AVIA names new board chair, appoints two new board directors

The Asia Video Industry Association (AVIA) has announced the appointment of Phil Hardman as the new board chairman and Emily Yri and Shonali Bedi as the new board directors.

Hardman serves as the senior vice president and general manager of BBC Studios Asia. He will take over from Clément Schwebig, president of Western Europe and Africa at Warner Bros. Discovery, who will be stepping down from the role.

Meanwhile, Yri and Bedi will join AVIA as its two new board directors. Yri is the vice president of international marketing at Pubmatic, and Bedi is currently the head of strategy for partnerships and insights in APAC at Warner Bros. Discovery.

With the two new additions to the board, AVIA now has four female board directors, or one-third of the board.

Louis Boswell, CEO of AVIA, commented, “The board of AVIA and I would like to extend our sincere gratitude to Clément Schwebig, who chaired the board for the last three years, taking over in the middle of a pandemic and helping steer the association to safety through those difficult times. He was a strong and vocal advocate for the industry.”

“The board and I are now looking forward to working with the new chairman, Phil Hardman, to help guide AVIA through what are clearly challenging times. Phil also has energy and passion for the industry, and I am sure he will make a significant contribution to developing the next chapter in the AVIA story,” he added.

Speaking on his appointment, Hardman added, “AVIA stands at the intersection of the diverse challenges and opportunities in the media industry across Asia, bringing much-needed insight, thought leadership, and regulatory and anti-piracy initiatives that benefit its members. BBC Studios has been a long-term Patron Member of the association, and I am honoured to become chairman of AVIA at such an exciting and innovativetime. I look forward to working closely with our board members and the AVIA leadership to help AVIA guide the industry through a time of such transformational change.” Marketech Apac