Earlier today we reported that Microsoft’s Don Mattrick would be leaving the company in order to take on the CEO role at Zynga. We also said that an official announcement regarding the matter would come as soon as today. Well, lo and behold, here it is. Zynga has officially come out and announced Don Mattrick as the company’s new CEO, with former CEO Mark Pincus staying on as the Chief Product Officer. Mattrick’s new role as CEO and a member of the Board of Directors goes into effect on July 8th (next Monday).
“[Don] deeply understands the value of a network and the importance of creating lifelong consumer relationships,” said Pincus. “He turned Xbox into the world’s largest console-gaming network, growing its installed base from 10 to 80 million and transformed that business from deep losses to substantial profits. And he has grown the Xbox Live player network from 6 to 50 million active members in 41 countries. Going forward, I’ll continue in my role as Chairman and Chief Product Officer. I’m excited to partner with Don and the rest of our team to return Zynga to its leadership role in inventing and growing Play as a core human experience.”
“I joined Zynga because I believe that Mark’s pioneering vision and mission to connect the world through games is just getting started,” said Don Mattrick. “Zynga is a great business that has yet to realize its full potential. I’m proud to partner with Mark to deliver high-quality, fun, social games wherever people want to play.”