Don Mattrick leaves Microsoft - Confirmed

by: John - posted: 7/1/2013 2:18:00 PM

Don Mattrick was the face of Xbox for the last few years. He was the president of Microsoft's Interactive Entertainment unit. Well, those days are probably over.

All Things D is reporting that Mr. Mattrick is out and possibly headed to Zynga. He leaves after a tumultuous few months with the Xbox One's reveal and the reversal of the DRM policies the console had. One has to wonder why he'd go to Zynga, but they probably threw a bunch of money at him.

These are interesting times for Microsoft with the rumored huge restructuring and now they are losing their head man in the Xbox division. We should have an official announcement today and this story will be updated once it has been released.

Update (Chuck)- Zynga has issued a press released with the official confirmation of Don Mattrick joining the company.  No word on how many money trucks/stock options were required to pry Mr. Mattrick from Microsoft.

Zynga Names Don Mattrick Chief Executive Officer

   Founder Mark Pincus to Continue as Chairman of the Board and
                       Chief Product Officer

SAN FRANCISCO, July 1, 2013 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Zynga Inc.
(Nasdaq:ZNGA), a leading provider of social game services, today
announced that the Company has appointed Don Mattrick as Chief
Executive Officer and a member of the Board of Directors, effective
July 8, 2013. Mattrick has been at the forefront of the industry and
brings more than 30 years of executive experience developing, building
and managing profitable entertainment businesses. Mark Pincus, Zynga's
founding chief executive officer, remains Chairman of the Board of
Directors and Chief Product Officer of the Company.

Photos accompanying this release are available at

http://www.globenewswire.com/newsroom/prs/?pkgid=19665http://www.globen
ewswire.com/newsroom/prs/?pkgid=19666

"Don is unique in the game business," said Mark Pincus, Founder,
Chairman and Chief Product Officer. "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. He deeply understands the value of a
network and the importance of creating lifelong consumer relationships.
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."

"In its short history, Zynga has redefined entertainment and brought
social gaming to the mainstream. More than 1 billion people across web
and mobile have installed Zynga games, and franchises like FarmVille
and Words With Friends have become a part of people's daily lives,"
said Mattrick. "I joined Zynga because I believe that Mark's pioneering
vision and mission to connect the world through games is just getting
started. 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."

Mattrick, 49, spent six years at Microsoft -- the last three as
president of the Interactive Entertainment Business. In that role, he
was responsible for the team that grew Microsoft's Xbox 360 global
installed base by 700 percent to more than 75 million consoles. During
his six-year tenure at Microsoft, Mattrick also oversaw businesses and
services focused on consumer products that included the groundbreaking
Kinect entertainment products and PC and mobile interactive
entertainment.

Mattrick served as the president of Worldwide Studios at Electronic
Arts. During his 15-year career at Electronic Arts, Mattrick helped
develop and scale the company's leading global game franchises and
brands including "Need for Speed," "FIFA" and "The Sims." At age 17,
Mattrick founded his first company, Distinctive Software, which was
acquired by Electronic Arts in 1991.

"Mark took the lead in working with the entire board to recruit Don to
Zynga," said John Doerr, Member of the Zynga Board of Directors and
General Partner at Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers. "All of us at
Zynga -- and no one more than Mark -- are thrilled Don is joining our
mission to connect the world through games. This is a win for the
people who play our games, the talented employees who make them and the
investors who believe in our long-term value. This also is a win for
Mark, who can devote his full attention to conceiving and building the
best social games in the world."

Mattrick will report directly to the Board and was unanimously
appointed CEO. Mattrick will join Pincus in a newly formed Executive
Committee to manage the operations and affairs of the Company between
Board meetings.

Second Quarter Conference Call

Zynga also announced that the Company will hold a conference call to
discuss financial results for its second quarter on Thursday, July 25,
2013, at 2:00 p.m. Pacific Time (5:00 p.m. Eastern Time), following the
release of its financial results after the close of market. The live
webcast of Zynga's earnings conference call can be accessed at
investor.zynga.com. Following the call, a replay of the webcast will be
available through the website.

Additional Quotes for Media Use

"Don Mattrick joining Zynga as its CEO is a spectacular coup for the
company, its shareholders and for Mark. There is not another executive
in the world who could bring as much experience, knowledge and success
in the gaming space. This is an incredible vote of confidence in the
future prospects for Zynga. With Don as CEO, Mark will be free to focus
his time developing transformative products for players." --Jeffrey
Katzenberg, Member of the Zynga Board of Directors and Chief Executive
Officer and Director of DreamWorks Animation SKG.

"As a founder, I know from experience that the right successor has the
potential to massively accelerate the growth of a company. Don
Mattrick's strong track record demonstrates that he can balance big
picture vision with world-class execution. His skills are highly
complementary to Mark, and I look forward to seeing their partnership
in action." -- Reid Hoffman, Member of the Zynga Board of Directors and
Executive Chairman and Co-Founder of LinkedIn Corporation.

"Don is an incredibly talented leader who plays to win. He is someone
who's constantly attracting great talent and coaching teams towards
success. I've long admired the rigor and passion he brings to an
industry that he, frankly, helped create. Don loves games and gives
developers the freedom they need to surprise and delight players; but
he also knows better than anyone that an innovative games company is a
demanding and complex enterprise. Few people are up to that; Don is."
--Bing Gordon, Member of the Zynga Board of Directors and General
Partner at Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers.

"Mark has been a phenomenal leader, founding and building a great
company. He has an incredible feel for building exceptional products.
Having spent time with Don, his understanding of the creative process
coupled with his operating skill will make him a great partner for
Mark." --Bill Campbell, Chairman of the Board and former Chief
Executive Officer of Intuit.

Don Mattrick Biographical Information

Don Mattrick will become the Chief Executive Officer of Zynga, joining
the team on July 8, 2013, to further the company's mission of
connecting the world through games. As an industry-leading executive in
entertainment, games and consumer products, Don has established himself
during a 30-year career as a world-class leader of game, platform and
team development.

Don, 49, spent six years at Microsoft -- the last three as president of
the Interactive Entertainment Business. In that role, he was
responsible for the team that grew Microsoft's Xbox 360 global
installed base by 700 percent to nearly 75 million consoles and Xbox
Live membership from 6 million to nearly 50 million subscribers in 41
countries. During his six-year tenure at Microsoft, Don also oversaw
businesses and services focused on consumer products that included PC
and mobile interactive entertainment and the groundbreaking Kinect
entertainment products -- which was released in November 2010 and set a
Guinness World Record for fastest-selling consumer electronic device in
the first 60 days. Don is widely recognized for transforming the
Microsoft Interactive Entertainment Business from an operating loss
into a sustained and profitable business.

Don also served as the president of Worldwide Studios at Electronic
Arts. During his 15-year career at Electronic Arts, Don helped develop
and scale the company's leading global game franchises and brands
including "Need for Speed," "FIFA" and "The Sims." Previously, he
oversaw EA's global studios and research and development in several
major sites, including Redwood Shores, Calif. (Silicon Valley), Los
Angeles, EA Tiburon in Florida, EA Canada in Vancouver, British
Columbia, and Montreal, and EA U.K. in England. At age 17, Don founded
his first company, Distinctive Software, which was acquired by
Electronic Arts in 1991 and subsequently became EA Canada.

Fortune Magazine named Don one of the "Smartest People in Tech 2011,"
highlighting his leadership in growing the Xbox business, including
driving new consumer innovations such as Kinect. In May 2012, Don was
named one of CNN Money's top 10 brilliant technology visionaries.

Raised in Vancouver, British Columbia, Mattrick is married with two
children. In acknowledgement of his role in building the interactive
entertainment business in Canada and the active development of industry
links with the University of British Columbia, Mattrick received the
UBC Award as an Honorary Fellow from the Sauder School of Business and
was awarded the highest honor Simon Fraser University can bestow, the
Doctor of Laws. He has served on several public and private boards,
including the advisory board for USC School of Cinematic Arts.

About Zynga Inc.

Zynga Inc. (ZNGA) is a leading provider of social game services with
approximately 250 million monthly active users playing its games as of
March 31, 2013, which include Zynga Poker, Words With Friends, Scramble
With Friends, Gems With Friends, Draw Something, FarmVille 2,
ChefVille, CityVille, Bubble Safari and Ruby Blast. Zynga's games are
available on a number of global platforms, including Facebook,
Zynga.com, Apple iOS and Google Android. Zynga is headquartered in San
Francisco, California. Learn more about Zynga at http://blog.zynga.com
or follow us on Twitter and Facebook.

The Zynga Inc. logo is available at
http://www.globenewswire.com/newsroom/prs/?pkgid=11743

Forward-Looking Statement

This release contains forward-looking statements relating to, among
other things, the appointment of Don Mattrick as our new Chief
Executive Officer and as a member of our board of directors. These
forward-looking statements are subject to a number of risks,
uncertainties and assumptions. Our actual results could differ
materially from those predicted or implied. More information about the
risks Zynga faces is included in our quarterly and annual reports filed
with the SEC, copies of which may be obtained at
http://investor.zynga.com or the SEC's web site at www.sec.gov. Undue
reliance should not be placed on the forward-looking statements in this
release. We assume no obligation to update such statements.

Disclosure Using Social Media Channels

Zynga announces material information to its investors using SEC
filings, press releases, public conference calls, webcasts and social
media channels. Zynga encourages investors, the media, players and
others interested in Zynga to review the information posted on the
company blog (http://zyngablog.typepad.com/zynga/), the company
Facebook site (https://facebook.com/Zynga) and the company twitter
account (https://twitter.com/Zynga). Investors, the media, players or
other interested parties can subscribe to the company blog and twitter
feed at the addresses listed above. Any updates to the list of social
media channels Zynga will use to announce material information will be
posted on the Investor Relations page of the company's website at
http://investor.zynga.com

The photos are also available at Newscom, www.newscom.com, and via AP