Streaming platform Twitch has launched a new game and marketing campaign, ‘The Twitch Recap Game’ in a bid to engage with its community.

The game, which features a playful twist on the term G.O.A.T (Greatest of All Time) celebrates the communities that gather on Twitch and features some memorable clips from the social media platform throughout the year.

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Alongside the launch of the Twitch Recap Game, it also launched a comprehensive marketing campaign, which includes influencer marketing, social media activations and in-stream chat opportunities.

Twitch CMO Rachel Delphin said: “Twitch Recap is our annual retrospective look at the year. It’s a personalised journey for every member of our community, whether they’re streamers, moderators, viewers, or even lurkers. It’s about reflecting, celebrating, and recognising everyone who makes our community what it is.”

“With so many vibrant communities across the globe coming together on Twitch, it’s important that we create moments for different communities to come together – through annual traditions such as Twitch Recap– to celebrate their contribution through the year.”

The news comes as both TikTok and Pinterest also launched their yearly looks at the trends to come in the next year.

The post Twitch unveils new marketing campaign for year-end recap appeared first on Mobile Marketing Magazine.

Twitch brings in Patel to direct on sales
Krishan Patel has joined Amazon-owned livestreaming service Twitch as EMEA Director of Sales. He will be responsible for the strategic direction of Twitchs commercial advertising team and lead the company’s rapidly growing advertising business, customer engagement and brand partnerships in the region.

With 18 years of global marketing, technology and business development experience in roles across the agency, publisher, telecommunications and ad tech space, Patel joins Twitch from Amazon where, as Director of Business Development for Asia Pacific, he led the company’s consumer business development and worldwide original equipment manufacturer partnership team.

“Twitch is more than a live streaming service – it is a genuine community and a dynamic place where creators can share the things they love with a community of millions,” commented Patel. “We have an incredible suite of solutions available to allow businesses to meaningfully interact with our unique and highly engaged audience in a creative and meaningful way. As we continue to grow across EMEA, I am looking forward to helping brands understand the art of the possible on Twitch and how we can help them deliver successful campaigns at scale.”

Solomon named CMO at Overstock
Overstock.com, an eCommerce home furnishings retailer, has welcomed Elizabeth Solomon as Chief Marketing Officer. She will oversee Overstock’s marketing efforts, including customer acquisition and retention, marketing communications, and marketing technologies.

Solomon most recently served as Head of Marketing for Amazon’s global private brands portfolio. Prior to Amazon, she held senior marketing leadership positions with consumer Fortune 100 companies, including Samsung Electronics, Walmart, and Nestlé.

“I am thrilled to join such an innovative and passionate executive team that has led the company through an amazing year of growth,” said Solomon. “I’m excited about the opportunities ahead and helping further amplify Overstock’s reputation as the premier online shopping destination for home furnishings.”

M&C Saatchi makes management changes
Tim Duffy has been promoted to the newly created role of Group Strategy Director, Worldwide, with Richard Thompson succeeding him as UK Group Chairman, at comms agency M&C Saatchi.

Duffy has been with M&C Saatchi since the beginning of the agency in 1995 and has worked with many clients in the UK and internationally.

Thompson joined the M&C Saatchi in 2013 when the agency acquired Merlin. He will continue to be Chairman of M&C Saatchi Talent, where he successfully acquired Red Hare & Grey Whippet to broaden the offering into the influencer space. Thompson is also Chairman of Surrey County Cricket Club (The Oval) and chairs Sport United Against Dementia.

“Tim is a brilliant thinker. Richard Thompson is a brilliant leader. We continue on our mission to deliver Meaningful Change for clients, our people, and the world,” commented Moray MacLennan, M&C Saatchi CEO.

Capano and Jogia promoted at Rakuten
Rakuten Advertising, Rakuten’s affiliate marketing service, has appointed Anthony Capano as North America Managing Director and Rakhee Jogia as International Managing Director. They will focus on growing the business through unparalleled client strategy and service, technology innovation, inventory expansion, and strengthening partnerships with brands and publishers around the world.

Capano served as Managing Director of Rakuten Advertising for almost a decade, beginning in Australia before relocating to London as International Managing Director. In his new position, Capano will create new opportunities for brands arising from deeper integration of Rakuten Americas properties, expanding the companys publisher network and identifying new areas for innovation.

“We have always believed that effective advertising requires more than technology. True success is found by layering technology with the partnerships, service, scale, insights and global reach of a world-class advertising ecosystem,” said Capano. “We are heavily invested in advancing technology and moving the advertising industry forward. I am honored to be part of a great leadership team and dedicated to advancing the revenue-generating value of performance marketing and the strategic influence of media.”

Jogia, who takes up Capano’s former role, will oversee the EMEA, LATAM and APAC markets for Rakuten Advertising, drawing from a decade of programmatic and affiliate experience with the business. Over the past three years, she focused on international partnerships, most recently as Vice President of Publisher Partnerships, International.

“Im excited for the opportunity to drive our clients business objectives and growth plans, especially as we continue to help them navigate a quickly evolving marketplace,” said Jogia. “We pride ourselves on delivering excellence around the globe, and will be looking inwards to strengthen and develop our people so they can excel in their roles and guide our brands and publishers through the coming period of economic recovery. To that end, we plan to introduce new initiatives that will help businesses at every step in their growth journeys take fuller advantage of the combined power of brand and performance marketing.”

DoubleVerify makes pair of EMEA senior hires
Nick Reid and Michael Fuhrmann have joined DoubleVerify (DV), a digital media measurement firm, as Regional Vice President for Northern Europe and Regional Vice President for DACH and Central Eastern Europe, respectively.

Reid will lead the executive of DV’s growth strategy in the UK, Benelux, Nordics, and MENA. He arrives from his role as Global Head of Agency Partnerships for Adobe Advertising Cloud.

