Board of Directors

The Asia Video Industry Association (AVIA) is led by a Board of Directors, responsible for the management of the association.

Currently, the Board of Directors are:

Chairman

Phil Hardman
Senior Vice President & General Manager, Asia, BBC Studios

Phil is SVP and General Manager of Asia for BBC Studios based in Singapore. He is responsible for developing and delivering the Asia growth strategy across the global distribution businesses in South East Asia, India & South Asia, Japan and South Korea. As GM for Asia, Phil leads the commercial teams across the region across all distribution lines of business including channels and streaming, regional and global content distribution and licensing & consumer products.

Prior to this appointment as GM, Phil held multiple roles in BBC Studios Asia including SVP, Commercial Strategy Asia, a six month period as the Acting GM for Greater China and from 2016-2018 Phil was VP Finance, Asia leading the finance function across the region. He first moved to Asia as Financial Controller in 2014.

Board Members

Roger Tong
Chief Executive Officer, Asia Satellite Telecommunications Company Limited (AsiaSat)

Roger Tong has over 30 yearsʼ experience working in the communications sector. His key focus as CEO of AsiaSat has been to expand the company’s infrastructure-driven business model into a fully integrated customer-centric one that can leverage on existing resources and capabilities, expand service offerings through partnerships, and encourage entrepreneurship and innovation in selected business verticals.

Under his guidance, AsiaSat has rolled out the One Click Go Live (OCGL) live streaming services for high-end markets, SAILAS maritime services and expanded into a new orbital slot to service the mobility market. The company has obtained several patents from the U.S., Canada and China related to satellite system designs and applications.

Roger regularly represents AsiaSat at various industry bodies including the ITU, representing the voice of satellite operators in global policies and how they can be implemented on a regional basis.

Roger graduated from McMaster University with a B.Sc in Computer Engineering. He also holds an MBA from Wilfrid Laurier University and a DBA from The University of Newcastle in Australia.
Agnes Rozario
Director, Content, Astro Malaysia Holdings Bhd

Agnes Rozario has been a core part of Astro’s growth and positioning as the top entertainment destination for Malaysians. She leads the company’s content team, which covers all vernaculars, regional and Hollywood content, sports and film businesses. Agnes was key in driving the success of Pay Per View and VOD services, which in 2018 had garneredover 50 million downloads and engagements. She also spearheads Asian originals via regional partnerships.
Greg Armshaw
Greg Armshaw, Senior Director of Strategy APAC, Brightcove

As Head of Media for Brightcove in Asia, Greg is focused on expanding the video streaming company’s footprint across the region. Greg has more than 20 years of experience in advertising, digital marketing, and his rich experience building consumer offerings in the technology, media & telecom sector.

Greg is a consultant, strategist and sales leader and has led Brightcove to achieve a dominant market position in the region with Free to Air TV, Pay TV and content owners. Prior to Brightcove, Greg held various senior management and mentor roles at Universal McCann, McCann WorldGroup, Chinaccelator, and as an OTT advisor to the Asia Video Industry Association (AVIA).
Maria Yolanda C. Crisanto
Chief Sustainability Officer, Senior Vice President/Head of Corporate Communications Group Globe Telecom Inc.

Yoly is the Chief Sustainability and Corporate Corporate Communications Officer of Globe, a leading full-service telecommunications company in the Philippines.

She earned her Master's in Business Administration degree from the Ateneo Graduate School of Business.

She has been recognized locally and internationally for her expertise in communications, sustainability practice, and corporate social responsibility.

Her citations include the 2018 Asia's Top Sustainability Superwomen, 101 Most Impactful CSR Leaders (A Global Listing) 2019, and the first Filipino to be recognized with a Communications for Future (C4F) Award in Geneva. She was recognized by PRWeek as among the 500 most influential people in the global PR industry from 2015 to 2017 and recently received the recognition Woman of Worth at the World Leadership Awards given by CMO Global.
Nick O’Donnell
Director of Public Policy, APAC, Netflix

Nick O’Donnell is Head of Public Policy for Netflix in the Asia Pacific. Prior to joining Netflix, Nick led LinkedIn's Public Policy team in APAC, India and Japan. Previously, Nick was legal counsel for Seven West Media and regional director of Policy in Asia at Yahoo. He has served as the chair and treasurer of the Asia Internet Coalition, leading joint-industry advocacy across the region and as a committee member of the Communications and Media Law Association.
Emily Yri
Vice President, International Marketing, Pubmatic

Emily is Vice President, International Marketing for PubMatic. In her current role, Emily is responsible for all marketing and communications across the EMEA and APAC regions – ensuring PubMatic has a strong industry voice and aligned marketing programmes across both markets. She oversees events, PR, content marketing and sales enablement – supporting the commercial teams in meeting their business goals. She specialises in distilling complex information and technical solutions into client friendly narratives.

