Media Links Appoints John Dale III as Chairman, CEO, and President

Media Links has appointed John Dale III, a longtime Media Links technologist, senior executive and board director, as its new Chairman, CEO, and President, effective April 1, 2017. John succeeds Takatsugu Ono, who will retire at the end of March 2017.
Takatsugu Ono is stepping down from his role where he has directed the company through great market transformation. His leadership and dedication to customers, employees, local/global communities and Media Links as a whole during his tenure has well positioned Media Links as a leader in the media over IP transport marketplace.

John will be responsible for navigating Media Links through its next phase of evolution as TV broadcasters, cable operators and global service providers continue their transition from digital video to IP networks and infrastructure. Media Links, with its flagship MD8000 transport solutions, are considered the innovative pioneers in this transition and are at the heart of many global sporting events, political conventions, and other high profile media events that have served to replace existing digital video networks with an IP infrastructure.

John’s career spans more than 30 years where he served most recently as Chief Marketing Officer and Member of the Media Links Board of Directors. John has held a number of executive and business development positions within the broadcast industry and Media Links, which he joined in 2005. He holds a bachelor’s degree in industrial engineering from the University of Dayton. Over the last ten-plus years, Mr. Dale has been the Media Links technology evangelist, where he planned and drove product strategies, development roadmaps and market launches. His vision for an integrated IP-based “Media Without Limits” environment for the highest quality professional media services has been instrumental in growing Media Links into the global enterprise it is today, with customers on six continents and facilities across the world.

“This is a significant time for Media Links in an environment that is experiencing a great deal of transition as broadcasters, telco’s and manufacturers navigate the IP world. John brings strong leadership, market savvy and technology skills to drive the company forward along with a winning track record in product development, operations and fostering close customer relationships,” says Tsukasa Sugawara, Chief Technology Officer and Board Member.

“Media Links is built on a solid foundation of exceptional personnel talent and award-winning technology, and I am looking forward to leading the organization as we continue to develop our range of media over IP transport solutions, software and professional services,” says Dale.

John Dale has been instrumental in driving the development of the overall media over IP industry forward with his involvement and leadership in various industry groups, most notably the Video Services Forum (VSF) where he is a Director as well as Co-Chair of both the HBRAV (High Bit Rate Audio Video) and the J2K (JPEG 2000) Activity Groups. His involvement in the Standardization and Productization of J2K Interoperability was recognized with a Technical & Engineering Emmy Award presentation to Media Links.