SBCA’S CHUCK HEWITT AND ANDY PAUL RESIGN; SBCA GENERAL COUNSEL ANDY WRIGHT NAMED ACTING PRESIDENT

 

NASHVILLE, TN, August 2, 2001 – The Satellite Broadcasting and Communications Association (SBCA) today announced that SBCA President Chuck Hewitt, and Senior Vice President of Government Affairs, Andy Paul, have announced that they are retiring from the Association.  SBCA General Counsel Andy Wright was named acting president, and is a leading candidate for the position.  Mr. Hewitt founded the SBCA in 1986, and Mr. Paul has been with the SBCA since 1990.  Both Hewitt and Paul will remain with the SBCA to assist Mr. Wright during the transition through October 31, 2001.

“Over the course of Chuck Hewitt’s presidency, we’ve seen our business grow from its infancy to more than 17 million satellite television households -- representing over 44 million American viewers,” said SBCA Acting-president Andy Wright.  “In working with Chuck over the past three years I’ve come to particularly admire his ability to bring people and companies with differing viewpoints and varying agendas together for the good of satellite consumers and the good of the industry.  Over the last 11 years, Andy Paul has been an effective and prominent voice for the satellite industry in Washington.  During his tenure with the SBCA, Andy’s hard work and effective representation has earned him respect on Capitol Hill and in three administrations.  They will both be sorely missed.”

The SBCA Board of Directors has appointed a search committee to identify Mr. Hewitt’s permanent replacement.  The search committee consists of the officers of the SBCA Board of Directors, which includes: SBCA Chairman Stan Kozlowski, NRTC; Jeff Torkelson, DIRECTV; John Ovrutsky, HBO; Tola Murphy-Baran, NFL; and Rik Hawkins, Starpath Communications.  In addition, Mr. Hewitt and a representative from EchoStar will serve on the search committee.

The Satellite Broadcasting and Communications Association of America (SBCA) is the national trade organization representing all segments of the satellite industry.  It is committed to expanding the utilization of satellite technology for the broadcast delivery of video, data, voice, interactive and broadband services.  The SBCA is composed of DBS, broadband, and other satellite service providers, programmers, equipment manufacturers, distributors, retailers, encryption vendors, and national and regional distribution companies.