Jordan Usdan will step down as FCC acting director of public-private initiatives this month; Rebecca Hanson of the Media Bureau will become acting director of public-private initiatives … Joe Waz returns to Comcast as senior strategic advisor-public policy and external affairs … Fletcher Heald hires Cheng-Yi Liu, ex-Thomas Crowe’s law firm, as associate attorney … Harmonic Senior Vice President-Worldwide Sales Mark Carrington stepping down.
Diane Strahan, ex-Neustar, named MPAA chief operating officer … Lobbyist registrations: Schurz Communications, Fritz Group, effective Dec. 17.
EchoStar Corp. names Derek de Bastos, ex-Sirius XM, chief technology officer … Dish Network hires Martin Lenoir, ex-New York Life, as direct marketing vice president.
Wiley Rein promotions to partner: Claire Evans in Communications, Appellate and Intellectual Property Practices, and Brian Pandya in Intellectual Property and Litigation Practices;
Bill Baer, ex-Arnold & Porter, confirmed as assistant attorney general for the Antitrust Division at the Justice Department … Peter Murphy resigns from Fisher Communications board to join board of Tribune Co. as it emerges from bankruptcy, to ensure continued compliance with FCC’s media ownership rules; Incoming Tribune board members: Bruce Karsh, Ken Liang, Peter Murphy, Ross Levinsohn, Craig Jacobson, Peter Liguori, and Eddy Hartenstein; Outgoing board members: Sam Zell, William Osborn, Betsy Holden, William Pate, Mark Shapiro, Margaret Wilderotter, Frank Wood, Brian Greenspun.
Dan Brenner, ex-Hogan Lovells, appointed by California Gov. Jerry Brown as Los Angeles County Superior Court judge, expected to be sworn in this week … MagicJack VocalTec names Gerald Vento president and CEO, succeeding CEO Daniel Borislow and President Andrew MacInnes; and board member Donald Burns replaces Vento as chairman, effective Jan. 1.
Elected to CTIA board for one-year term starting Jan. 1: Mary Dillon, U.S. Cellular, chairman; Dan Mead, Verizon Wireless, vice chairman; Angel Ruiz, Ericsson, secretary; Bret Comolli, Asurion, treasurer; and Pat Riordan, Cellcom, chairman emeritus; and to executive committee Ron Smith, Bluegrass Cellular, for small carriers; F.J. Pollak, Tracfone Wireless, for midsized carriers; Dan Inbar, SanDisk, for other suppliers; and for them also John Sims, Sybase 365; and Jeff Gordon, Syniverse Technologies …Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lisa Jackson to leave after President Barack Obama’s State of the Union address … Glue Networks software-defined network automation company hires as vice presidents: Jonathan Groves, ex-INX, for sales; Gregg Wyant, ex-Intel, for engineering …Lobbyist registrations: Apple, Glover Park Group, effective Nov. 5.
Former Disney executive Preston Padden steps down as University of Colorado adjunct law professor and Silicon Flatirons senior fellow to focus on work as executive director of Expanding Opportunities for Broadcasters Coalition.
Carla Peterman, ex-California Energy Commission, joins California Public Utilities Commission as commissioner following appointment by Gov. Jerry Brown, who like Peterman is a Democrat … Intelsat hires Grant Marais, ex-Nokia, as regional vice president-Africa sales, effective Jan. 3 … TiVo promotes Naveen Chopra to chief financial officer, succeeding Anna Brunelle, resigned to pursue other opportunities; Dan “Charles” Phillips to chief operating officer; and Jeff Klugman to executive vice president-products and revenue … NBCUniversal hires Atish Banerjea, ex-Dex One, as executive vice president-chief information officer.
Frontier Communications hires John Jureller, ex-General Atlantic, effective Jan. 7, and on Feb. 27, he'll succeed Don Shassian, executive vice president and chief financial officer, who’s resigning and will leave company April 1 … AMC Networks hires Kari-Michele Hauge, ex-AETN International, as vice president-digital sales and marketing … HSN adds Ann Sarnoff, BBC Worldwide Americas, to board.