Dan Rosensweig revealed today that he is leaving his position as CEO of Activision's Guitar Hero business. David Haddad, Chief Operating Officer of Activision's Guitar Hero division, is assuming all the main responsibilities for the business. Rosensweig is moving on to assume responsibilities of president and CEO of the online textbook rental company Chegg.com.
"We would like to thank Dan for his contributions to the Guitar Hero business," stated Mike Griffith. "We widened our leadership in the music gaming genre in 2009. And now, as we enter 2010, David Haddad, with his broad consumer product and digital/online experience, is the right leader to drive our agenda to improve profitability."
Haddad has worked in online and entertainment industries for the past 25 years. He held executive management positions for companies like Walt Disney and Liveplanet, Inc. before later becoming division president for Mattel. Haddad later became the Chief Operating Officer of Vivendi Games' Sierra Online division, where he oversaw global product marketing, sales, live production, and business development initiatives for online games and console downloadable titles before joining Activision.
"The opportunity to lead one of Silicon Valley's fastest growing companies that offers real financial value to students is unparalleled," said Rosensweig. "Chegg.com has a powerful business model and, I believe, the opportunity to transform the textbook industry."
Rosensweig spent 18 years at Ziff-Davis, working in positions like president of the Ziff-Davis Internet Publishing group, vice president and publisher of PC Magazine and president and CEO of ZDNet. He later became Chief Operating Officer at Yahoo from 2002-2006, where he oversaw the company's worldwide operations including product development, marketing and ad sales. He's been CEO and President of Guitar Hero since that time, helping launch Guitar Hero 5, Band Hero and DJ Hero in 2009.