Prior to PubMatic, Emily was Marketing and Communications Director, APAC at Unruly where she established and grew the APAC marketing team. Before that she worked across the global telco and banking industries – with roles at Telstra and Credit Suisse.
Joe Welch
Vice President, Global Public Policy, Asia Pacific, The Walt Disney Company

Joe Welch is Vice President of Global Public Policy for The Walt Disney Company.

Welch is responsible for the company’s government affairs activities in the Asia Pacific excluding Greater China and India and leads strategic public policy initiatives across business segments in the region.

Welch also sits on the Board of Directors of the International Institute of Communications and serves as Chairman of the Board of the Asia Video Industry Association (AVIA).

Previously, he served as MCI WorldCom’s Asia Director of Government Affairs and earlier was an attorney at the Federal Communications Commission in Washington, D.C.

Welch received his bachelor’s degree from Amherst College and his J.D. from Santa Clara University School of Law.
Ongard Prapakamol
Chief Media Officer, True Corporation PLC.

Ongard Prapakamol is the Chief Media Officer for True Corporation - having previously held the positions of Marketing Director and Chief Commercial Officer at UTV Cable and True Visions respectively, he has established himself as a 25 year veteran in the Thailand Media and PayTV industry.

Ongard oversees True Corporation’s content and media business, which encompasses True Visions - Thailand’s largest PayTV operator, Thai News Network (TNN), True4U – a top-rated Thai digital terrestrial TV channel and True GS - Thailand’s fastest growing Home Shopping Network.

With an ability to quickly develop a deep understanding of how each business unit operates and hence identify the mission-critical business processes, Ongard has developed a reputation as a leader with a track record for steering often flagging business units to healthy profitability. This is most clearly evidenced by his turn-around of the True GS Home Shopping Network, leading to rapid and record profitability. He most recently completed a complete turn-around at TNN, which has seen this news network emerge with a markedly enhanced reputation and a clear focus on economic and business news – utilizing a fully online and digital platform.
Alexandre Muller
Managing Director, Asia Pacific, TV5MONDE

After working in the USA, Czech Republic and Taiwan, Mr Muller joins TV5MONDE in 97. He successfully heads several positions within the group before taking over the Asia-Pacific Department in 2004.

Alexandre moved to Hong Kong in 2007 where he established TV5MONDE’s Asia Pacific Headquarter. With 25 years of experience in the Region, Mr Muller is responsible for all TV5MONDE’s activity in the region, including business development, marketing, advertising and new media research and development for the Company.

Alexandre is a member of the AVIA Board of Directors since 2012, and the Board Member responsible for the AVIA OTT Committee.
Desmond Chan
Deputy General Manager, TVBI

Desmond Chan is responsible for international operations, and legal and regulatory matters of Hong Kong’s leading television station. He is also General Manager of TVBI.
Shonali Bedi
Head of Strategy, Partnerships & Insights, APAC , Warner Bros. Discovery

Shonali Bedi is Head of Strategy, Partnerships & Insights – APAC for Warner Bros. Discovery. She leads commercial and growth strategy across lines of business for WBD in APAC, and is responsible for planning, long-term development and effective delivery of WBD’s strategic priorities in the region. As part of her remit, Shonali spearheads strategic commercial partnerships and business development opportunities around the region. In addition, she leads the team responsible for audience measurement and insights for WBD brands, franchises and networks across APAC.

Prior to this, Shonali has held many leadership positions regionally, including the Head of Affiliate Distribution and Digital Partnerships for WBD’s linear channels and digital services in Southeast Asia and Hong Kong, and leading Strategy and Business Development for India, Korea and Southeast Asia. She was also a driving force behind the growth and development of the regional streaming service HBO GO since its launch in 2013.

Her past professional experience includes stints in investment banking with Morgan Stanley (U.S). and founding an education technology startup in India.

Shonali holds a International Policy Studies master’s degree from Stanford University.