CH Media creates jacket editorial office for regional stations and launches PilatusToday portal

Florian Wanner and Pascal Scherrer (from left).

The TV Regional and Radio divisions are reorganizing as of November 1, 2019, within the TV, Radio and Film Distribution division headed by Roger Elsener. According to a statement on Thursday, the goals are to strengthen regional reporting and create an organization that is optimally equipped to meet the challenges of digitization. In addition, synergies are to be achieved, thereby ensuring future viability. As part of the organizational adjustments, there will be three layoffs. At the same time, more than ten new full-time positions will be created for the development of the digital, convergent reach portal "Pilatus Today". As of November 1, the TV Regional division is reorganized under Pascal Scherrer, Head of TV Regional. At the same time, all CH Media radio stations will be consolidated under Florian Wanner, Head of Radio. 

TV Regional invests in innovation 

By creating a joint mantle editorial team across all regional TV stations, the individual stations will be strengthened and synergies will be achieved at the same time. The core business and the concession mandate of the licensed TV stations will be positively influenced by the concentration of the regional editorial teams on regional information services. Under the leadership of Pascal Scherrer, TV Regional's organization now comprises the Entertainment, Digital, Business Development, Engineering & Technology and Chief Editorial & Operations departments: 

• Markus Gilli manages the journalistic business together with Oliver Steffen as Co-Editor-in-Chief. Editorial sovereignty remains with licensed regional TV stations and their editors-in-chief.
• The entertainment division is headed by Nicole Himmelreich and includes entertainment formats as well as branded content, and is set to become a key driver of innovation for all regional TV stations. 
• The cross-media Digital division is headed by Christian Ortner.  
• The Engineering and Technology division is headed on an interim basis by Peter Canale. 
• The Business Development unit, headed by Pascal Scherrer, is responsible for building up media-related business areas such as media training and acquiring third-party contracts.

The licensed TV stations remain editorially independent and with the respective holdings of AZ Medien and NZZ. CH Media provides technical, production, marketing and management services for the licensed regional TV stations.

Radio division reorganized on a supraregional basis

The seven radio stations Radio Argovia, Radio 24, Radio Pilatus, Radio FM1, Radio Melody and Virgin Radio Switzerland Hits and Rock will be merged and Florian Wanner will be responsible for them from November 1. This means that the radio sector, like the TV sector, will be organized on a supra-regional basis. According to the statement, the merger will allow synergies to be realized and know-how to be exchanged across stations. Nicola Bomio will be responsible for the Programming organizational unit, Christian Ortner for the cross-media Digital unit and Andy Russ for Technology. 

The regional stations will each receive a local program director to further strengthen regionality:

• Oliver Wagner for Radio Argovia in Aarau
• Sacha Gamper for Radio FM1 in St. Gallen
• Roman Unternährer for Radio Pilatus in Lucerne
• Giulia Cresta for Radio 24 in Zurich

The Program Strategy and Development (headed by Sacha Gamper) and Music & Research (headed by Roman Unternährer) departments will be responsible for the entire station portfolio. Birgit Orgler will be in charge of "central news" for the stations Radio Argovia and Radio 24. 

PilatusToday reach portal is launched

The Digital division, headed by Christian Ortner, is shaping the development of convergent digital platforms. One such platform is "PilatusToday," which CH Media will launch in mid-2020, rolling out the successful concept of "FM1Today" to the Central Switzerland region. To this end, more than ten full-time positions will be created in the coming months.

The new, central production site "Leonardo" in Zurich Oerlikon will offer the entire TV, Radio & Film Distribution division optimal conditions for a convergent future from the time it moves in during the first half of 2021.