Lieven Vermaele will leave the direction of technology and innovation at the EBU/EBU

Vermaele will return to his hometown of Ghent, Belgium, to be CEO of CandIT-Media, a technology spin-off of Ghent University, University of Ghent, IBBT/I minds and the Flemish public broadcaster VRT.

After six years at the head of the technology and innovation directorate at the EBU/EBU, Lieven Vermaele will leave his position in the middle of the year. Vermale will return to his hometown of Ghent, Belgium, to be CEO of CandIT-Media, a technology spin-off of Ghent University, University of Ghent, IBBT/I minds and the Flemish public broadcaster VRT.

Vermaele has acknowledged that he is "very proud of the people and talent within my department and across the EBU. I believe strongly in the organization and public service media, and I am proud of the success and recognition we have achieved in recent years. The next phase of my career will offer me the opportunity to find a solution to one of the key issues facing many organizations: high performance and transport of large files, combined with the aspect of mission critical, guaranteed performance, quality of service, efficiency, scalability and reliability “.

From the general direction of the EBU, Ingrid Deltenre has highlighted the role that Vermaele has played: "with European broadcasters going through a difficult period of technological transition, Lieven has ensured that EBU members have had access to optimal technical frameworks. Under her direction, the Technology and Innovation department of the EBU has sharpened its focus on increasing cost effectiveness for broadcasters and improving the media consumer experience."

The EBU will now open a selection process for Vermale's successor, announcing a new director of technology and innovation in the coming months.

Vermaele chairs the joint ETSI/EBU/CENELEC technical committee to establish European standards for media and broadcast (WorldDMB, DVB, HbbTV) and sits on the board of IBC, the largest European industry event.