John Pleasants
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John Fendall Pleasants is an American entrepreneur and business executive with over 20 years of experience leading digital media companies.[1][2] He currently serves as the Executive Vice President (EVP) of Media Solutions for Samsung.[3]
Early life and education
John Pleasants was born on August 19, 1965 in Wilmington, Delaware. After receiving his Bachelor's degree at Yale University in 1987,[4] Pleasants obtained an M.B.A. from Harvard Business School in 1993.[5][6]
Career
From 1988-1991, Pleasants occupied a position as sales and marketing executive for Hygiene Industries.[7] Afterward, Pleasants spent three years as the brand manager for PepsiCo/Frito-Lay from 1995–1998, and then began a career with CitySearch, which became Ticketmaster Online CitySearch and ultimately Ticketmaster.[8] Pleasants took Ticketmaster Online CitySearch public in September of 1998, and subsequently served as Ticketmaster's CEO from 1999 to 2005.[9] From 2005-2007 he ran Revolution Health[10] and then entered the gaming industry as COO of Electronic Arts in 2008,[11] leaving to be CEO of Playdom, a social gaming company that sold to Disney for $763 million in 2010. Pleasants also had success in bringing Disney Interactive to a $16 million profit from a $76 million loss in one year with the launch of the title, Disney Infinity.[12][13] After leaving Disney in 2013, Pleasants was recruited by Samsung Telecommunications America, LLC as EVP and he continues to lead their mobile content strategy.[14][15][16]
Awards and recognition
Honor | Company | Year(s) |
---|---|---|
Sports Business Journal's Forty Under Forty Award | Ticketmaster | 2002, 2003[17] |
Business Insider's The Silicon Valley 100 Award | Playdom | 2010[18] |
TechCrunch's The TechFellow Awards Nominee | Playdom | 2010[19] |
NEA's Award for Outstanding Leadership | Disney | 2011 |
References
- ^ "John Pleasants: Executive Profile & Biography." Bloomberg.com. Bloomberg, n.d. Web. 15 Aug. 2015.
- ^ "Samsung Announces New Executive Appointments Across Strategic Growth Areas." Business Wire. N.p., 10 June 2014. Web. 15 Aug. 2015.
- ^ "Samsung Announces New Executive Appointments Across Strategic Growth Areas." Business Wire. N.p., 10 June 2014. Web. 15 Aug. 2015.
- ^ "Alumni Directory." Yale Alumni Association. N.p., n.d. Web. 16 Aug. 2015.
- ^ "John Pleasants: Executive Profile & Biography." Bloomberg.com. Bloomberg, n.d. Web. 15 Aug. 2015.
- ^ "HBS Alumni Resources." Harvard Business School. N.p., n.d. Web. 16 Aug. 2015.
- ^ Ault, Susanne. "The Last Word - A Q&A With John Pleasants." Billboard 1 Nov. 2003: 100. Google Books. Web. 15 Aug. 2015.
- ^ "Ticketmaster Online-Citysearch and Ticketmaster Corporation Close Transaction; Combined Companies Are Renamed Ticketmaster." News Release. N.p., n.d. Web. 15 Aug. 2015.
- ^ "Ticketmaster Online-CitySearch Names Charles Conn Chairman of the Board; John Pleasants Becomes Chief Executive Officer." PR Newswire. N.p., n.d. Web. 16 Aug. 2015.
- ^ Shin, Annys. "Revolution Invests in Convenient Care." Washington Post. The Washington Post, 06 Oct. 2005. Web. 15 Aug. 2015.
- ^ Sridharan, Vasanth. "Electronic Arts Names Pleasants COO." Business Insider. Business Insider, Inc, 17 Mar. 2008. Web. 15 Aug. 2015.
- ^ Evangelho, Jason. "Disney Infinity: A Revealing Interview with John Pleasants of Disney Interactive." Forbes. Forbes Magazine, 17 Jan. 2013. Web. 15 Aug. 2015.
- ^ Miller, Daniel. "Disney Interactive Co-President John Pleasants Resigns." Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles Times, 11 Nov. 2013. Web. 15 Aug. 2015.
- ^ "John Pleasants: Executive Profile & Biography." Bloomberg.com. Bloomberg, n.d. Web. 15 Aug. 2015.
- ^ "Samsung Announces New Executive Appointments Across Strategic Growth Areas." Business Wire. N.p., 10 June 2014. Web. 15 Aug. 2015.
- ^ Cheng, Jonathan. "Samsung Plucks Execs From BlackBerry, Disney, Nokia." Digits RSS. N.p., 11 June 2014. Web. 15 Aug. 2015.
- ^ "Forty Under 40: Past Winners." SportsBusiness Daily. N.p., 12 Mar. 2012. Web. 15 Aug. 2015.
- ^ Sai. "THE SILICON VALLEY 100." Business Insider. Business Insider, Inc, 08 Dec. 2010. Web. 15 Aug. 2015.
- ^ Arrington, Michael. "Nominate Outstanding Innovators Now For The 2010 TechFellow Awards." TechCrunch. N.p., 24 Nov. 2010. Web. 15 Aug. 2015.