As one major executive enters Studio71, one of the company’s foundational members is leaving. As first reported by Variety, Michael Green — who co-founded music-management company-turned-digital-video network The Collective, will step down from his role as Studio71‘s chairman.
When Green founded The Collective in 2005, it was a music industry business, but in the 2010s, the company’s Collective Digital Studios network emerged as one of the top MCNs in the online video industry. In 2014, The Collective’s original music management business shut down entirely, with Green acknowledging that his heart was “no longer in the management world.”
One year later, German conglomerate ProSiebenSat.1, which owned a majority stake in Collective Digital Studios, merged it with another online video property, Studio71. Original, that venture was known as Collective Studio71, but the Collective name was dropped entirely in 2016, and the network is now called Studio71.
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“I saw my vision to fruition,” said Green. “There are a lot of people who have represented the biggest talent. What there aren’t are a lot of people who can leverage that and pivot into a real asset-based business.”
Variety hinted that Green’s next move would be something “that returns him to his entrepreneurial roots.” While his chairman role will become vacant, Reza Izad will remain the CEO of Studio71.
Studio71’s 1,200-plus partner channels include several run by top YouTube stars. The latest additions to the company’s network include Joe Santagato and Julian Smith.
