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Former Habbo GM Paul Thind Joins Outspark as Chief Business Officer
| Source: Outspark
SAN FRANCISCO, CA--(Marketwire - December 2, 2008) - Outspark, a leading entertainment
services company that publishes and operates engaging online multiplayer
games, is excited to announce the arrival of Paul Thind as the company's
chief business officer. A seasoned executive with more than 15 years of
experience, Mr. Thind will oversee Outspark's growing game publishing
business, its portal community initiative and help the company continue to
expand and enhance its immersive online social community.
"Paul has a proven track record of leading digital entertainment companies
to success and we are thrilled to have him as the newest member of the
Outspark team," said Susan Choe, CEO and founder of Outspark. "His years of
experience in this industry and creative approach to growing and monetizing
online communities make him a valuable addition to our company."
Before joining Outspark, Mr. Thind was general manager of North America of
Sulake Inc., and Habbo, an online teen virtual world owned by Sulake
Corporation. While working for Sulake, Mr. Thind expanded the Habbo
property in North America by creating several innovative partnerships
across distribution, promotions, payments and celebrity visits. He was also
responsible for some of Habbo's largest advertising sales initiatives.
During Mr. Thind's tenure, the Habbo community swelled to over 20 million
registered characters in the North American region.
Mr. Thind's arrival represents a key milestone in Outspark's development as
he brings the wealth of managing and monetizing casual virtual communities
that would further enrich Outspark's game publishing business.
Outspark currently has a community of more than 3.3 million registered
users.
"Despite current market conditions, Outspark is at the forefront of the
video game and online virtual world industry and I'm excited to join the
company at such an exhilarating period of corporate growth," said Paul
Thind, newly appointed CBO of Outspark. "During my time at Habbo I focused
on growing partnerships and bringing more value to the community and I
recognize an even bigger opportunity for growth here at Outspark."
Mr. Thind's background also includes time as the CEO of PBA Music, an
online music entertainment company, as well as the vice president of
business development at Current Attractions, an Internet entertainment
company and movie database. Prior to that, Mr. Thind was the CEO and
president of two community-oriented independent record labels including one
that was cited as America's 'Number One Extreme Entertainment Company' by
Billboard Magazine.
Mr. Thind holds a Bachelor of Science in Marketing from California State
University, East Bay and a Master of Business Administration from
Pepperdine University.
About Outspark
Outspark is a leading entertainment services company that publishes and
operates engaging online multiplayer games. Featuring a portfolio of
immersive free-to-play games and related content, the company is building
an online destination where members come for the games and stay for the
community. Backed by Tencent, Altos Ventures and DCM, Outspark is
headquartered in San Francisco, Calif., with a subsidiary office in Seoul,
Korea. For more information, visit http://www.outspark.com.