At Press Time: SES Americom Drops CEO, Keeps Strategy

The unexpected departure of innovative and aggressive SES Americom President and CEO Dean Olmstead from the company, announced late last week, should not slow the company’s drive to pursue its strategy of tapping emerging-market opportunities. Those initiatives include providing high-definition (HD) television services through two dedicated in-orbit HD satellites launched under his tenure and rolling out the company’s direct-to-consumer service called Americom2Home.

The official comment is that Olmstead left the company to pursue “other interests,” and that Chairman Romain Bausch will run SES Americom temporarily together with Andreas Georghiou, senior vice president of business operations; David Helfgott, president and CEO of Americom Government Services; and Robert Kisilywicz, CFO and senior vice president of finance. A search for Olmstead’s successor is ongoing, and both internal and external candidates will be considered.

Olmstead made strides in partnering with EchoStar Communications [DISH] regarding video and potential joint broadband activities. He also spearheaded the purchase of Verestar, a teleport service, to broaden SES Americom’s scope.