Thomas E. Dooley Promoted to Chief Operating Officer of Viacom

NEW YORK, May 27 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Thomas E. Dooley, 53, has been promoted to the newly-created position of Chief Operating Officer of Viacom Inc. (NYSE: VIA and VIA.B), it was announced today by Philippe Dauman, President and Chief Executive Officer of the Company.  Mr. Dooley, formerly Senior Executive Vice President, Chief Financial Officer and Chief Administrative Officer, will continue to report to Mr. Dauman and to serve as a member of the Viacom Board of Directors.  Mr. Dooley was named CAO of Viacom in September 2006 and CFO of the Company in January 2007.  In his new role, Mr. Dooley agreed to extend the term of his employment by five years through December 2016. His previous agreement was set to expire in December 2011.

Mr. Dooley will oversee the Company's financial, legal, strategic planning, human resources, investor relations and communications activities.  He will continue to work closely with Mr. Dauman on setting Viacom's strategic and operational direction and to work with the operational teams in the Company's media networks and motion picture divisions.  The Company's divisional CEOs will continue to report to Mr. Dauman.  Mr. Dooley will serve as Viacom's Chief Financial Officer until a successor is named.

Mr. Dauman said, "Tom is an extraordinary executive with financial and operational experience that extends more than 30 years, the great majority of which he has spent here at Viacom.  Tom has also been my partner and friend for well over two decades and I could not be more delighted that he has agreed to extend our successful collaboration for the benefit of our entire organization and all Viacom shareholders.

"Tom's leadership, financial acumen and operational skills have enabled him to successfully serve Viacom in a variety of important and impactful roles and to make immeasurable contributions to the growth and prosperity of our Company during a time of great change in the media industry.  Most recently, during his tenure as CFO and CAO, he strengthened Viacom's financial position to historic levels, despite a very challenging environment, and worked side by side with me on our mission to create a best in class creative organization that is well prepared for continued leadership and success.  Today's announcement ensures that Viacom and I will continue to benefit from Tom's knowledge, energy and intellect well into the future."

Mr. Dooley said, "I have had the good fortune to be associated with Viacom for most of my career, working with extraordinary leaders like Philippe and visionaries like Sumner Redstone, as well as with so many colleagues who define excellence and are some of the smartest and most creative people in any industry.  As interesting and rewarding as this has been, I know that the best is still ahead as we work together to fully embrace the vast opportunities coming from technological change around the world.  I am looking forward to continuing to work with Philippe, who has been both a close friend and a remarkable collaborator for so many years, to build on Viacom's legacy of success."

Before being named to his most recent role, Mr. Dooley served in a number of senior executive positions at Viacom, including as Deputy Chairman along with Mr. Dauman from 1996 to 2000.  From 2000 to 2006, he and Mr. Dauman were Co-Chairmen and Chief Executive Officers of DND Capital Partners, LLC, a private equity firm specializing in media and telecommunication investments.  Mr. Dooley held various corporate positions at Viacom from 1980 to 2000, including serving as a member of the Executive Committee and as Executive Vice President, Finance, Corporate Development and Communications.  He served as a member of the Viacom Board from 1996 to 2000 and rejoined the Board in 2006.  Mr. Dooley is a Trustee of the North Shore–Long Island Jewish Health System.

About Viacom

Viacom, consisting of BET Networks, MTV Networks and Paramount Pictures, is the world's leading entertainment content company. It engages audiences on television, motion picture and digital platforms through many of the world's best known entertainment brands, including MTV, VH1, CMT, Logo, Nickelodeon, Nick at Nite, Nick Jr., COMEDY CENTRAL, Spike TV, TV Land, BET, Rock Band, AddictingGames, Atom, Neopets, Shockwave and Paramount Pictures. Viacom's global reach includes approximately 170 channels and 450 digital media properties in more than 160 countries and territories.

For more information about Viacom and its businesses, visit www.viacom.com.

Cautionary Statement Concerning Forward-Looking Statements

This news release contains both historical and forward-looking statements. All statements that are not statements of historical fact are, or may be deemed to be, forward-looking statements.  Forward-looking statements reflect the Company's current expectations concerning future results, objectives, plans and goals, and involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that are difficult to predict and which may cause actual results, performance or achievements to differ. These risks, uncertainties and other factors include, among others: the public acceptance of the Company's programs, motion pictures and games on the various platforms on which they are distributed; economic conditions generally, and in advertising and retail markets in particular; competition for audiences and distribution; the impact of piracy; technological developments and their effect in the Company's markets and on consumer behavior; fluctuations in the Company's results due to the timing, mix and availability of the Company's motion pictures and games; changes in the Federal communications laws and regulations; other domestic and global economic, business, competitive and/or regulatory factors affecting the Company's businesses generally; and other factors described in the Company's news releases and filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including its 2009 Annual Report on Form 10-K and reports on Form 10-Q and Form 8-K. The forward-looking statements included in this document are made only as of the date of this document, and the Company does not have any obligation to publicly update any forward-looking statements to reflect subsequent events or circumstances.

SOURCE Viacom