“With digital content consumption on the rise and the importance of protecting and optimising ad investments in focus, DV’s role as a trusted provider of quality and performance data is key. I’m looking forward to cultivating relationships across the ecosystem as I head up DV’s team in Northern Europe at what is a pivotal moment for the industry,” commented Reid.

Fuhrmann joins DV in a newly evolved role as a result of the EMEA team growing. He was previously Head of Networks & Emerging, Global Partnerships DACH at Google.

“2020 has shown that it is more important than ever to invest in the right solutions to achieve a secure, high-quality and reliable advertising environment – given fraudsters are becoming bolder, regulations are becoming stricter and consumer privacy is paramount,” said Fuhrmann. “Ad tech is an important piece of the puzzle and I am looking forward to shaping the discourse on brand safety, ad fraud, cookieless targeting and further topics across all channels and environments in DACH and Central Eastern Europe.”

Executive duo appointed at Inmarsat
Mobile satellite telecoms company Inmarsat has hired Barry French as Chief Marketing & Communications Officer, while elevating Jat Brainch to Chief Commercial & Product Officer.

French – formerly CMO at Nokia – will sharpen customer focus, drive customer engagement and revenue generation to the next level, ensure Inmarsat is an effective and engaged participant in key policy discussions, and further enhance employee engagement. He joined Nokia in 2006 as Head of Communications, prior to which he was Vice President of Corporate Communications at United Airlines and Director of Corporate Communications at Dell.

Brainch – previously Inmarsat’s Senior Vice President of Group Commercial Management – will be responsible for Inmarsat’s evolving commercial and product strategy and roadmap and to ensuring that the company continues to lead the industry in advanced, customer-centric products and services that are designed specifically for mobility and Government users. Prior to joining Inmarsat in 2019, she held senior roles in telecoms and technology brands including Logica Group (now part of CGI), Telefonica Europe, and T-Mobile (UK).

“To make Inmarsat a truly customer-centric organisation, a key driver is to have the company’s marketing expertise combined under one individual at the executive level.  I am therefore delighted that Barry French, a world-class marketing and communications professional, is able to join us in what promises to be an exciting and transformational journey,” said Inmarsat CEO Rajeev Suri.

“I am also delighted that Jat Brainch will be taking up the vital executive-level CCPO role, which is central to our ability to successfully place the customer at the heart of everything we do.   Since joining Inmarsat, Jat has made an invaluable contribution to the transformation of the business and brings with her a wealth of experience in delivering a customer-centric approach to commercial and product management.”  

GroupM elevates Ruegger to president
Andrew Ruegger has been promoted to Global President of GroupM Commerce. He will scale commerce-focused products and services for clients to realise the data driven opportunities in expanding retail marketplaces and direct-to-consumer efforts. Ruegger also leads the group’s collaboration in WPP workstreams across commerce.

Ruegger is a GroupM veteran of over six years – the last two leading the group’s US commerce offering – with experience across data science, product, technology, strategy, innovation, eCommerce, SEO, and paid search.

“Over the last year, brands and platforms have re-evaluated every aspect of the retail ecosystem, from brand awareness drivers to a seamless transaction experience, to ‘last mile’ distribution channels,” said Ruegger. “Our GroupM network of more than 1,400 experts have market-leading knowledge in all commerce platforms, partners, and media investment options, giving them a specific understanding of how to drive sales for clients. GroupM commands unmatched commerce expertise around the world, designing and managing thousands of interactions and transactions daily, and I’m excited to be a part of it in this new capacity.” 

Brightley joins Langland to direct on creative
Publicis Langland has welcomed Mike Brightley as its Creative Director.

Brightley boasts over 14 years of healthcare advertising experience, working at Ogilvy Healthworld, PAN and, most recently, as Associate Creative Director at TBWA\WorldHealth.

“It’s an exciting time to be joining Langland. I have been working towards this next step in my career for a while and was attracted by the agency’s ambitious vision, deep-rooted commitment to creative excellence and unique approach to healthcare communications,” said Brightley. “Their Think Further ethos encourages curiosity and inspires proactivity: vital traits for a thriving agency culture. I can’t wait to share ideas and experiences with the team, continue to push creative boundaries and deliver the best work of my career.”

OneFootball appoints OTT VP
Nikolaus von Doetinchem has been hired as Vice President of OTT Streaming & Media Rights at football media platform OneFootball. He will oversee the platforms live-streaming and on-demand content offering.

Von Doetinchem joins OneFootball on the back of more than 20 years working within the sports media rights industry and is currently serving as President of Media at SportFive, ahead of his arrival at OneFootball on 19 April.

“The football media landscape continues to rapidly evolve and OneFootball is perfectly positioned to work with rights owners, platforms and broadcasters to provide fans around the world with an unrivalled OTT streaming offering. I look forward to working alongside Lucas and the OneFootball team in the years ahead,” said Von Doetinchem.

Kinsella takes seat on Fenestra board
Programmatic platform Fenestra has added Colin Kinsella to its Board of Directors.

Kinsella led Havas in North America for the last more than four years. Prior to Havas, Colin he served as CEO of Mindshare North America. During his tenure, he managed client relationships across a diverse portfolio, including Volvo, American Express, Unilever, and Nordstrom, and orchestrated the global launch of The Loop.

“The global regulatory environment for digital advertising is changing rapidly, programmatic continues to grow exponentially and advertisers with their agencies are increasingly focused on understanding where their money is going, how it is getting there and how to maximise their business outcomes,” Kinsella said. “Ive spent my career dedicated to that endeavour. As an investor, Ive been blown away by what Fenestra has achieved so far and am excited to help them more actively step-up to the next level.”

Tinuiti adds trio to board
Kevin Mayer, Anneka Gupta, and George Gallate have all taken board spots at performance marketing firm Tinuiti.

