His face is as well known as his list of corporate exploits and accomplishments. Talented both in the boardroom as well as the sporting arena, few can boast of being as multifaceted as he is, and even fewer can do it seamlessly.
His skills as a businessman and ace negotiator are the things that legends are made of, and recently, he made the news again when he announced that he was leaving Cable & Wireless to re-enter the entrepreneurial world – another passion of his – this time in subscription television. In the upcoming months, he will be a part of the birth of another revolutionary venture set to impact the media landscape while bringing extraordinary programming to the ordinary man in the street.
So what makes Christopher Dehring so larger than life?
Why is any venture that he is associated with said to be touched by Midas?
More importantly, why did he leave a secure, high-profile gig at Cable & Wireless to start another project from scratch?
Just who is this enigma and what is he all about?
BUZZZ Magazine sat down with Dehring at his New Kingston office recently in an attempt to uncover the mystery behind the man.
After pleasantries, he shared his enthusiasm about his newest project called Ready TV, set to transform the way we view television content. “It is my latest adventure, and it’s a subscription TV service that will be launched by the first quarter of 2017 with islandwide service that will be the affordable option for everyday Jamaicans.”
Ready TV is the trading name for the registered company Digital Interactive Services Ltd (DISL), a privately owned Jamaican company already in possession of an islandwide Special Subscriber Television Licence issued by the Broadcasting Commission of Jamaica.
DISL’s special licence allows it to use both wired and wireless technology to deliver multiple television channels to its customers across Jamaica. Using its state-of-the-art digital platform, ReadyTV will be able to deliver over two hundred entertainment, informational and educational channels for all Jamaicans to enjoy.
For Dehring, the thrill of new projects that foster national development is always something that he enjoys being a part of.
“I’m a serial entrepreneur. I like being in ventures where, having absorbed the training and exposure offered by multinationals, and giving my services in return, I can use that exchange to expand industry here in Jamaica. I consider that my responsibility, to take the training and exposure and use it to create new opportunities for others. Cable & Wireless expected that at some point I would be leaving to return to my entrepreneurial life, and my track record is very transparent. My first job was at Citibank, one of the world’s largest financial institutions, and I used that training and experience to start Jamaica’s first investment bank, Dehring Bunting & Golding (DB&G) with Peter and Mark. When I worked with the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) and the International Cricket Council (ICC), I became exposed to sports television entities like ESPN and SkySports, with whom I had to negotiate broadcast and other commercial sports rights. I used that experience to start SportsMax. So it should not have been difficult to predict that after Cable & Wireless I would try to launch my own telecom-related operation at some point.”
Indeed his list of major business achievements is virtually a résumé of stellar successes.
“Everyone usually talks about DB&G, but I take greater pride in some of the less heralded but equally creative projects I have been involved with. Some friends and I created a little thing called ‘the mound’, which for 20 years was the best party stand in the world and has since been copied at cricket grounds the world over. People would watch the televised activities on the mound and they grew to admire the unique way we celebrated the game of cricket in the West Indies. I have even seen articles in faraway places such as India giving the mound credit for helping to shape even newer phenomena, like the T20 version of the game with all the music and partying”.
He also knows a thing or two about investments, being one-third of the trio behind DB&G.
“I had the great fortune of also being a part of the first investment bank in Jamaica and the listing of that fledgling company on the Jamaica Stock Exchange – once considered the exclusive domain of more seasoned corporations. We garnered a lot of support, as it had never been done before where three unknown youngsters broke the glass ceiling at a time when it seemed impossible. Because of that success, I believe younger folks are now more willing to venture out entrepreneurially, and the stock market doesn’t seem so unavailable anymore, which is great.”
“At the ICC and WICB, we raised millions to make many things like the World Cup possible. I am pleased when I see programmes I conceived and introduced still around, including Scotiabank Kiddy Cricket, the merchandising, even the official WI cricket flag and the WI cricket anthem which is played before games. I recall working on the words for the official anthem with David Rudder, which we wrote out on the back of a napkin on a BWIA flight and negotiating with Eddie Grant to get the publishing rights, and so when I hear it being played today, I’m silently quite proud.”
Hosting the 2007 Cricket World Cup was a monumental feat that was a once-in-a-lifetime achievement, which the region still gets props for, and Dehring, as the CEO and principal architect, was in the thick of it.
To continue reading, purchase Vol.8 #6, 2016 Issue.
