What you need to know:

• Suzie Cardwell is leaving News Corp after five years with the company.
• Paul Blackburn becomes commercial data, video and product director.
• There will be a handover until Cardwell leaves on December 2.

News Corp’s Suzie Cardwell will depart the company after five years for a new, undisclosed role, with Paul Blackburn appointed as director of commercial data, video and product.

Blackburn’s new role will have two key responsibilities – overseeing the commercial video strategy for News Corp Australia and leading the commercial data and digital advertising product strategy. He will work with the client product leadership team to develop new products to drive different and incremental revenues.

Pippa Leary, News Corp’s Client Product MD, said Blackburn had driven compelling results for the company for 10 years.

“His knowledge of this business, particularly our digital business is impressive,” she said.  

She also paid tribute to Cardwell for her critical role in the company’s successful digital transition.  

“Suzie has played a prominent role in our transformation from a successful publishing company to one of Australia’s leading providers of audience data and insights. In particular Suzie’s strong vision in creating News Connect as an end-to-end audience data platform that collects upwards of two billion first-party data signals every month has turned News Corp Australia into a data powerhouse.”

She added that Cardwell had shown the market how News could collect use audience data to measure brand uplift, interaction rates, online purchase and in-store footfall.

Blackburn’s new position begins immediately and he will work closely with Cardwell during a handover period until she departs on December 2.