Cablevision Establishes Office of Strategic Product Development

Cablevision Establishes Office of Strategic Product Development

New Unit Will Focus On Long-Range Products And Service Enhancements To Extend Cablevision's Excellence In Product Development, Navigation And Delivering New Technologies To Customers

BETHPAGE, N.Y., Dec. 10 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Cablevision Systems Corp. (NYSE:CVC) today announced the formation of an Office of Strategic Product Development, a new group that will focus on long-range products and enhancements to Cablevision's current suite of award-winning video, voice and high-speed Internet services. The unit -- staffed by established industry leaders with extensive experience and proven records of success -- will work to extend the company's history of excellence and ability to deliver the most technologically advanced products to its growing base of residential and business customers.

The new group will be co-managed by Wilt Hildenbrand and Kristin Dolan. Hildenbrand is a more than 30-year Cablevision veteran who currently serves as the company's senior advisor of engineering and technology, and was formerly Cablevision's executive vice president of engineering and technology. Widely recognized as one of the cable industry's preeminent engineers and technical minds, Hildenbrand capped a long string of industry accolades and achievements with the 2005 NCTA Vanguard Award for Science & Technology.

Dolan, a nearly 20-year Cablevision veteran, was instrumental in the formation, launch and continued development of Cablevision's iO TV(R) digital cable service, which was first offered in late 2001 and has been adopted by more than 90 percent of the company's cable television customers, the highest rate of digital penetration in the country. At inception, Cablevision's iO TV product included advanced features like video on demand (VOD) and interactive television applications for every customer, product attributes that are now ubiquitous across the industry, and recognized as key competitive advantages over cable's competitors. Cablevision's iO TV service has won four Emmy Awards for advances in interactive television and navigation.

After pioneering work on the iO TV user interface and major advances in on-screen navigation, Dolan went on to become the company's senior vice president of digital product management, responsible for the company's full suite of digital services offered to customers over its state-of-the-art fiber optic network. Dolan has gone on to strategic consulting roles at Madison Square Garden and related businesses.

Joining Hildenbrand and Dolan in this new effort are technology and Cablevision veterans Patrick Donoghue and Jonathan Greenfield.

Donoghue will serve as senior vice president of strategic product development, having recently returned to Cablevision from Time Warner Cable, where he was vice president of ITV product management. From 2001 to 2006 he was vice president of digital TV & broadband development for Cablevision, where he played a leadership role in the development of the iO TV digital cable product, with a specific emphasis on interactive television, navigation and the user experience.

Greenfield will serve as senior vice president of strategic product advancement. Greenfield had been serving as vice president of the Customer Service Operations Center since 2006, where he significantly improved the recognition, response and resolution of issues impacting customers. From 2000 to 2006, he was vice president of technology development, with responsibilities including the evaluation, planning and development of customer-facing technologies. Prior to joining Cablevision, Greenfield conducted research in distributed computing at Los Alamos National Laboratory, and led large teams through full-lifecycle software development at IBM.

"We look forward to working together to explore and develop new opportunities for Cablevision's products and further extend our technological superiority in the marketplace," Hildenbrand and Dolan said. "We will be focusing on navigation across all of our services and technological opportunities in new areas, including digital, data, voice, WiFi, on demand, commerce, mobile video, security and other home utilities."

The new Office will coordinate with Cablevision's existing Corporate Engineering and Technology department and the operating businesses and product groups across the company.

About Cablevision

Cablevision Systems Corporation (NYSE:CVC) is one of the nation's leading media and entertainment companies. Its cable television operations serve more than 3 million households in the New York metropolitan area. The company's advanced telecommunications offerings include its iO TV(R) digital television, Optimum Online(R) high-speed Internet, Optimum Voice(R) digital voice-over-cable, and its Optimum Lightpath integrated business communications services. Cablevision operates several successful programming businesses, including AMC, IFC, Sundance Channel and WE tv, through Rainbow Media Holdings LLC, and serves the New York area as publisher of Newsday and other niche publications through Newsday Media Group. In addition to these businesses, Cablevision owns Madison Square Garden and its sports teams, the New York Knicks, Rangers and Liberty. The company also operates New York's famed Radio City Music Hall, the Beacon Theatre, and the Chicago Theatre, and owns and operates Clearview Cinemas.

Source: Cablevision Systems Corp.

CONTACT: Jim Maiella, +1-516-803-3947, for Cablevision Systems Corp.

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