Amazon is looking for an advertising sales leader to take its growing video ads business to the next level, several knowledgeable sources told Business Insider.
Amazon SVP Paul Kotas and global ad sales VP Alan Moss are looking for a senior-level person who would report to Moss. People familiar with the process said the role was described as a VP overseeing Amazon’s forthcoming Prime Video ads tier as well as its other video offerings, including its growing sports business, its free, ad-supported service Freevee, and gaming-focused streaming platform Twitch.
The person’s seniority and place in the org chart hasn’t been determined and is likely to depend on their experience level, some of the people familiar said.
The company has already made some related hires as it seeks to build up its ad sales firepower, having just brought on Jeremy Helfand, an EVP at Disney, as VP and global head of advertising for Prime Video; and Jenny Burke from NBCUniversal, where she was EVP, advertising strategy.
“Jenny has served as an invaluable leader with us for over two decades, creating an indelible impact on the marketplace. We are so grateful for her partnership and wish her the best of luck in her new role,” Mark Marshall, chairman of global advertising and partnerships at NBCUniversal, said over email.
Amazon is known to keep a tight lid on such searches, but sources believe it’s a top priority, given the company has an early 2024 launch date for the Prime Video ads tier. It’s already reached a 3-year deal with IPG Mediabrands to connect its clients with Prime Video ads.
There’s no shortage of people with deep TV experience who would be available for such a role, given recent consolidation in the industry. People Amazon has approached include Krishan Bhatia, who’s leaving his position as NBCUniversal’s chief business officer this year; former Warner Bros. Discovery’s Todd Braverman, who landed as Nexstar Media Group’s sales chief in January; former WBD EVP Jim Keller; and former NBCU ad sales president Laura Molen.
Other people that sources suggested were likely to have been approached include WarnerMedia’s former sales and marketing EVP Joe Hogan and Jeremi Gorman, who is Netflix’s former ad sales chief and an Amazon alum.
A successful candidate will have to mesh with Amazon’s distinct culture, which has been called cutthroat and exacting, and which sources said was a turnoff for some. They’ll also have to bring a deep knowledge of the video ad world while understanding how video fits into the rest of Amazon’s ads business and the overall company, of which advertising is still a relatively small part.
Amazon also isn’t the only platform hiring for a top salesperson — Roku is looking to fill the role left vacant when its ad sales chief Alison Levin left for NBCUniversal earlier this year.
The exec search comes as Amazon is joining the race by streamers including Netflix and Disney+ to take a bite out of the roughly $70 billion TV ad market. Along with plans to bring ads to Prime Video, Amazon is also learning the TV business via NFL’s Thursday Night Football, for which it paid $11 billion for the rights. It’s also eyeing NBA rights starting in 2025.
The person Amazon hires will have an enticing offering to take to advertisers when Prime Video turns on ads, as it promises to reach more than 115 million monthly users. Advertisers are eager to have another place to reach streaming viewers at scale and see Prime Video’s entry as helping push down prices at rival streamers.
Amazon’s evolving ad business has grown quickly, nearing $38 billion in 2022 and putting Amazon third behind Google and Meta in share of the global digital ad market.
It has expanded beyond performance-based advertising that leverages its e-commerce sales data, and has been going after TV ad budgets by trying to convince TV advertisers that they can build a their brands on Amazon, even if they don’t sell products there. To that end, Amazon has hired a lot of heavy hitters from the media and advertising worlds, like Disney and ESPN vet Danielle Carney, who heads up NFL ad sales; and Amy Armstrong from ad agency Initiative — which is Amazon’s media agency.
Moss has been trying to replicate the approach taken by his alma mater Google in building a business that lets advertisers target consumers at every step of the purchase journey. Moss has been described as a quiet, behind-the-scenes leader, and Amazon may be looking for a more visible exec with an extensive TV ad sales background with strong client relationships.
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