FaegreBD Consulting hires ex-Rep. Mary Bono Mack, R-Calif., as senior vice president for government advocacy and consulting on entertainment, media and information technology … CableLabs hires, as vice presidents, from Hewlett-Packard: Christian Pape for innovation; and earlier this year Wayne Surdam for communications … Macheen mobile cloud app service provider for connected devices adds Tom Meredith, Meritage Capital, to board … Tribune Co. hires Matt Cherniss, ex-Warner Bros., as president/general manager, WGN America and newly formed Tribune Studios; and names Julio Marenghi, who had headed WGN America, as president-broadcast media sales … Univision Communications promotes in Network Sales division: Lisa Nolan to senior vice president; and she’s replaced by Claudia Granados as vice president in unit … Tennis Channel hires Virginia Hunt, formerly of Los Angeles stations KCBS-TV and KCAL-TV, as executive director-programming.

Univision Communications hires John Kelly, ex-NBCUniversal, as executive vice president-digital sales … Frontier Communications hires Luke Szymczak, ex-J.P. Morgan, as vice president-investor relations … International Datacasting hires Chris Barrett, ex-Stratford Managers, as vice president-research & development …Lobbyist registrations: Entertainment Software Association, Polaris Government Relations, effective Feb. 1 … Native American Telecom, SNR Denton, effective Feb 15.

Office of U.S. Trade Representative promotes Demetrios Marantis to acting USTR, replacing USTR Ron Kirk, whose last day was Thursday … Wiley Rein hires Richard Beaird, ex-State Department’s Office of International Communications and Information Policy, as senior international policy adviser, international telecom practice … Porter Novelli hired Brian Frederick, ex-Sports Fan Coalition executive director, in January as vice president-public affairs, and he’s now on the coalition’s board … BSA-The Software Alliance President and CEO Robert Holleyman stepping down to be senior adviser to group’s Chairman Pascal Di Fronzo, effective end of April … Changes in office of EU Digital Agenda Commissioner Neelie Kroes: Head Of Cabinet Anthony Whelan moves to DG CONNECT as adviser to Director General Robert Madelin and with “special responsibilities” to Deputy Director General Roberto Viola, succeeded by Constantijn Van Oranje-Nassau, being promoted, effective April 2, when cabinet member Thibaut Kleiner will also start acting as Kroes’ senior adviser; Oranje-Nassau being replaced by Pearse O'Donohue, now DG Connect head of unit, effective April 15 … Covington & Burling hired earlier this month, to work in global public policy and government affairs practice: Ex-Sen. Jon Kyl, R-Ariz.; and ex-Rep. Howard Berman, D-Calif. … Lobbyist registration: Digital 4th data-privacy rights group, Jochum Shore, effective Jan. 28.

NAB hires Shawn Donilon, ex-office of New Hampshire Republican Rep. Charles Bass, as director-government relations, effective March 18 … Steptoe hires Markham Erickson, ex-Holch & Erickson, as partner, Telecom, Internet & Media practice … Kamilla Kovacs, ex-aide to Pennsylvania Democratic Rep. Mike Doyle, hired by Build college-preparation program as development manager … WideOrbit cable ad management software company hires Ashley Barretto, ex-Invision, as general manager-WO Network … Journal Communications hires Alvin Pritchard, ex-NBCUniversal, as vice president-finance, Journal Broadcast Group, effective April 1 … Society of Satellite Professionals International board moves: Michael Aloisi, Viacom, to chairman; and Dianne VanBeber, Intelsat, president; and as new members Tom De Baere, Newtec; Christine Ehrenbard, CBS; David Myers, Harris CapRock; Elias Zaccack, SES; and Bill Weller, Space Systems/Loral … Harry Fox Agency rights management firm hires Matthew Beekman, ex-Ticket Fusion, as chief technology officer … Oceus Networks 4G LTE broadband networking firm promotes Randy Fuerst to president; and adds Jeff Harman, ex-CACI International, as senior vice president and general manager, Oceus’s Department of Defense Solutions Business Group.

Andy Rubin stepping down as head of Google’s Android team, will remain with company in unannounced position, to be replaced by Sundar Pichai … AMC Networks names Jim Maiella, ex-Cablevision Systems, senior vice president-corporate communications … Back9Network names Carlos Silva, ex-Universal Sports Network, president … Signalhorn names Christoph Limmer, ex-SES, vice president-marketing & strategy … Carolyn Micheli, ex-CincyTech, joins E.W. Scripps Co. as vice president-corporate communications and investor relations, effective March … mun2 promotes Jenny McNicholas to vice president-production & operations … Discovery Communications picks William Jawando, ex-Department of Education, as director-corporate and government affairs … Roger Chandler of Intel joins the board of Application Developers Alliance … Lobbyist registrations: LexisNexis, Powers Global Strategies, effective March 11 … Overstock.com, Thompson Coburn, effective Feb 21.

