IndustryGamers - Informing the Games Industry

Breaking: John Pleasants Leaves EA to Become CEO of Playdom

Posted June 18, 2009 by James Brightman

Electronic Arts COO was just talking about the big potential for social gaming and how EA is looking to make more investments in that space. He won't have anything to do with it, though, unless EA wants to acquire Playdom. The largest game developer on MySpace confirmed today that Pleasants has accepted an offer to head the company as its CEO. Meanwhile, co-founder and current CEO Dan Yue will take the position of Chief Product Officer, which will allow him to continue to oversee the development of games from Playdom's two studios while shaping overall product strategy. 

“I’m thrilled to join Playdom. Online gaming is the fastest-growing sector of the gaming industry, and social gaming, in particular, is transforming the way people play and experience games,” Pleasants commented. “With its expertise understanding player behavior, Playdom is uniquely well positioned to lead the industry. Playdom is also an angel- and self-funded growth company, making it a standout in any industry.” 

Added Yue, “We’re experiencing tremendous growth in all areas of our business. John’s operational expertise and strong industry relationships will be key to scaling the company quickly and forging the right partnerships. Moreover, John’s vision for the future of social gaming aligns strongly with my own. I look forward to working closely with him to deliver a bigger, bolder social gaming experience to our players.” 

As the head of global publishing at EA, Pleasants was responsible for overseeing all consumer-facing businesses, including Pogo, Rupture and Mobile Games, and he spearheaded the publisher's social gaming initiatives while also advocating for a “games as a service” business model. Pleasants' previous experience was outside the gaming industry – he served as President and CEO of Revolution Heath and Ticketmaster, and held senior management roles with Evite, Match.com and CitySearch. 

Mountain View, CA-based Playdom currently has over 20 million active monthly users.

IndustryGamers thinks this is a great move for Playdom. Pleasants is clearly passionate about the social gaming space and he has the leadership ability to take Playdom to the next level. 

We've contacted EA to inquire about who will take up the COO role at the publisher now, and we'll be sure to let you know. Update: John Schappert has left Microsoft to return to EA and fill the COO position.

James Brightman has been covering the games industry since 2003 and has been an avid gamer ever since the days of Atari and Intellivision. He was previously the EIC of GameDaily Biz.