Kay Koplovitz is the Founder of USA Network and the visionary who created the business model for cable networks by introducing the concept of two revenue streams – licensing and advertising. When she founded USA Network under the banner of Madison Square Garden Sports in 1977 she was the first woman to head a television network.
Kay at USA Network in Early Years
As a visionary of what sports television would become, Ms. Koplovitz launched major professional and collegiate sports on cable television by negotiating the first contracts for cable coverage for Major League Baseball, the National Basketball Association, the National Hockey League, the Masters from Augusta Georgia, the US Tennis Open and a collection of NCAA conference sporting events.
She led USA Network to first place in cable prime time ratings and it remained there for 14 years. In 1992, she launched the Syfy Channel (formerly Sci-Fi Channel) which became a top ten rated cable network known for innovative drama and mini-series. In 1994, she launched USA Networks International and the Sci-Fi Channel into 60 countries worldwide.
October 14, 2014 - UBS conference, “Revitalizing America, The Road to Sustainable Growth” Boston, MA. (in picture L to R) Jacqueline Novogratz, President Bill Clinton, Kay Koplovitz, David Gergen, President George W. Bush.
In 1998, President Clinton appointed Kay Koplovitz to chair the bipartisan National Women’s Business Council. She used this platform to launch Springboard Enterprises, in a move to get women entrepreneurs to “think big” about their growth companies and to raise venture capital to fund them. Springboard Enterprises, her shared vision with co-founder Amy Millman, set out a platform to select, train, and present women-led companies to raise venture capital. Springboard is a global human capital ecosystem and the premier platform for women entrepreneurs, investors, and industry experts dedicated to building scalable, sustainable women-led companies. Kay was honored for her work with Springboard Enterprises on the Forbes 50 over 50 inaugural list 2021.
New York Fashion Tech Lab created in 2014 as part of Springboard Enterprises. Courtesy: ThirdWaveFashion.com Photo: Tory Williams
Kay Koplovitz, one of today’s leading women in business, is the author of Bold Women, Big Ideas (2002), which she wrote to inform and inspire women entrepreneurs to create wealth through equity. She is a sought after motivational speaker on subjects ranging from women’s leadership, women’s entrepreneurship, capital formation, creating a human capital ecosystem, to emerging media and management, and corporate board governance.
In February 2015, Ms. Koplovitz introduced and edited Been There, Run That, an anthology of best practices from Springboard entrepreneurs who have “been there, run that.”
Watch Video: April 25, 2017 - Kay Koplovitz and her fellow inductees of the 68th Advertising Hall of Fame (picture L to Right) Frank A. Bennack, Jr. of Hearst; Peter Brabeck-Letmathe of Nestlé; Jerry Della Femina of Della Femina Advertising; Irwin Gotlieb of GroupM; Kay Koplovitz of USA Networks & SciFi Channel, Stan Richards of The Richards Group; and Carol H. Williams of Carol H. Williams Advertising.
Actor Robert De Niro received the President’s Award for Special Lifetime Contributions to Advertising.
