John Honeycutt has stepped down from his role as Discovery CTO to join the Google Cloud division as the new head of telecommunications, media and entertainment verticals. 

John Honeycutt

John Honeycutt

Honeycutt had been at Discovery Networks International for more than 15 years and led the technology unit for the past four and a half years, where he was responsible for the cable programmer’s consolidated IT, media technology, production and operations teams that comprised around 1,500 employees globally.

He previously held various senior-level positions at the company, including chief operating officer of Discovery. 

The newly created position at Google will see Honeycutt use his previous experience at 21st Century Fox and Liberty Media in Google Cloud’s global strategy to focus on the migration of traditional video distribution workflows from film studios, content creators and distributors to the cloud. 

According to Variety, Honeycutt will work closely with telcos, cable and satellite TV providers and will focus on driving cloud adoption by gaming and esports companies.

Honeycutt confirmed the transition on Twitter where he said: ”Super excited to start my next chapter with the amazing team at Google Cloud.” 

Honeycutt, who is a member of the IBC Council, will report directly to Google Cloud president of global alliances and industry platforms Tariq Shaukat. 

In a statement, Honeycutt said: “I have an amazing opportunity at an amazing company.

”I plan to leverage my expertise as a business operator to prioritise workflow and supply chain optimisation, leverage our leading AI and machine-learning technologies to help media companies navigate the next wave of industry-wide change, and amplify our team’s previous efforts to ensure overall customer and partner satisfaction.”