Among other recent (CD March 12 p16) promotions at Intelsat: Michelle Bryan to executive vice president, general counsel and chief administrative officer, effective March 18, succeeding General Counsel Phillip Spector, who joins the board effective April 1; and Thierry Guillemin to EVP and chief technical officer … Viacom’s Nickelodeon promotes Joel Fisher to vice president-music and talent operations …Public Knowledge hires as campaign manager Sean Meloy, ex-campaign of Democrat Kristin Cabral, unsuccessful challenger to Rep. Frank Wolf, R-Va. … Cablevision promotes Gregg Seibert to vice chairman, and he remains chief financial officer … Goodman Networks wireless telecom firm hires Scott Willis, ex-Ericsson, as executive vice president-sales and business development … LIN Media hires Craig Ellish, ex-Specific Media/MySpace, as vice president-sales and publisher development, LIN Mobile.

Intelsat promotions include: CEO Dave McGlade adds title of chairman, effective April 1; and Stephen Spengler to president and chief commercial officer, effective March 18 … Nexstar Broadcasting hires Dione Rigsby, ex-Newport Television, as vice president-technology … Windstream board member Jeffrey Hinson named chairman, succeeding Dennis Foster, who remains a director, effective May 1 … Gray Television hires Michael Spiesman, ex-Katz’s Continental Television Sales, as vice president and director-national sales … Cox Media Group promotes Greg Bilte to general manager of Tulsa TV stations.

Pandora looking for successor to Chairman, CEO and President Joseph Kennedy, who will stay in those jobs until replacement found … Dish Network promotes Dave Shull to executive vice president and chief commercial officer; and Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer Bernie Han adds responsibilities for sales and distribution … Promotions at HSN’s HSNi: Bill Brand to chief marketing and business development officer; Andy Sheldon to chief creative officer and HSN Productions general manager … Crown Media Family Networks promotes Laura Lee and Holly Mauer to vice presidents-distribution … Broadview Networks hires Mario DeRiggi, ex-Paetec Communications, as executive vice president … Lobbyist registrations: T-Mobile, Podesta Group, effective Jan. 17 … Data Transparency Coalition, Hudson Hollister, effective Jan. 28.

Media company Q4 results: Suddenlink sales rose 7.1 percent to $524.6 million from the year-ago period as the cable operator added broadband, phone and digital video customers and raised video rates. The company lost 19,100 basic video subscribers during the quarter, with 1.21 million total on Dec. 31. “Bundling and promotional discounts and digital customers purchasing fewer digital tiers of service during the trailing twelve months” also hurt results, privately held Suddenlink said in a news release Thursday (http://bit.ly/VLDLxN). “Revenues for our commercial business grew due to increases in the number of commercial high-speed data and telephone customers and from increases in cell tower and backhaul revenues from carrier customers.” Income from operations fell 29 percent to $57.4 million. ... Nexstar sales rose 35 percent to $116.2 million from the year-earlier period as political ad revenue surged by well over 1,000 percent to $27.3 million during the runup to November’s elections. The political ad sales were “record-breaking,” said Chairman Perry Sook, in a Thursday news release (http://bit.ly/15AmXvB). It said retransmission fee revenue rose 56 percent to $16.1 million. “The big retrans year will be 2014,” analyst Marci Ryvicker of Wells Fargo wrote investors following the company’s earnings call. “Management expects the JSA situation to remain ’status quo,'” she wrote of a draft FCC order, now on hold, that would attribute TV joint services agreements to the station brokering more than 15 percent of another in-market station’s ads (CD Feb 27 p1). Nexstar Q4 income from operations doubled to $35.4 million from the year-ago quarter. The stock closed up 4.5 percent at $16.91 on Thursday ... Journal Communications Q4 sales rose 31 percent to $124.5 million from Q4 2011. Chairman Steven Smith cited “record political spending,” in a news release Thursday (http://bit.ly/W8BR9x). TV revenue rose 76 percent to $55.8 million. Retrans revenue rose by a quarter to $3 million. This quarter excluding political sales, broadcast revenue will rise by a percentage in the mid-single digits from the year-ago period, the company forecast. Last quarter’s operating earnings rose 92 percent to $27.2 million. Journal Communications shares closed up 9 percent at $6.27 on Thursday.

Law firm SNR Denton hires Megan Delany, ex-General Communication Inc., as principal, telecom and technology practice … Level 3’s James Crowe to step down as CEO by year’s end … European cable operator Ziggo hires René Obermann, who plans to leave Deutsche Telekom Dec. 31, as CEO, effective Jan. 1, replacing Bernard Dijkhuizen, who had previously said he was retiring … Discovery Communications hires Leslie Grandy, formerly at T-Mobile, as Digital Media division senior vice president-product & development … ActiveVideo Networks hires Murali Nemani, ex-Cisco, as senior vice president-chief marketing officer … Latino Information Network at Rutgers hires Jason Llorenz, ex-Hispanic Technology and Telecommunications Partnership, as senior fellow and director-innovation policy … Paul Martin promoted to president, Snell North America, and remains global managing director, TV Everywhere division … Tech Valley Communications hires Patrick Coughlin, ex-FiberTower, as senior vice president-sales and marketing.