Welcome, Guest. Please login or register.

CODEMASTERS HIRES GAMING, ENTERTAINMENT VETS TO BUILD ALL-STAR U.S. MANAGEMENT TEAM

Posted by: Aaron Lockard on June 11, 2007 4:44:26 PM

New Team Brings Decades of Experience from Hardware, Software Giants

In a move to further bolster its presence in the North American market, Codemasters today announced the addition of three gaming and entertainment industry veterans to its growing U.S. operations based in Burbank, Calif.

Former Konami Digital Entertainment COO Geoff Mulligan will lead the U.S. management team as president of Codemasters, Inc. Mulligan will report to CEO Rod Cousens.

Catherine Fowler, previously senior vice president of sales and marketing at Konami and director of sales at Mattel, Inc., will serve as senior vice president of publishing. Joining as vice president of marketing is Charles Bellfield, formerly holding vice president titles in marketing and communications with Sega of America and Capcom.

The announcement comes as Codemasters continues to gain ground in the global videogame business. In May, the company's Lord of the Rings Online: Shadows of Angmar title was the #1 selling PC game in Europe, and this June Codemasters will release two major titles - DiRT and Overlord - for the Xbox 360 videogame and entertainment system from Microsoft and the PC. In April Warner Bros. Home Entertainment began distributing Codemasters titles throughout North America. The company established its U.S. office in 2006.

'"If this were the NFL draft, you could say we've cleaned up in the first round with true industry heavy-weights," said Cousens. '"Getting the right management team in place was a crucial step in laying the groundwork for future growth in the North American market."

Established in 1986, Codemasters is one of the largest and most prolific videogame developers and publishers in Europe. The company holds exclusive rights for videogame titles based on a number of industry-leading sports and entertainment properties. Codemasters has aggressive plans for growth in North America, to be driven by its new management team.

'"A strong U.S. operation is essential in turning Codemasters into a truly global force in the gaming industry," said Mulligan. '"The U.S. team is excited to be a part of this expansion effort. Each new team member is a builder, bringing the experience and innovative drive to leverage the company's legacy while focusing on new growth opportunities in the U.S. and beyond."

New Management Team Members

Geoff Mulligan, President: Most recently, Mulligan was COO of Konami Digital Entertainment, the U.S. subsidiary of the $2.3 billion Japanese videogame company. Previously, he served as senior vice president of business development for Acclaim Entertainment and president of Activision International. Mulligan is a founding member of the Entertainment Software Association and was co-founder of HandHeld Entertainment, where he remains a member of the company's board of directors.

Catherine Fowler, Senior Vice President of Publishing: Fowler served as senior vice president of sales and marketing at Konami Digital Entertainment before joining Codemasters. While there, she grew key entertainment properties to record level sales and awareness, including the iconic Dance Dance Revolution and Castlevania franchises. Previously, Fowler was director of sales for Mattel, Inc., where she co-founded a division focused on interactive entertainment for children.

Charles Bellfield, Vice President of Marketing: Prior to joining Codemasters, Bellfield was vice president of marketing at Capcom Entertainment, Inc. He also served as senior vice president of Edelman Public Relations, where he managed the firm's Microsoft consumer software business and advised on the interactive entertainment industry. On the hardware side of the business, Bellfield was vice president of corporate affairs and communications at Sega of America, Inc.

Rounding out the management team moves, Codemasters promoted U.S.-based Bill West to vice president of global strategic planning, which creates a key connection point between the U.S. office and worldwide operations. Previously, West held executive-level strategic planning positions at Acclaim Entertainment and The Jim Henson Company and has worked on more than a dozen feature films for The Walt Disney Company, Warner Bros. and Universal Studios.


There are no comments attached to this item.

Post a new comment

BBCode Actions : Close Tags

Name : Anonymous


Keywords :
Ratings
Your Ad Here