People who are reshaping the industry

Cable World, Jan 7, 2002

Some are familiar names, legendary veterans of the cable business. Others are bright up-and-comers, pegged by their peers as unusually promising. And still others are behind-the-scenes movers whose role in shaping and driving the industry usually goes unrecognized.

From Charlie Ergen, who everyone is watching to see whether he'll pull off the merger oF the year, to the unsung players who are quietly shaking up the industry, everyone on our inaugural 50 to Watch list has the potential to influence the cable business this year.

That, at least, is the opinion of dozens of industry insiders Cable World's staff interviewed for this report. We were directed to people who did exceptional things last year, are influential in red-hot specialties or have powerful jobs within companies that outmuscled or outmaneuvered competitors to achieve new importance this year.

Putting together a list like this, with its mix of the potent and the potential, is hardly an exact science. And there are many more we could have included, since this is an industry with enough talent to fill many lists of 50. We've narrowed our list to the 50 players we'll have to pay particular attention to in 2002.