Mayer —who over a 23-year career at Disney steered the launch of Disney Plus and led deals such as Pixar, Marvel Entertainment, Lucas Film and 21st Century Fox in addition to serving as CEO of TikTok —will support Tinuiti’s growth plan from acquisitions to global expansion and deepening expertise in emerging social, streaming, and OTT/CTV.

Gupta, President and Head of Products and Platforms at LiveRamp, will apply her cross-divisional product development and data transformation experience to support the evolution of Mobius, Tinuiti’s proprietary suite of AI-powered marketing intelligence and media activation technology.

Gallate, a previous board member and investor in Tinuiti, will help guide the company’s international expansion as well as their continued leadership across Amazon and the broader retail media landscape. He spent 27 years at Havas, serving as Global Chairman and CEO of Havas Digital, and is currently Principal of MKTG2.U.

Pike reeled in by Covatic
Covatic, an in-app experience platform, has hired Daniel Pike as Chief Product Officer. He will be focused on refining the product and delivering value to clients whilst expanding Covatic’s offering as it moves into new markets.

As Head of Strategy at the BBC, Pike led the strategic case for a transformational shift in the BBC’s £1.4bn commercial activities, including the launch of subscription video on demand (SVOD) offers in the UK and USA, the closure of BBC Store, and the acquisition of UKTV.

“What really marks Covatic out – and what really attracted me to them – is that they reject the idea that fantastic in-app experiences can only be achieved via compromises to privacy,” commented Pike. “My focus, as ever, will be on customer and end user requirements – generating insights; creating definable, measurable and targetable user groups; driving retention and growing engagement. Covatic’s offering is unique in the market. I’m looking forward to working closely with clients to drive growth by creating engaging experiences for consumers.”

Jaywing adds pair to senior leadership
Kay Henderson and Chris Langan have joined integrated agency Jaywing as Operations Manager and Organic Media Director, respectively.

Henderson has experience with startups, web-builds, and mobile marketing and was most recently Operations Manager at Fonemedia, where she oversaw a bespoke customisation of the agency’s CRM system.

“I’m really excited to get stuck into this role in Jaywing’s Performance and Media Science team,” said Henderson. “What drew me to Jaywing is the agency’s ethos of collaboration and creativity, which really aligns with me personally. I’m looking forward to the opportunity of making a positive impact on people’s working environment, whilst also helping the business to run more smoothly and efficiently.”

Langan was Search Director at McCann Connected, where he spent four years growing the agency’s organic media offering. He will look to use his expertise to improve integration at Jaywing and drive growth across search strategies.

“Joining Jaywing felt like an easy decision. The talent and skill of the agency is extraordinary, and there’s a real passion to grow and continually meet the challenges our clients face in this unpredictable world,” said Langan.

“The agency has a product that truly differentiates itself from the marketplace and driving Organic Media as a part of the agency vision will be a great experience for me and the team.”

Paley takes up CGO role at Aisle Rocket
Marketing agency Aisle Rocket has hired Mike Paley as its Chief Growth Officer. He will drive business development for Aisle Rocket as the agency positions for robust growth in 2021.

Prior to joining Aisle Rocket, Paley served as Senior Vice President, General Manager at Vestcom. Previously, he held agency leadership roles as Senior Vice President, Shopper Marketing & Experiential at The Marketing Arm/Omnicom and Chief Marketing Officer at Square One.

“I was drawn to Aisle Rocket because it’s uniquely rooted in technology and data that informs dynamic creative, UX and performance media,” Paley said. “The future belongs to agencies that understand how to apply data across all disciplines. Data is no longer limited to just targeting and analytics. Creative and UX is now impacted greatly by data as well. Blending data across disciplines while relying on technology, programmatic buying, and AI is an exciting place to be. I welcome the opportunity to leverage my experience while working with great people to drive quantifiable business results for our clients.”

MediaCom promotes Lim to CPO
Jason Lim has been elevated to the newly created role of Chief Planning Officer at MediaCom US. He will oversee the full audience planning product at MediaCom, directing exceptional strategies into exceptional media plans and measurable growth for clients.

In his 10 years so far at MediaCom, Lim has overseen the performance-based practice and was charged with accelerating and optimising the impact of marketing programs.

“I am thrilled to be leading the charge at MediaCom in ensuring excellence in our media planning, media delivery, and media performance across all brands. Ensuring we continue to drive growth efficiently and effectively in new and dynamic ways,” Lim said.

Crawford added to ChannelAdvisor board
ChannelAdvisor, a cloud-based eCommerce solutions provider, has appointed Linda Crawford to its Board of Directors.

A former Executive Vice President and CEO of Sales Cloud Products at Salesforce, former CEO of Helpshift, and former Chief Revenue Officer and Customer Officer of Optimizely, Crawford brings over two decades leadership experience to ChannelAdvisor.

“As a recognized and respected business leader in the software industry, Linda will provide valuable strategic insight to our Board,” said Timothy Buckley, Chairman of ChannelAdvisor. “Lindas guidance will be instrumental as we continue our work to scale our global leadership position in e-commerce. We are so pleased Linda has joined our Board of Directors, and believe she will be a tremendous asset to ChannelAdvisor.”

Contend names president after gaining independence
David Blaser has been appointed President at creative studio Contend following its ‘amicable split’ with Mosaic.

With more than 20 years of experience in the marketing world, with a client-side  leadership role at Activision Publishing and in senior roles at leading ad agencies, including TBWA\Chiat\Day, AKQA, and 180 LA and Amsterdam, Blaser has a track record for delivering culturally impactful campaigns for brands including Nike, Playstation, Call of Duty, and Adidas.

“Having worked on both the agency and client sides of the business, Contend was an opportunity to do something different. Both Steven and I think this is the agency model of the future, with modular services that can break apart to fit a client’s needs, the creative freedom to stretch the boundaries and the flexibility to create custom solutions. We’re excited to see where it goes,” said Blaser.

