Sean Atkins Named New MTV President

Sean Atkins

(Reuters) -- MTV, the music and reality-TV focused television network owned by Viacom Inc, on Wednesday named veteran media executive Sean Atkins as its president.

Atkins, who will replace Stephen Friedman, joins MTV from Discovery Communications Inc, where he was an executive at its digital media and strategy unit.

He also has executive experience at HBO and Yahoo Inc, MTV said.

Viacom has been plagued by declining ratings for its youth-centric TV channels such as MTV, VH1 and Nickelodeon, and advertising revenue has now fallen in its U.S. cable business for four straight quarters.

Viacom's core demographic, younger viewers are increasingly shifting to digital platforms such as tablets and smartphones for their entertainment fix.

Atkins will report to Doug Herzog, president of Viacom Music and Entertainment Group.