After divesting itself of its core development studios, Atari has made moves to become a publisher focused on social and mobile titles. To that end, the company has beefed up its management team with three new hires: Robert Mattes as Chief Financial Officer, Owais Farooqui as Senior Vice President of Digital Publishing, and Maria Pacheco as Vice President of Mobile.
Farooqui and Pacheco will be focused on “developing and executing a cohesive mobile, social and online strategy for the company designed to best leverage Atari's legendary gaming franchises for a new generation of gamers across online, smartphones and tablets.” Mattes and Farooqui will report directly to Atari CEO Jim Wilson.
"Owais and Maria are innovative managers whose vast online and mobile success aligns with Atari's goal of creating the best experience for players across all social and casual gaming platforms," said Wilson. "As we continue to evolve our business, Owais and Maria will be instrumental in helping us build the digital vision and strategy for the overall Atari brand."
Wilson added, "Robert is accomplished financial executive who brings a significant background to address our continued expansion into emerging platforms. His financial transaction experience will also be important as Atari continues to grow."
Ms. Pacheco is the only hire with previous ties to the games industry, having previously served a vice president of marketing for Vivendi Games Mobile.
