Buena Vista TV snaps up ex-BBC senior counsel

Disney-subsidiary Buena Vista International Television (BVITV) has appointed former BBC senior counsel Simon Taylor as its chief legal officer. Taylor will take up the role of vice president legal & business affairs for BVITV's Europe, Middle East and Africa region, heading a staff of 11 across London and Paris. The appointment fills the vacancy created by Keith Poritt, who left after 10 years to join Sparrowhawk Media in June 2005. Taylor will report to Disney's European general counsel Peter Wiley. He starts on May 15 from an entertainment sector business consultancy job. His previous posts include chief legal officer for a BBC subsidiary between 1994 and 2000.