NTIA, FirstNet Authority Announce Leadership Changes

Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross has reappointed Edward Horowitz to the FirstNet Board and named him Chair of the Board for a two-year term. There are six seats to fill on the FirstNet Board. To ensure continuity and a quorum for the Board, three members whose terms expired last month – Neil E. Cox, Kevin McGinnis and Annise D. Parker – have agreed to extend their terms. Additional announcements on the Board’s open seats will be forthcoming. The Board’s next quarterly meeting is in December.

Horowitz is the founder and chairman of Edslink, LLC, a venture capital firm providing financial, advisory, and technology consulting services. He has served as Co-CEO of Encompass Digital Media, a provider of worldwide television channel origination, live sports and news distribution, digital media, and government services. Prior to Encompass, he was President and CEO of SES AMERICOM, a satellite operator serving the entertainment and broadcast media industries, business enterprises, and the U.S. government. Horowitz founded and served as Chairman of e-Citi, which is a unit of Citigroup, and was Senior Vice President, Viacom, Chairman and CEO of Viacom Broadcast and Interactive Media groups, and a member of the Viacom Executive Committee. Horowitz served as Chairman of the Board of Fairpoint Communications through its merger with Consolidated Communications in July 2017. He currently serves on the boards of PT Link Net, Globecomm Systems, Inc., OmniSpace LLC, and the non-profit American Management Association (AMA). Mr. Horowitz holds a B.S. in Physics from CCNY and a Masters of Business from Columbia University.

FirstNet Authority CEO Mike Poth has accepted a position in the private sector and will assist with transition efforts before leaving his position at the end of September. The Board will select a new CEO in coordination with the Department of Commerce, and in the interim, the Department and the Board will work together to appoint an Acting CEO.