Trio join Stationhead board
Stationhead, a social audio platform, has appointed Andrew McInnes, Bill Wesemann, and Avi Ellman to its Board of Directors.

McInees, Co-founder and CEO of TMWRK Management, will will bolster Stationhead’s ability to bring top talent to the platform, which has already hosted the likes of Trey Songz and Polo G.

Wesemann has experience serving in chief executive, sales leadership, and advisory roles at successful technology companies, including as an executive for Steve Jobs at NeXT computers. He is an early investor/advisor to Sonos, and a member of the board for LivePerson and Mylio.

Ellman, a Managing Partner at Delta Global, will bring his experience in live events to the board, having built and sold the largest liv event merchandiser in Latin America.

“Having Andrew McInnes, Bill Wesemann and Avi Ellman join our board adds another layer of invaluable expertise to the Stationhead team,” said Ryan Star, CEO of Stationhead. “As we move into the next phase of growth, these leaders will support Stationhead’s ambitious strategic plan to redefine radio and the future of social audio.”

The post Movers and Shakers: Twitch, Overstock, M&C Saatchi, Rakuten, and more appeared first on Mobile Marketing Magazine.

With ‘multiplayer ads’, which is currently in closed beta, creators are able to deliver the same ad to the majority of their stream viewers, as opposed to the targeted ads currently shown to users. After an ad plays, creators can share an interactive poll that rewards the streamer with Bits – Twitch’s own currency – for every vote a poll receives. Subscribers and Turbo users will not see the ads as part of their ad-free benefits.

In the closed beta, multiplayer ads can be served via the ‘run ad’ quick action button in the Creator Dashboard. For viewers, they will be labelled as being a ‘multiplayer ad’ in the upper left-hand corner of the video player.

For now, the ads will only be served on desktop but both Android and iOS mobile users can expect the ads to arrive in early December.

The post Twitch starts testing multiplayer ads appeared first on Mobile Marketing Magazine.

The ad is fronted by Xbox’s most popular exclusive character, Halo’s Master Chief, who calls on gamers to ‘make their next game count’ and take on the challenge of approaching their favourite games in a new way.

Gamers can sign up to ‘Game On’ on the SU2C website and begin fundraising for their gaming challenge. Challenges suggested include ‘The Reverso Challenge’, where players drive in reverse on Forza Horizon 4, and the ‘Projectiles Only Challenge’ on Ori and the Will of the Wisps.

“It is both an honour and privilege to participate in Stand Up To Cancer’s Game On campaign this year. Like so many others, I have personally witnessed cancers devastating effects… That is why this campaign is so important,” said Steve Downes, voice of Master Chief.

“Being the voice of the Master Chief for 20 years has been an epic journey, and Ive seen the positive impact this heroic character has had on so many people all over the world. But his battles could not be won without the help of others. The Chief is calling on you to take down an enemy even stronger than the Flood or the Covenant. It is a battle that can be won. I have seen it with my own eyes. It is time to Stand Up To Cancer.”

In the week beginning 21 September, some of the UK’s top gamers will take on challenges of their own as SU2C takes over Xbox On’s Twitch streaming platform. These influencers, who will be unveiled on Xbox and SU2C social channels in the coming week, will go head-to-head with the Xbox On team.

The post Halos Master Chief calls on gamers to Stand Up To Cancer appeared first on Mobile Marketing Magazine.

Salesforce appoints a Dame to lead its UKI business
Dame Jayne-Anne Gadhia will join Salesforce as its UK and Ireland chief executive officer on 1 October to lead the business through its next stage of growth.

Gadhia is founder of the startup, Snoop. Previously she was the CEO of Virgin Money from 2007 to 2018. As a chartered accountant, she spent six years at Norwich Union (now Aviva) before becoming one of the founders of Virgin Direct in 1995. Three years later, she set up the Virgin One account, which was acquired by The Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) in 2001. She subsequently spent five years at RBS before returning to Virgin as CEO of Virgin Money. She became a Dame in the 2019 New year Honours list for her contribution to financial services and women in the finance industry.

“I’ve admired Salesforce from afar for a long time,” said Gadhia. “This is a different kind of business, with deeply held values and a true focus on transforming the experience of every customer through cutting edge technology. I’m looking forward to working with the team as we continue to invest and support Salesforce’s growing customer base in UKI.”

Bhasin joins Shutterstock’s board
Shutterstock has added Rachna Bhasin to its board of directors, where she will serve on the compensation committee.

Bhasin, founder and CEO of EQ Partners and co-founder of Pacifica Investments, previously served as chief business officer at Magic Leap for over three years. Here, she helped grow the team and led business development, M&A, and strategic partnerships. Since departing in January, she has continued to work with Magic Leap as a senior advisor to the CEO.

Before Magic Leap, she held the role of senior vice president of corporate strategy and business development at SiriusXM Radio, and has previously held senior positions at Dell and EMI Music North America. Bhasin currently serves on the board for Ryman Hospitality Properties and is a current member of the International Academy of Television Arts & Sciences.

“I am honoured to join Shutterstocks board of directors and to draw from my knowledge and experience to help guide Shutterstock in its mission to deliver increased value to its customers, contributors and stockholders,” said Bhasin. “In a time where the demand for content is at an all-time high, Shutterstock is well-positioned to serve the needs of marketers, creatives and businesses around the world, providing them with the content, tools and services they need to grow and thrive.”

Twitch brings in Cowan as advertising marketing director
Fran Cowan has been hired by Amazon-owned live streaming platform Twitch as its first director of advertiser marketing. Starting on 12 August, she will be charged with raising the profile of the Twitch sales proposition.

Cowan joins Twitch after seven years at InSkin Media, where she started as the company’s first marketing executive and progressed to the role of chief marketing officer. She is also VP of marketing at the International Advertising Association (IAA) UK.

