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Discovery CFO Gunnar Wiedenfels Re-ups Through 2024

Discovery, Inc. has extended the employment contract of chief financial officer Gunnar Wiedenfels through April 1, 2024.

Wiedenfels came to Discovery in 2016 from ProSiebenSat.1 Media and saw the company through several major deals. In 2017, it acquired Scripps and became the dominant player in the in unscripted cable market. He’s helped guide Discovery’s ongoing international expansion and steered it through the pandemic. The company is currently working on a DTC offering to bring its brands under one streaming umbrella.

The financial executive in 2019 also started a policy unpopular with independent U.S. producers — and later rolled back — requiring them to front the costs of their series and only paying on delivery. The model is widely used in Europe, but producers there also retain ownership of their shows, which wasn’t the case at Discovery.

The reup comes with some new terms. Discovey said in an SEC filing that, effective January 1, 2021, Wiedenfels’ annual base salary will be increased to $1.7 million, and his annual cash incentive target will be increased to 150% of his base salary.

The annual equity target for Wiedenfels for the annual award to be made in the first quarter of 2021 will be $4 million.

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