NBCU adds Roku alum in ad sales shake-up

Roughly three months after Mark Marshall took the helm at NBCU as chairman of global advertising and partnerships, its ads team has undergone an overhaul.

Alison Levin has joined the company as president of advertising and partnerships from Roku, where she spent nearly nine years and had recently been promoted to VP, global ad revenue and marketing solutions. Internally, former EVP of client partnerships Karen Kovacs has been promoted to the network’s president of client partnerships. Both will report directly to Marshall.

Levin will join the company in December.

“I joined Roku because I believed in the power of TV streaming,” she wrote in a LinkedIn post announcing the move. “I’m thrilled to join Mark Marshall and the incredible team at NBCU. As a forever fan of the best-in-class content, I've long admired the people, brands, and innovation that have built such a tremendous organization.”

As part of the changes, EVP of measurement and impact Kelly Abcarian, an industry veteran who had been spearheading efforts to develop new TV currencies, is departing NBCU, Marketing Brew confirmed. Abcarian, a former senior executive from Nielsen, had been a vocal advocate for independent measurement at the network. John Lee, NBCU’s chief data officer, will take over Abcarian’s measurement and research oversight duties, according to a source close to the company.

New year, new me? The changes are the latest in a series of major changes to NBCU ads leadership this year after longtime ad sales chief Linda Yaccarino abruptly departed the company in May to lead X as CEO. Marshall swiftly assumed her place leading ad sales through this year’s upfronts. Krishan Bhatia, NBCU’s president and chief business officer, global advertising and partnerships, announced in September that he would leave the organization by the end of the year.

Up next: The newly set ads team has several major projects ahead of it, including streamer Peacock, whose profitability is a continued priority for NBCU. The streamer, which recently cleared 28 million subscribers, counted an 80% year-over-year subscriber base increase, and has built out a robust email strategy to keep subscribers engaged. The company is also employing shoppable ads to further monetize the platform.

Also on deck are the upcoming Paris Olympics. Last month, NBCU’s president of Olympic and Paralympic partnerships, Dan Lovinger, said ad sales are “pacing ahead” of past games, with pharmaceutical and automotive brands generating particularly strong interest.