Smith takes up head business role at Location Sciences
Location Sciences, a location verification provider, has appointed Jason Smith as its US chief business officer. Reporting to CEO Mark Slade, he will work to establish and build relationships with key customers in the US and develop marketing strategies to raise awareness of inaccurate location fraud and its impact on campaign performance.

Smith joins with over 16 years experience in the out-of-home and digital advertising space. He was a former senior partner and MD of Mindshare, where he led the business and performance strategy for clients including Geico and Capital One. Prior to Mindshare, he spent 10 years at Horizon Media. In his most recent role as VP of digital investments, he headed up trading and partnership developments.

“With location data transparency, integrity and privacy compliance under increasing scrutiny, I felt the opportunity to lead the US team at Location Sciences was too good to turn down,” said Smith. “I look forward to being part of the team that helps marketers drive exponential performance results within the $160 billion digital advertising marketplace.”

UM looks to Smalls-Landau to lead marketing
Deidre Smalls-Landau has been named as US chief marketing officer at IPG Mediabrands’ marketing and media agency network, UM. Reporting to US CEO Lynn Lewis, she will oversee UMs strategic branding, platforms and initiatives, carrying over her previous responsibilities as global head of culture, to ensure a broader impact for the diversity-based cultural framework she spearheaded at the agency.

Under Smalls-Landaus leadership, UM launched Remix Culture, the first culturally-focused iteration of its annual Wave X study that tracks social and digital media usage and motivations globally. She also spearheaded the launch of UMs Unity 20/40 diversity initiative, which aims to increase diverse representation within the agency by mirroring the projected US ethnic population of the 2040, by 2020.

Smalls-Landau is the IPG representative for the Times Up/Advertising Steering Committee and a member of the 4As Media Leadership Council.

“I strongly believe that having diversity as a filter for everything we do is a catalyst for cultural transformation and business growth, and an imperative for creating meaningful impact within all levels of an organization,” said Smalls-Landau. “Im excited for the opportunity to play a greater role in applying cultural perspective in how we go to market as we think about audience behaviours and trends.”

Boler to manage Scibids sales outside London
AI-powered ad tech firm Scibids has appointed One Link Digital, headed up by Peter Boler, to bolster its presence outside of London. Boler, acting as regional sales director, has been tasked with partnering with agencies and brands across Manchester, Birmingham, Leeds and Scotland who are interested in discovering how powerful the creation and deployment of custom algorithms can be on their campaigns.

Boler brings with him over 20 years of experience within digital advertising and has held senior sales roles at companies including, Yahoo, MEN Media, The Exchange Lab and most recently, Weve (O2).

“In today’s complex environment, marketers and agencies want and need the benefits of domain specific AI capabilities, yet are hesitant because of the resource and investment it incurs,” said Boler. “Scibids is a fascinating business that’s transparent and flexible and I’m sure its AI as a Service business model will be a game-changer for the industry.”

Centro adds Gensler in senior client development role
David Gensler has joined Centro, a digital marketing solutions provider, as senior vice president of client development. He will work with both agencies and clients to implement the company’s ‘Basis’ platform and integrate programmatic advertising with media planning, buying, operations, campaign analytics, business intelligence, and billing reconciliation.

Prior to joining Centro, Gensler operated his own firm, GSD Consulting, to strengthen the marketing capabilities of organisations in the data science and technology sectors. He was also senior vice president of the food beverage spirits category for Time, Inc., overseeing the group’s advertising sales. Before that, he was EVP and head of ad sales for LiveIntent. Gensler has also led and scaled sales teams for Millennial Media and AOL. 

“Considering the pressures that media agencies face from clients and stakeholders, we believe that Basis profoundly affects their ability to drive performance and profitability through automation,” said Gensler. “Centro has the opportunity to transform the way marketers work because of our game-changing technology, national sales coverage and principled reputation.”

Knights takes spot in WorkMobile’s software dev team
Mobile data capture specialist WorkMobile has appointed Che Knights as a software developer. As a C# developer, he will help to develop the company’s systems in line with industry best practice.

Knights has more than 20 years of software development experience. He has held a variety of programmer and developer positions at Pets at Home, Pregis and, most recently, Kaonix.

“Manchester is home to a burgeoning number of forward-thinking technology companies, and, as a leading provider of cloud-based digital solutions, WorkMobile is no exception,” said Knights. “I’m delighted to be joining the business during this period of growth, and helping to ensure its software systems remain at the cutting edge and the WorkMobile app is the best it can be.”

DoubleVerify opts for Bukhari as MD
Tanzil Bukhari has taken up the position of EMEA managing director at digital media measurement software firm DoubleVerify. Based in London, he is charged with leading the company’s expansion efforts across Europe with an added focus on Russia and the Nordics, while strengthening the company’s business relationships with brands, agencies and media platforms.

A 20-year media industry veteran, Bukhari previously worked at Google as EMEA head of agency development. Previously, he was head of DoubleClick Ad Exchange in Northern and Central Europe, where he launched DoubleClick AdX in EMEA.

“Global brands continue to address the issues of fraud, brand safety and viewability within their campaigns, and how they impact marketing effectiveness and business outcomes,” said Bukhari. “I’m excited to leverage my deep experience in programmatic and digital media to help accelerate DV’s growth across Europe.”

McCurry named chief of strategy at IAS
Integral Ad Science (IAS) has chosen Kevin McCurry as its chief strategy officer. Reporting directly to CEO Lisa Utzschneider, he will lead the organisation in identifying and evaluating large-scale strategic opportunities for the company with a focus on mergers and acquisitions.

McCurry boasts over 25 years of experience in strategy and corporate development. Prior to joining IAS, he was an executive in residence at Partners Healthcare, where he supported major data strategy, billing operations, and machine learning initiatives. Before that, he was senior vice president of corporate development and strategy at SunGard. McCurry has also been chief strategy officer for Thomson Reuters’ healthcare and science data and information businesses.

