NAVEEN CHOPRA JOINS VIACOMCBS AS EXECUTIVE VP, CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER

ViacomCBS Inc. announced that Naveen Chopra has been appointed as Executive Vice President, Chief Financial Officer. Starting 10th August 2020. He now oversees Christina Spade, who will soon take on an advisory role after the Company’s second-quarter earnings call. “Naveen is a talented leader who combines financial, strategic, and operational expertise with hands-on experience growing innovative, consumer-focused businesses across the media and tech sector,” said Bakish. “His experience scaling and driving the financial strategies for growth businesses including free ad-supported and subscription streaming, as well as with digital devices and services will be instrumental as we continue to unlock the value of our assets.”

In his new role, Chopra will be head of the company's financial operations, including treasury, tax, accounting, investor relations, information security, and real estate, along with global corporate development and strategy. Chopra will report to Bob Bakish, President and CEO of ViacomCBS. “I am grateful to Chris for her many contributions to ViacomCBS, including her two decades at Showtime and CBS and the pivotal role she played in the integration of CBS and Viacom," Bakish said. "I want to extend my deepest thanks to her for her leadership and counsel, and for helping to ensure a smooth transition.”

He has more than 20 years of experience in media and technology under his belt, including nearly eight years as the Chief Financial Officer of consumer-facing businesses. Chopra served as Chief Financial Officer of Amazon’s Devices and Services business before joining ViacomCBS. As the Chief Financial Officer of Amazon’s Devices and Services business, he oversaw financial operations for some of Amazon’s fastest-growing and most strategic consumer businesses, including Alexa, Echo, Fire TV, Ring, Kindle, and the Amazon Appstore. “I am thrilled to join ViacomCBS at this exciting time,” said Chopra. I look forward to working closely with Bob and the team to apply my experiences across consumer products and services, streaming, and digital advertising to help write the next chapter of this amazing company.”

Chopra worked as Chief Financial Officer of Pandora for two years and helped launch its Pandora Premium subscription service, which grew subscription revenue by more than 60% and generated growth for its core advertising businesses. He also contributed to the licensing and business development efforts at Pandora, where he negotiated numerous complex agreements that helped accelerate growth and enable valuable features.

Before that, he served in several senior positions at TiVo, including four years as Chief Financial Officer and a period as Interim Chief Executive Officer. At TiVo, he led core strategic initiatives and restructuring efforts that culminated in the company’s sale in 2016 to Rovi Corporation. Chopra also spent six years on the board of directors at Vonage Holdings and is a member of the board of KQED San Francisco. Earlier in his career, Chopra held business development roles at both large enterprises like Microsoft and Hewlett-Packard and early-stage venture-backed companies including WebTV, Ofoto, and Rearden Steel. He obtained a bachelor’s degree in Computer Science and a Master of Business Administration degree from Stanford University.