DreamWorks’ Katzenberg captures MIPCOM Personality award

DreamWorks Animation CEO Jeffrey Katzenberg will be crowned international television’s Personality of the Year for 2013 at MIPCOM in October.

The animation veteran, who co-founded DWA’s former parent company DreamWorks with Stephen Spielberg and David Geffen in 1994, will be in Cannes to accept the award on October 9 at a gala dinner at the Carlton Hotel.

Earlier the same day, he will address delegates at in Grand Auditorium of the Palais des Festival and share his perspective on the television business as part of the event’s Media Mastermind presentations.

DWA has emerged as a major force in international children’s TV in the past year, firstly with the US$155 million acquisition of Classic Media, a deal for YouTube channel operator AwesomenessTV and then through a series of deals with the likes of Netflix and Super RTL.

Reed MIDEM CEO Paul Zilk said: “The acquisitions of Classic Media and AwesomenessTV, the recent groundbreaking deals with companies including Netflix and Super RTL, and DreamWork Animation’s continuing expansion into the television world, all demonstrate [Katzenberg’s] clear vision of the future of entertainment.”