“Marketplaces — whether in financial services, healthcare, or advertising — benefit when buyers and sellers can access trusted and meaningful data supported by a highly-technical data science team. Digital advertising is at a particularly exciting and critical juncture with its rapid growth, increasing technological complexity, and heightened needs, especially in areas such as brand safety and fraud prevention,” said McCurry. “With its long track record of innovation, IAS has attained a truly unique position, delivering trusted data, measurement, and global insight to the digital advertising industry. I am thrilled to be joining the team as we set the path forward to deliver new capabilities and insights that our customers require.”

Media Chain gives Edwards lead sales role
Jon Edwards has been hired as head of sales at Media Chain, Social Chain’s social-first publishing arm. Based in London, he will hold responsibility of all Media Chain brand partnership sales across the UK, initially focusing on growing the social media publishing business and will work to deliver highly engaging and effective campaigns.

Edwards previously held the role of brand partnerships account director at LadBible Group and is also formerly of Hearst and Trinity Mirror, where he has worked with the likes of PepsiCo, Amazon, Sony Columbia, Ladbrokes Coral, and Warner Bros.

“I’m very honoured to be joining Media Chain and to work on developing their commercial offering across their vast and progressive portfolio of brands,” said Edwards. “To have the opportunity to work on fantastic brands like SPORF, Student Problems and GameByte among many others, alongside some of the best entrepreneurial thought leaders in the social space at a time of ambitious growth, excites me. I look forward to seeing what the future of Media Chain holds.”

Doucette elevated to creative head at Leo Burnett
Leo Burnett Chicago has promoted Jordan Doucette to the role of chief creative officer. Reporting jointly to president and chief strategy officer of Leo Burnett Chicago Emma Montgomery and chierf creative officer of Leo Burnett Worldwide, she will oversee the creative and production departments at Leo Burnett Chicago.

Doucette, who’s been as the agency since January 2018, most recently served as executive vice president/executive creative director. In her new role, she will continue to lead the creative for clients including The Kellogg Company and Miller-Coors.

Previously, she was chief creative officer of Taxi in Toronto, where she led work for clients including Pfizer (Centrum, Advil and Robax), Canadian Tire, Marks, Fido Telecommunications, Mini Cooper, Vancouver Aquarium, and BC Hydro.

“What attracted me to Leo Burnett is that its a creative solutions company that is continually transforming how we work to bring the best, most effective ideas to the table,” said Doucette. “Im most excited that this role will help me get closer to our clients and our teams to help shape not only the work, but how we work.”

FCB brings Ordóñez onboard as head of creative
Andrés Ordóñez has been hired as chief creative officer at FCB Chicago. He will work closely with global chief creative officer Susan Credle and join the agency’s Global Creative Council.

Ordóñez has spent the last five years at Energy BBDO, working with clients including Wrigley, Bayer, MillerCoors, SC Johnson, American Egg Board, Avocados From Mexico, National Safety Council, Ocean Spray, and Luxottica. Prior to Energy BBDO, he launched Ford Sync.

“I am very happy to have the chance to work with Susan. I have always thought I was destined to work with her. Even before I ever met her, it felt like I was in her orbit because of the places we both worked and the kinds of ideas we have created for brands. I know we will do great things together,” said Ordóñez.

“From the moment I walked into FCB Chicago, I couldnt stop thinking about it. I wanted to be a part of it and work with the people there to set new heights. It is the place – and the people – where I will be able to put my heart and the passion for what I do, where Ill be able to create some of the best work of my career.”

Pokkt selects Kumar as head of technology
Dinesh Kailash Kumar has been appointed as chief technology officer at Pokkt, a mobile in-game advertising platform. Based in Bangalore and reporting to co-founder and CEO Rohit Sharma, he will lead the company’s technology function.

Kumar has worked at organisations including Amazon, InMobi, Microsoft, and Yahoo. At Amazon, he led a 50-member international tech division in Bangalore, where his teams built software solutions for the automotive category and vendor management solutions.

Before Amazon, he was at InMobi as their VP of engineering. In this role, he led the brand and programmatic engineering initiatives managing engineering activities spanning across Bangalore and San Francisco.

“Pokkt’s growth in the past few years has been commendable and to be a part of the team that takes good quality in-game advertising to the next level is very exciting for me,” said Kumar. “I look forward to building best in class advertising products that will power the next phase of POKKT’s growth.”

Matta installed to lead ICX Media
Video analytics startup ICX Media has handed Serge Matta the role of president and chief executive officer. Michael Avon, the founder of the company, will remain actively involved as executive chairman.

Matta joins ICX Media from GroundTruth, where he served as president. During his tenure, he managed GroundTruth’s global sales and marketing teams. He was instrumental in GroundTruth’s acquisition of WeatherBug and securing Dentsu Japan as a strategic partner.

“I had been following ICX Media’s progression, and when I was approached to lead the company in its next stage of growth, I joined without hesitation,” said Matta. “I know that media and entertainment companies, brands and agencies must have access to the tools, data, and insights necessary to power their video strategies. Built with machine learning and data analytics at its core, ICX Media’s market approach, powered by best-in-class tools and audience data for video content creation, distribution, marketing and monetization truly sets the company apart.”

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The partnership enables viewers to browse and buy products on Twitch without having to leave the stream page through an integrated Teespring extension. Streamers are able to monetise their channels via merchandise and encourage people to subscribe to their channels for access to ‘subscriber-only’ products.

The extension will also provided animated in-stream alerts, giving streamers a chance to acknowledge people shortly after they have bought merchandise.

“We are always seeking ways in which to bring more opportunities for creators to connect with their followers through industry firsts that keep up with the fast-paced demands of the incredibly influential Gen Z market,” said Chris Lamontagne, Teespring CEO. £Content creators are bringing more and more innovation to the playing field, and we’re working continuously to introduce newer and simpler ways for this young generation to build their brands and deliver for their fans. Twitch is the perfect addition to our partnership eco-system in achieving this goal and we’re thrilled to bring another first to the social commerce market.”

