Apple Hires Former Time Warner Cable Executive Peter Stern

Apple Inc. has hired former Time Warner Cable executive Peter Stern as a vice president working on cloud services, which includes the technology company's subscription offerings such as Apple Music and a potential streaming television service.

An Apple spokesman confirmed the hire.

Mr. Stern will report to Eddy Cue, Apple's senior vice president of internet software and services, a person familiar with the matter said. Mr. Cue oversees Apple's growing services segment, which includes businesses like the iTunes Store, Apple Pay and Apple Music. He has also led Apple's yearslong, on-and-off negotiations with media companies for a proposed television streaming service, though those efforts haven't yet borne fruit.

Mr. Stern, who is 44 years old, left Time Warner Cable earlier this year after it was bought by rival cable company Charter Communications Inc. He served in senior strategy and corporate development roles at the cable company as it maneuvered through multiple takeover attempts over the past few years.

Most recently, as chief product, people and strategy officer, Mr. Stern helped implement a strategy focused on customer service that helped Time Warner Cable grow its cable TV subscribers last year after nearly a decade of losses.

A well-respected cable industry veteran, Mr. Stern was a key Time Warner Cable executive involved in talks with Apple a few years ago about a potential deal to offer a joint television service over an Apple set-top box, people familiar with the matter said.

At cable industry conferences, Mr. Stern was often vocal about how cable companies should move away from leasing customers proprietary set-top boxes and should be more open to offering their TV services as apps on many different devices. Despite that, Apple's talks with Time Warner Cable stalled over a number of other issues, including content rights, and the two sides never reached a deal.

Hiring Mr. Stern could aid Apple's efforts in television. Mr. Stern has deep knowledge of the cable industry's economics and has relationships with major media companies.

It's unclear, however, whether his appointment means Apple will refocus efforts on launching a streaming television service. Mr. Stern's role will cover cloud services generally, including other areas like iTunes, iCloud and Apple Music.

Before joining Time Warner Cable in 2004, Mr. Stern worked in strategy at the cable operator's former parent Time Warner Inc. Prior to that, he was a consultant with McKinsey & Co. Mr. Stern, who plays piano, holds a J.D. from Yale Law School and majored in English and music at Harvard University.

Write to Shalini Ramachandran at [e-mail]

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

September 14, 2016 17:35 ET (21:35 GMT)

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