Yahoo social networking guru joins the BBC as CTO

The BBC has a new CTO

Former Yahoo social networking guru John Linwood is to join the BBC as the broadcaster’s new chief technology officer (CTO).

The corporation said Linwood will be responsible for delivering the BBC’s technology strategy, including maintenance of the technical infrastructure behind all BBC output.

At Yahoo, he was senior vice president of international engineering, overseeing a team of 1,600 staff across 22 countries, with responsibility for the development, deployment and delivery of all the company’s services outside the US.

Linwood oversaw development of some of Yahoo’s popular consumer products including social networking, social media and user-generated content as well as offerings such as e-commerce and search.

He joined Yahoo in 2004 from Microsoft, where he was general manager of MSN in London. He starts his new job on 1 April.

“I’m delighted to be joining the BBC, with its impressive track record of innovation and reliability in broadcasting,” said Linwood.

“I look forward to bringing my experience in software engineering to help the BBC take full advantage of the latest technologies across the broadcast production and distribution chain.”

Linwood will report to Erik Huggers, the director of BBC Future Media & Technology, who was himself only appointed to his role in August last year.

“As the BBC moves into the digital age, more of our content is being produced and distributed using digital platforms, placing a greater emphasis on software engineering,” said Huggers.

“With 28 years’ experience as a software executive, John’s appointment adds critical expertise to our proud broadcast engineering heritage.”

A BBC spokesman said that Linwood's job is a new and different role to that of existing chief information officer Keith Little, which will consolidate all aspects of the BBC's technology strategy. He said that Little will go through a "transitional phase" with Linwood but was unable to confirm how the new CTO role will affect Little's responsibilities.