Lynn will be based in London and tasked with overseeing all of Viacom’s media networks and related businesses outside of the US.
A former accountant, Lynn has worked at Viacom for 20 years, starting with management roles at Comedy Central and Nickelodeon. He was promoted to VIMN president in 2014, having been executive vice-president, managing director since March 2007.
He is credited with playing a leading role in Viacom’s £450m acquisition of Channel 5 from Richard Desmond’s Northern & Shell in 2014. The 20-year-old broadcaster posted its first consecutive years of profitability last November.
He will report to his predecessor Bob Bakish, who was appointed as president and chief executive of Viacom last month.
Bakish was the eventual replacement for Philippe Dauman, who was ousted last year following a power struggle with Sumner Redstone, the controlling shareholder at Viacom.
Viacom, which has about 1,000 UK staff and £600m turnover, consolidated its UK media-buying for the first time last year into PHD. Appointing the Omnicom agency was seen as a rapprochement after MTV dumped PHD previously during a trading stand-off.
Bakish said: "Viacom’s international business has grown strongly over the last decade and our operations managed out of the UK, under David’s leadership, have been integral to that growth.
"David has an outstanding track record at the helm of our UK business, including leading our successful acquisition and integration of Channel 5, and I have great confidence in his ability to conceive and deliver an even more ambitious growth strategy for VIMN in the years ahead."
