Senior media professional Hemlata Sharma has joined ONEOTT Broadband as Chief Business Officer (CBO), sources confirmed exclusively to Indian Broadcasting World (IBW). Sharma brings with her more than 25 years of experience across the Indian media, broadcasting, broadband and telecom industries, with deep expertise in distribution strategy, research and business development.

In her new role, Sharma is expected to drive business growth, distribution strategy and key partnerships for ONEOTT Broadband as the company continues to expand its presence in India’s fast-evolving broadband, OTT and connected TV ecosystem.

Before joining ONEOTT Broadband, Sharma had a long and distinguished association with Zee Media Corporation Ltd., where she concluded her tenure on October 7, 2025.

She most recently served as Head – Distribution, Research & CRM, working closely with editorial leadership and senior management to oversee distribution and consumer research for a bouquet of 14 news channels including Zee News, WION, Zee Hindustan and Zee Business, along with several regional channels.

 

Her role involved driving nationwide distribution strategies while ensuring strong visibility across platforms such as DTH, HITS, IPTV, cable networks and DD Free Dish. She also led distribution initiatives across Connected TV platforms, managed international distribution of the network’s channels and helped initiate the organisation’s Esports business, apart from overseeing research-led insights including break pattern analysis and ad-scheduling strategies.

Over the course of her career, Sharma has held several senior leadership roles across the broadcasting and telecom sectors. She earlier served as Senior Vice President at TEN Sports Network, where she played a key role in the relaunch of the Ten Sports bouquet and helped build its retail distribution network across India. Her work also included the distribution of Zee Turner channels in India, including Zee TV, Zee Cinema and regional GEC channels along with Turner networks such as CNN, HBO and Cartoon Network.

Sharma has also worked extensively in the telecom and broadband sector. She served as General Manager with Bharti Airtel, where she led broadband and telecom sales and marketing operations, including customer service delivery, retention, churn management and collections.

She has also been associated with Reliance Telecom. In addition, she held the position of Chief Business Officer – Broadband and DTV at a group company of Hinduja Global Solutions (HGS), further strengthening her experience across broadband and digital distribution.

Sharma’s career also spans several early initiatives in India’s media and cable television ecosystem. She played a role in the launch and expansion of MSO SitiCable operations in India, the rollout of regional general entertainment and local news channels such as Siti News, and handled responsibilities across ad sales and state-level P&L operations. Her experience also includes involvement in early private broadcasting initiatives and broadband rollouts in the country.

With extensive experience spanning broadcast distribution, telecom operations and digital media strategy, Sharma’s appointment is expected to further strengthen ONEOTT Broadband’s leadership team as the company looks to expand its footprint in India’s competitive broadband and connected TV landscape.