Playlist hires former Facebook exec Van Natta as CEO

by Staff, Brand Republic 11-Nov-08, 11:55

SAN FRANCISCO - Social media network Playlist has appointed former Facebook executive Owen Van Natta as chief executive officer.

Van Natta will be responsible for building on Playlist's success by working with Project Playlist, the online music community that helps users find music legally over the internet.

At Facebook, Van Natta served as chief operating officer and chief revenue officer.

Prior to Facebook, he was vice president of worldwide business and corporate development at Amazon.com and was part of the founding team of A9.com, the Amazon search company.

Van Natta said: "Project Playlist's unprecedented growth proves that consumers are looking for new ways to discover, share, and buy music on the web.

"Playlist, Inc. is well-positioned to revolutionize the music industry for consumers, artists and record labels. We want to offer users a great experience, and at the same time, define a new industry model for monetizing music on the Internet."

Separately, New York-based investment firm Pilot Group has invested in Playlist and Bob Pittman, a founding member of the firm, has joined the Playlist board of directors.

Prior to Pilot Group, Pittman served as chief executive officer of AOL Time Warner. He was also the creator and former chief executive of MTV Networks.