervised programming, development, production, business affairs and operations. She oversaw the network’s prime-time, daytime, late-night and Saturday morning lineups, and was part of the team that launched Friends and ER.