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Twitch ups it’s game with Walker Jacobs as CRO
Amazon-owned livestreaming platform Twitch has revealed that Walker Jacobs will be joining the firm as its chief revenue officer. Jacobs has more than 20 years of experience building and leading advertising revenue teams at global entertainment brands, and will put that knowledge to use, expanding the platform’s ad sales and brand partnerships from its New York offices.

“Twitch created an entirely new form of entertainment where the audience doesn’t just watch, but is part of creating the experience,” said Sara Clemens, chief operating officer at Twitch. “Enabling streamers to earn a living is a key focus for Twitch, and advertising is one of the ways viewers support streamers. We’re thrilled to have Walker stepping into this important leadership role given his deep operational expertise in building and scaling global advertising businesses and experience with gaming and fan communities.”

Jacobs was most recently chief operating officer at global entertainment media brand Fandom, and prior to that was president and chief revenue officer for Clear Channel Outdoor, where he was responsible for leading go-to-market strategies for the company’s out-of-home assets in the US and Canada. Before Clear Channel, he served as executive vice president at Turner Broadcasting System, leading Turner Digital and building one of the media industry’s largest digital ad sales and marketing organisations.

“Twitch is uniquely positioned to help marketers connect authentically and interact with audiences,” said Jacobs. “At any given moment more than 1m people are on Twitch. The audience is huge and growing, they’re young, influential, difficult to reach, and deeply engaged. The live aspect gives marketers distinctive opportunities too as audiences experience programming simultaneously, at scale. There’s a huge opportunity to bring new products, formats and experiences to the service that leverage those unique attributes and I’m thrilled by the chance to help drive that innovation.”

SpotX expands EMEA team with two new hires
Global video advertising and monetisation platform SpotX is continuing to grow in Europe with the appointment of two new members to support Spanish publishers and broadcasters. Mercedes Alonso Sena joins as account coordinator for supply, while Justine Remillard takes on the role of media executive.

Alonso Sena has five years of account management experience in Spain, where she most recently acted as an account executive at ActionsData. While there, she helped clients achieve their business objectives through the application of data. In her new role at SpotX, she will work with Marta Lopez, account manager for supply, in supporting clients in Spain by integrating products for modern ad serving, monetisation, yield management and more.

Remillard joins from All Response Media where, as a media executive, she assisted in planning, booking, reporting and analysing digital campaigns for clients. She and Alonso Sena will both report to managing director for the UK and Spain, Ed Wale, who was promoted to the role in September of this year.

“Mercedes has a solid understanding of the video advertising market in Spain from her years working in the Spanish media and business communications,” said Wale. “Both Mercedes and Justine’s client management experience will be vital as we continue to advise media owners across Spain and the UK on the best monetisation strategies for their premium content through rigorous analysis and customer support.”

Tom Aitchison to lead Swrve as new CEO
Multi-channel marketing automation business Swrve has found a new CEO in the form of experienced business leader Tom Aitchison, a global executive with a 25-year proven track record of driving organisational success and scaling established SaaS startups. With his appointment, Swrve aims to transform into a large, independent global enterprise.

“I am very pleased to join the outstanding leadership of Swrve,” said Aitchison. “The company is uniquely positioned to be the definitive leader in the multi-channel marketing automation arena. Swrve is poised for accelerated growth with resounding validation as a leader by industry analysts, strategic partners and many industry-leading mobile-forward enterprises. I am honoured to be joining the team at Swrve at this time and to have the opportunity to continue to execute on the vision of creating maximum value for Swrve’s customers by enabling them to achieve the highest levels of engagement and monetisation with their customers across all of their strategic channels.”

As a results-driven executive vice president of global sales, Aitchison helped scale business spend management firm Coupa Software into one of the leading enterprise SaaS companies worldwide, with revenues growing from $30m (£23m) to over $100m in just over three years. He takes over the role of CEO from Christopher Dean, and is seeking to build on Swrve’s growth from startup to marketing automation leader with an install base of more than 3.5m mobile, web and TV apps.

Adjust strengthens leadership team with new vice president of marketing
Melissa Bohlsen, formerly of BCG Digital Ventures, has been named as the new vice president of marketing for global mobile measurement and fraud prevention firm Adjust. Bohlsen will focus on developing Adjust’s communications, branding and go-to-market strategies to continue strengthening the company’s position worldwide. Her appointment follows the hiring of Mirko Deneke as chief financial officer in August.

“Adjust’s expansion over the past seven years makes it one of the German tech scene’s biggest success stories,” said Bohlsen. “The company’s vision and ambition set it apart, and makes it an incredibly exciting business to be a part of. With big plans on the horizon, I look forward to helping increasing Adjust’s pace on the market and bringing greater brand awareness to clients and prospects on a global scale.”

Bohlsen joins Adjust from Boston Consulting Group (BCG) Digital Ventures, where she served as marketing leader for Germany. She has over a decade of marketing experience both in Germany and the UK, as well as an extensive background in mobile. Prior to BCG, she served a global marketing director at Glispa Global Group, where she led all marketing and communications activities.

Paul Lyonette appointed commercial director for UK and DACH at Kelkoo Group
Pan-European eCommerce advertising and shopping comparison service the Kelkoo Group has brought on Paul Lyonette to serve as commercial director for the UK and Europe, servicing and expanding the group’s client accounts as it expands its European reach to cement the Group’s position as a global ecommerce leader.

Based out of Kelkoo Group’s London headquarters, Lyonette will be responsible for building international partnerships with retailers and merchants across the UK and DACH (Germany, Austria and Switzerland) marketers, heading a team of 30 salespeople. He has over 15 years’ experience in leading sales and new business growth across multiple sectors, most recently with mobile location company Verve.

