New York / London – A+E Networks announced on August 5 the appointment of industry veteran Joel Denton as Managing Director, International Content Sales & Partnerships. The announcement was made by Sean Cohan, Executive Vice President, International for A+E Networks, to whom he will report.

Joel Denton

Based in London, Denton will manage A+E Networks’ content distribution and format licensing activities outside the U.S. Working with the company’s Regional Managing Directors in London and Singapore, he will oversee a sales staff based in New York, Los Angeles, London and Singapore. Denton is charged with developing and implementing sales strategies for A+E Networks’ 11,000+ hour library which features content from leading U.S. cable channels, A&E, HISTORY, Lifetime, H2, FYI and LMN. The A+E Networks catalogue comprises acclaimed factual and scripted content across a range of genres. Hit series from A+E Networks include Pawn Stars, The World Wars, Dance Moms, Duck Dynasty and a library of Lifetime Original Movies.

Denton will lead international scripted revenue, execution and partnerships. He will help facilitate international co-productions, pre-sales, and distribution for scripted series, mini-series and movies from A+E Networks. Among the scripted projects in development are the Lifetime series, Un-Real, from Executive Producer Marti Noxon, starring Shiri Appleby; the Lifetime Original Movie Whitney, marking the directorial debut of Angela Bassett; and the HISTORY mini-series, Sons of Liberty.

“Joel is a highly experienced international media executive and we are very pleased to welcome him to A+E Networks,” said Cohan. “His distribution background will further strengthen our talented international team, while his expertise in scripted financing will be an important asset to the international growth of our burgeoning premium drama business.”

Denton has been serving as a consultant to A+E Networks, advising on international programme strategy and distribution. He has also held consultancy roles for several media companies, including BskyB and Fremantle Media Entertainment. Previously, Denton served as Managing Director for Red Arrow Entertainment Ltd., a subsidiary of ProSiebenSat1.de, which he founded with James Baker. At Red Arrow, he acquired majority shareholdings in Mob Television, CPL, Endor and NERD, and established Red Arrow Entertainment Ltd and Red Arrow Factual.

Denton also served as President, International Sales & Production for Hallmark Entertainment, providing strategic direction for the company’s sales efforts. In addition to forging output deals with a number of major European broadcasters, he also drove business development for the pay-TV channel, Hallmark Network.

Prior to Hallmark Entertainment, Denton held sales positions with International Television Enterprises, Central Television Enterprises, and Granada TV.