The Austrian native replaced Helmut Thoma, RTL TV's flashy and unfettered former topper who left Germany's leading broadcaster in 1998. Then last year, the more corporate and no-nonsense Zeiler took the reins at parent company RTL Group from former CEO Didier Bellens.

In both cases he succeeded in strengthening corporate ties to parent group Bertelsmann. As a supervisory board member of the Bertelsmann Foundation, which controls Bertelsmann patriarch Reinhard Mohn's majority stake (58%) in the conglom, Zeiler is well connected to the media giant.

His move to RTL Group underscored Bertelsmann's efforts to consolidate control over its cash cow, which provides nearly 26% of its rev.

Zeiler's popularity, however, extends beyond Germany and RTL Group's headquarters in Luxembourg to his native Austria, where he not only served as head of national pubcaster ORF from 1994-98 but also as spokesman for Austrian Chancellors Fred Sinowatz and Franz Vranitzky during the 1980s.

Political ties go a long way in Vienna and some members of the Socialist Democratic Party of Austria are seeking to recruit Zeiler as an opposition candidate to challenge the country's current right-of-center chancellor, Wolfgang Schuessel, in 2006.

Zeiler has not flat out rejected the notion of a political run, but he has dismissed the speculation, saying all the political brouhaha makes him chuckle. "I am amazed at what the summer heat can do in Austria," he says, adding that such hype is more fitting for an RTL comedy series.

Whatever the future holds for Zeiler, as of November he will be focusing all his attention on RTL Group and no longer splitting his time between it and RTL TV in Cologne.

Despite the disjointed management since increasing his duties at both companies, Zeiler has managed to keep RTL Group healthy and robust.

Indeed, providing 26% of total sales, RTL Group is by far Bertelsmann's biggest engine. RTL Group's half-year net profits this year soared from S25 million ($30 million) to $237 million (due in part to accounting changes) while revenue climbed 11% to nearly $3 billion. Strong performances at TV subsids in Germany and France, and at U.K. production unit FremantleMedia boosted the company's bottom line.

Zeiler says RTL Group, which has stakes in 26 TV channels in nine Euro countries, will seek to expand geographically after asset sales helped it to become debt free this year.

The group is looking for a partner for its British station Five to better compete with bigger rivals ITV and satcaster BSkyB. It also is increasing its presence in the fast-growing Eastern European market. In June, it boosted its stake in RTL Televizija in Croatia to 58% and helped turn the fledgling web into that country's top performer; it also operates one of the top-rated channels in Hungary.

"In the digital age, it's more important than ever to offer channel families. We're already strongly represented in Germany; Holland; and Belgium, where we just launched a third broadcaster. We'll continue this strategy and primarily look to expand in the U.K., Spain and Eastern Europe," Zeiler says.

In Germany, Marc Conrad, who replaces Zeiler at RTL TV, inherits a broadcaster that has maintained a steady course in stormy waters, maneuvering around the collapse of the Neuer Markt, the implosion of the Kirch Media empire and a dire ad downturn that left the German industry in severe distress.

The outgoing topper says he is leaving Conrad "a really beautiful company that is well equipped for the future."

Indeed, Zeiler's reign at RTL TV has been marked by the steady and long-term success of homegrown series such as cop actioner "Alarm for Cobra 11," "Law & Order" clone "Im Namen des Gesetzes," female prison soap "Hinter Gittern" and daily soap "Good Times, Bad Times" as well as U.S. mainstays "Columbo" and "Quincy," all of which have solidified the web's leading position in the German market.

He also presided over the channel's successful foray into reality skeins such as "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?" and local "Pop Idol" take "Deutschland sucht den Superstar."

This fall, RTL is preeming a local version of "The Apprentice," titled "Big Boss," drama series "Verschollen" (Cast Away), about survivors of a plane crash stranded on a desert island, and "Meine schoensten Jahre," an East German-style "Wonder Years" about a boy growing up in communist East Berlin during the 1980s.

"It's not easy to leave a broadcaster like RTL," Zeiler says.