Share this post:
His face is as well known as his list of corporate exploits and accomplishments. Talented both in the boardroom as well as the sporting arena, few can boast of being as multifaceted as he is, and even fewer can do it seamlessly.
His skills as a businessman and ace negotiator are the things that legends are made of, and recently, he made the news again when he announced that he was leaving Cable & Wireless to re-enter the entrepreneurial world – another passion of his – this time in subscription television. In the upcoming months, he will be a part of the birth of another revolutionary venture set to impact the media landscape while bringing extraordinary programming to the ordinary man in the street.
So what makes Christopher Dehring so larger than life?
Why is any venture that he is associated with said to be touched by Midas?
More importantly, why did he leave a secure, high-profile gig at Cable & Wireless to start another project from scratch?
Just who is this enigma and what is he all about?
BUZZZ Magazine sat down with Dehring at his New Kingston office recently in an attempt to uncover the mystery behind the man.
After pleasantries, he shared his enthusiasm about his newest project called Ready TV, set to transform the way we view television content. “It is my latest adventure, and it’s a subscription TV service that will be launched by the first quarter of 2017 with islandwide service that will be the affordable option for everyday Jamaicans.”
Ready TV is the trading name for the registered company Digital Interactive Services Ltd (DISL), a privately owned Jamaican company already in possession of an islandwide Special Subscriber Television Licence issued by the Broadcasting Commission of Jamaica.
DISL’s special licence allows it to use both wired and wireless technology to deliver multiple television channels to its customers across Jamaica. Using its state-of-the-art digital platform, ReadyTV will be able to deliver over two hundred entertainment, informational and educational channels for all Jamaicans to enjoy.
For Dehring, the thrill of new projects that foster national development is always something that he enjoys being a part of.
“I’m a serial entrepreneur. I like being in ventures where, having absorbed the training and exposure offered by multinationals, and giving my services in return, I can use that exchange to expand industry here in Jamaica. I consider that my responsibility, to take the training and exposure and use it to create new opportunities for others. Cable & Wireless expected that at some point I would be leaving to return to my entrepreneurial life, and my track record is very transparent. My first job was at Citibank, one of the world’s largest financial institutions, and I used that training and experience to start Jamaica’s first investment bank, Dehring Bunting & Golding (DB&G) with Peter and Mark. When I worked with the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) and the International Cricket Council (ICC), I became exposed to sports television entities like ESPN and SkySports, with whom I had to negotiate broadcast and other commercial sports rights. I used that experience to start SportsMax. So it should not have been difficult to predict that after Cable & Wireless I would try to launch my own telecom-related operation at some point.”
Indeed his list of major business achievements is virtually a résumé of stellar successes.
“Everyone usually talks about DB&G, but I take greater pride in some of the less heralded but equally creative projects I have been involved with. Some friends and I created a little thing called ‘the mound’, which for 20 years was the best party stand in the world and has since been copied at cricket grounds the world over. People would watch the televised activities on the mound and they grew to admire the unique way we celebrated the game of cricket in the West Indies. I have even seen articles in faraway places such as India giving the mound credit for helping to shape even newer phenomena, like the T20 version of the game with all the music and partying”.
He also knows a thing or two about investments, being one-third of the trio behind DB&G.
“I had the great fortune of also being a part of the first investment bank in Jamaica and the listing of that fledgling company on the Jamaica Stock Exchange – once considered the exclusive domain of more seasoned corporations. We garnered a lot of support, as it had never been done before where three unknown youngsters broke the glass ceiling at a time when it seemed impossible. Because of that success, I believe younger folks are now more willing to venture out entrepreneurially, and the stock market doesn’t seem so unavailable anymore, which is great.”
“At the ICC and WICB, we raised millions to make many things like the World Cup possible. I am pleased when I see programmes I conceived and introduced still around, including Scotiabank Kiddy Cricket, the merchandising, even the official WI cricket flag and the WI cricket anthem which is played before games. I recall working on the words for the official anthem with David Rudder, which we wrote out on the back of a napkin on a BWIA flight and negotiating with Eddie Grant to get the publishing rights, and so when I hear it being played today, I’m silently quite proud.”
Hosting the 2007 Cricket World Cup was a monumental feat that was a once-in-a-lifetime achievement, which the region still gets props for, and Dehring, as the CEO and principal architect, was in the thick of it.
To continue reading, purchase Vol.8 #6, 2016 Issue.
Share this post: