Bay-Area mobile gaming firm Zynga (NASDAQ:ZNGA) announced yesterday that Vancouver native Don Mattrick will take over as the company’s new CEO.
Prior to accepting the top job at Zynga – best known for creating the games Farmville and Words With Friends – Mattrick was president of Microsoft’s (NASDAQ:MSFT) interactive and entertainment department. Mattrick was based in the company’s head office in Redmond, Washington, and divided his time between his Vancouver and Washington homes. During his tenure at Microsoft, which began in 2007, Mattrick oversaw the Xbox division, reportedly growing sales of the console 700% to 75 million units.
Mattrick will be taking over for Zynga co-founder Mark Pincus, who will stay on as chairman of the board and chief product officer,
“Don [Mattrick] is unique in the game business. He can execute in multiple domains – hardware, software and network, and he’s been the person responsible for game franchises like Need for Speed, FIFA and The Sims. He’s one of the top executives in the overall entertainment business and he’s a great coach who has inspired people to do their best work and build strong, productive teams,” said Pincus.
Prior to working at Microsoft, Mattrick served as president of Electronic Arts (NASDAQ:EA).
