58-63 Dev121 Directory_final 23/09/2011 12:02 Page 1
studios
PERSONNEL This month: This month: Innogames, Sony, Spellbound and Electronic Arts
Former EA Europe boss Gerhard Florin, has emerged as chairman of browser games developer Innogames. Florin had previously worked as executive vice president at Electronic Arts and was responsible for sales, marketing and distribution across Western Europe. Innogames plans to explore business opportunities across Europe, UK and US with the help of Florin. He says he is looking forward to working with the studio and feels the developer has a “strong market position, especially due to its unique browser based games targeted towards high monetisable core gamers.” The studio has worked on online games such as Tribal Wars and The West.
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The former director of the US National Cyber Security Center Philip Reitinger has joined Sony to help fortify its PlayStation Network, months after the online service was hacked. Reitinger joins as chief information security officer, with the appointment coming after the sensitive personal data of more than 100 million PlayStation accounts was compromised in April. Sony was forced to close down its network for nearly a month, and offered free games to customers in a comprehensive compensation initiative. “Certainly the network issue was a catalyst for Reitinger’s appointment,” a Sony spokesman told Reuters. “We are looking to bolster our network security even further.”
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The founder of Exozet Games, Bartol Ruzic, has resigned from his position at the developer to join German studio Spellbound Entertainment. Ruzic will be leading the developer’s activities within the range of browser, mobile and serious games. At Exozet, the German studio which he co-founded in 1996, he held the role of Chief Operational Officer and has previously worked as a producer and project manager for other European based studios. “With Bartol Ruzic we welcome an experienced online and mobile games manager at Spellbound Entertainment AG. We look forward to expanding our business with him,” said Spellbound CEO Andreas Speer.
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Decorated venture capitalist Jay Hoag has joined Electronic Arts’ board of directors, the company has announced. Hoag, a technology investor who sits on the boards of eHarmony, TechTarget, Zillow and Netflix, has become the eleventh member of EA’s board. “Jay Hoag is an extraordinarily valuable addition to EA,” said the publishing giant’s CEO John Riccitiello. “His early investments in Expedia, Netflix and other technology leaders demonstrate his unique insight into mass-market consumer technologies. We look forward to his leadership and vision.” Hoag said he has followed EA closely and is looking forward to working with the firm “to expand its global leadership in this market”.
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