John Janka
Chief Officer, Global Government Affairs & Regulatory
Viasat
John P. Janka serves as Chief Officer, Global Government Affairs & Regulatory at Viasat, Inc., an international communications solutions provider with a long legacy of designing, building and operating telecommunications and broadband networks of all types. He has extensive experience in the telecommunications, media, and technology (TMT) sector from over three decades of work at the global law firm Latham & Watkins, where he was a partner and served as the head of its Communications Law practice group. In that capacity, Mr. Janka represented entities ranging from startup entities to global leaders, whom he counseled on a variety of strategic matters. His clients included domestic and international satellite, wireless, and other terrestrial telecommunications companies; Internet service providers; video programming and other content suppliers; media services companies; television and radio broadcast operators; equipment manufacturers; and banks, private equity firms, and other investors.
Mr. Janka consistently has been recognized as a leading lawyer in publications such as Euromoney’s Expert Guides to the World’s Leading TMT Lawyers, Euromoney’s The Best of The Best USA-Telecoms, The International Who’s Who of Telecoms & Media Lawyers, Super Lawyers, and the Washingtonian magazine. Both Chambers USA and The Legal 500 US ranked Mr. Janka as a leading lawyer in the telecommunications, satellite, and broadcast areas, noting his creativity, vast experience, and reputation as one of the leading lawyers. In 2017, Mr. Janka was inducted into The Legal 500’s Hall of Fame, which highlights individuals who have received “constant praise by their clients” and who are at the “pinnacle of their profession.” In addition, The Financial Times highlighted one of Mr. Janka’s projects for Viasat, providing a “standout” ranking for advising on issues involving new uses of radio spectrum.
Mr. Janka also developed and edited for a decade a global compendium of international law, entitled The Technology, Media and Telecommunications Review.
Mr. Janka graduated cum laude from Duke University and Order of the Coif from the University of California at Los Angeles School of Law. He served as a law clerk to Judge Cynthia Holcomb Hall, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, and as a delegate at International Telecommunication Union World Radiocommunication Conferences.