“Kelkoo is a long-established eCommerce player and was one of the first major dotcom businesses, so I’m delighted to be joining at such a pivotal time in the company’s history,” said Lyonette. “We’re going through a period of change and the market is responding very favourably. Merchants and retailers are looking to maximise their opportunity to get the right product in front of the right consumer at the time of purchase.”

Infopro Digital brings David Pagliaro onboard as group managing director
One of France’s leading professional information and services companies, Infopro Digital, has hired David Pagliaro as group managing director. Pagliaro will oversee the company’s information services for financial, risk, insurance and financial technology specialists, leading more than 350 employees based in London, New York and Hong Kong, with his arrival reinforcing the firm’s growth strategy in those markets and beyond.

Pagliaro has over 20 years’ experience with developing and implementing strategies for growth, driving commercial and product development, and leading partnership activities on both a regional and global basis. He joins from State Street, where he ran Global Exchange, its fast-growing data and analytics business, in the EMEA region, and he has previously held executive leadership roles with S&P Global and Booz Allen Hamilton.

“We are very proud to welcome David,” said Julian Elmaleh, CEO of Infopro Digital. “He brings 20 years of managing B2B assets in the financial industry with a very good knowledge of the US and Asian markets, which are key for our expansion.” In addition to leading services for brands including Risk.net, Insurance Post, Chartis and FX Week, Pagliaro will hold a seat on the Infopro Executive Committee.

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According to Chinese tech publication Abacus, Twitch’s iOS app has disappeared from Apple’s China App Store, days after the platform’s main site became inaccessible in the country. Twitch has confirmed being locked out of China but hasn’t given a reason why it has.

The move from China to block the popular gaming site comes a month after the app hit the top three among free apps in the iOS App Store in China – with Chinese gaming fans flocking to the service in order to watch eSports.

In particular, they flocked to the platform because eSports was featured in the Asian Games – the first-time gaming has featured in a major international sporting event – but the Chinese state broadcaster, CCTV, didn’t air any of the event. And China also took home two gold medals in the competition.

It’s rumoured that the Asian Games coverage is the reason Twitch has been blocked – not because it streamed the coverage but because of some of the nasty trash talk that occurred between competitors during broadcasts.

Twitch joins the elite company of Facebook, Google, YouTube, and Reddit in being banned in China.

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Amazon has reportedly approached dozens of popular media companies and personalities, many of whom already have large existing audiences on YouTube, offering them minimum guaranteed incomes of as much as several million dollars, as well as a share of future advertising sales and subscription revenues.

The firm has cast a wide net in an effort to broaden the scope of Twitch, which has historically focused on live-streaming video-game content. Actor Will Smith, lifestyle influencer Gigi Gorgeous and comedy YouTuber Tanner Braungardt have all reportedly been approached, with Braungardt having signed a deal with Twitch that will attempt to bring his 4m YouTube subscribers to the platform. The NBA has also struck a deal with Amazon to stream minor league games on the service.

Currently, YouTube vastly outpaces Twitch in terms of scale, with Googles video platform bringing in 1.9bn monthly viewers, compared to Twitchs 140m. However, YouTubes brand safety clampdowns and stricter monetisation rules have recently led to some vocal criticisms from its creator community. Twitch is also innovating in the area of content monetisation, offering creators the option of a paid subscription model which YouTube later added in response.

According to three people present at a recent staff meeting, Twitch CEO Emmett Shear has set a target of $1bn in ad sales for the platform, more than doubling its current monetisation level. Bringing in big names to broaden Twitchs appeal will help that goal, as will focusing on the platforms ability to capture young men who are often blocking ads online and no longer watch broadcast or cable television.

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Twitch has previously been known primarily for hosting and distributing live-streams of video games, although the platform has branched out in recent years to embrace a wider variety of video subjects.

The release of Video Producer, the companys new set of tools for broadcasting uploaded and recorded videos, positions the firm more clearly as a rival to YouTube by moving away from its initial live-stream focus. The tools will enable users to re-broadcast live-streams, providing fans with a second opportunity to engage with content, and upload pre-recorded videos to their community of followers.

“We wanted to make the broadcasting of pre-recorded content more meaningful and exciting by giving creators more control and opportunities to amplify awareness of their videos,” said Bob Bahramipour, product leader for video on demand at Twitch. “With Video Producer, creators can tap into an array of tools like Premieres to build momentum for videos, setting the stage for more impactful programming, while attracting and retaining fans.”

The tools are also designed to help creators maximise engagement around videos by creating live viewing events for their communities, complete with landing pages, countdowns and scheduling.

While the release of Video Producer has no doubt been in the works for some while, the timing couldnt be better for Twitch, with YouTube having recently angered a large portion of its creator userbase by revising its monetisation tools for smaller channels.

The Video Producer announcement came alongside a separate release from Twitch, revealing that the firm had entered into a multi-year partnership with Disney Digital Network to bring exclusive content from four of the largest Disney-managed digital content creators to Twitch.

The four content creators, Jacksepticeye, Markiplier, Strawburry17 and Luzu, boast over 35m subscribers between them, and produce video content in a variety of genres, from lets play gaming streams to cookery shows.

“Were always looking to create opportunities for our Disney Digital Network digital talent to bring their stories and content to more fans in new ways,” said Andrew Sugerman, executive vice president of publishing and digital media for Disney Consumer Products and Interactive Media. “Partnering with Twitch gives our biggest creators access to the platforms tools, expertise and community to directly engage with and build their audiences.”

“The growth of Twitch is based on listening to our content creators and building the features they need to be successful, including our robust approach to monetisations, moderation, and interactive technology,” said Michael Aragon, senior vice president of content at Twitch. “We look forward to working with Disney Digital Netowrk and their large stable of popular entertainers to showcase all that we have to offer, including a passionate and supportive community.”

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